FISHES OF THE PACIFIC COAST 43 



esteemed game fishes. I have never seen one over 

 twenty pounds in weight, and the average fish is 

 about eight pounds. It is the humming-bird of the 

 fishes, quick as a flash, dashing here and there, and 

 with its coat of many colors, a thing of incomparable 

 beauty. It is short and very thick-set, the upper 

 portion a vivid blue, the lower silver, with dark lines 

 lengthwise; the tail is always in motion, wriggling 

 violently and sending the little fish along at a pro- 

 digious rate of speed. When taken from the water 

 it is seen to be enveloped in a marvelous investment 

 of color, so that it gleams and scintillates like a hum- 

 ming-bird. It is very tame, approaches the boat, and 

 is taken with the 3-6 tackle described, or a heavy eight- 

 ounce trout rod for small ones, though the twenty- 

 pounder referred to was played for one hour on a nine- 

 ounce rod and made a most extraordinary fight. The 

 charm of the bonito as a game fish lies in the fact that 

 it plays on the surface almost entirely and rarely sulks. 

 The best fishing-ground for the bonito is two miles off 

 Avalon Bay, California, where it is found in Company 

 with the long-fin tuna and the " yellow-fin." It 

 rarely, if ever, approaches the islands and is never 

 found near the mainland beaches or surf. 



It is caught in deep blue water, but on the surface, 

 either by trolling or by casting when the fish are lo- 

 cated, and it can be kept around the boat by chumming. 

 Its habits are not definitely known, but it comes north 

 in spring, leaves in winter, and doubtless deposits its 

 spawn on the surface of the Santa Catalina channel. 



