The Kingfishes 



all the bays and bayous, where it is found at all times. The croakers 

 live mostly in shallow water on grassy bottom, and feed upon crusta- 

 ceans and mollusks. They breed in the bays in early winter. They 

 reach a foot in length and are an excellent pan-fish. Commercially 

 they are caught with haul-seines. They take the hook readily and 

 fight fairly well. A slight, pliant rod with a stiffish tip, a reel, a float 

 or not as circumstances require, and hook baited with shrimp or soft 

 crab, will usually prove the proper thing. 



Colour, brassy, paler below; middle part of body with short, ir- 

 regular, dusky vertical bars crossing the lateral line; many dark brown 

 spots on side of back, irregularly placed and not forming continuous 

 streaks along rows of scales; usually some of these coalesce to form 2 

 dark streaks concurrent with the back. 



GENUS MENTICIRRHUS GILL 



The Kingfishes 



Body rather elongate, little compressed; head long, subconic, the 

 bluntish snout considerably projecting beyond the mouth, which is 

 small and horizontal; both jaws with bands of villiform teeth, the 

 outer of the upper jaw more or less enlarged; chin with a single 

 stoutish barbel; preopercle with its membranaceous edge serrulate; 

 gill-rakers short and tubercular or obsolete; dorsal spines high and 

 slender, 10 or 1 1 in number; soft dorsal long and low; caudal fin with 

 the lower lobe rounded, the upper sharp; anal with a single weak 

 spine; no air-bladder; lower pharyngeals separate, the teeth varying 

 from sharp to very obtuse. 



This genus is one of the most important of the family, containing 

 9 species, all American. Only a few are of food-value. 



a. Gill-rakers obsolete, reduced to tubercular prominences. 



b> Mouth rather large, the maxillary reaching middle of eye, 2j to } in 



head. 

 c. Outer teeth of upper jaw decidedly enlarged ; spinous dorsal not 



much elevated, the longest not usually reaching front of soft 



dorsal, ij to \\ in head americanus, 465 



cc. Outer teeth of upper jaw less enlarged; spinous dorsal elevated, 



the longest spine reaching past front of soft dorsal, i in head. 



saxatilis, 465 



464 



