148 FISHERY INDUSTRIES OF THE UNITED STATES. 



FISHERIES, BY APPARATUS. 



In the vessel fisheries of western Florida, in which seven counties 

 are represented, the forms of apparatus in use included haul seines, 

 gill nets, otter trawls, lines, dip nets, sponge apparatus, and oyster 

 tongs. The total yield from all forms of apparatus used on vessels 

 was 10,941,646 pounds, valued at $605,899. The catch with lines 

 was 10,276,677 pounds, valued at $546,040, of which 6,0 11 ,297 pounds, 

 valued at $373,124, were red snapper, and 4,162,160 pounds, valued 

 at $167,977, were groupers. The catch of shrimp with otter trawls, 

 which are rapidly supplanting haul seines in this fishery, amounted 

 to 343,219 pounds, with a value of $8,701. Bluefish, mullet, pom- 

 pano, and Spanish mackerel were taken with seines to the amount 

 of 133,848 pounds, valued at $9,374; oysters with tongs, 76,461 

 pounds, valued at $4,822; sponges with sponge apparatus, 43,191 

 pounds, valued at $32,952; turtles with gill nets, 40,250 pounds, 

 valued at $2,610, and sea crawfish with dip nets, 28,000 pounds, 

 valued at $1,400. Vessel operations with semes, gill nets, dip nets, 

 and sponge apparatus were confined to Monroe County. 



In the shore or boat fisheries, gill nets were the most productive 

 form of apparatus, the catch amounting to 20,068,013 pounds, 

 valued at $1,009,315. Mullet was the principal species taken, 

 amounting to 15,340,486 pounds, valued at $674,949. The catch 

 with semes was 8,535,648 pounds, valued at $440,971. The mullet 

 is again the principal species, other important species being Spanish 

 mackerel, squeteagues, and sheepshead. 



As in 1902, the stop-net fisheries ranked third in quantity of 

 products, the catch amounting to 3,632,397 pounds, valued at 

 $151,077. The principal species taken in this fishery were mullet, 

 redfish, and sheepshead. The catch with lines was 3,582,153 pounds, 

 valued at $195,560, the principal species taken by this apparatus being 

 red snapper and groupers. The catch with otter trawls, confined to 

 shrimp, was 2,907,249 pounds, valued at $72,707; of oysters with 

 tongs, 2,539,481 pounds, valued at $116,998; with trammel nets 

 made up of miscellaneous species, 1,499,550 pounds, valued at 

 $95,334; of sponges with sponge apparatus, 408,997 pounds, valued 

 at $692,203; of sea crawfiali with dip nets, 283,915 pounds, valued 

 at $14,164; and with other minor apparatus, 354,590 pounds, valued 

 at $26,135. The total yield from all forms of apparatus used in the 

 shore or boat fisheries was 43,811,993 pounds, valued at $2,814,464. 



The products of the vessel and shore or boat fisheries are shown 

 separately by counties in the following tables: 



