47 



cepcion, so much so that the great bulk of the fish taken by the Wil- 

 mington fishermen off" Santa Catalina Island, for the supply of Los 

 Angeles, consists, Professor Jordan informs me, of this fish. The few 

 that have been taken in Monterey and even in Tomales bays must 

 be regarded only as stragglers from the crowd. Its chief food is 

 Crustacea. It reaches about a foot in length and three pounds in 

 weight, and ranks high as a pan fish. 



In color it is gray, the ventral fins are covered with scales, the 

 form is a regular oval and the mouth is small, with three lobed 

 incisors. 



Serranus maculofasciatus, Rock Bass — Abundant in bays from Point 

 Concepcion southward, especially at San Diego, where it is taken in 

 seines and also with hook and line from the wharves. It is not 

 found in deep water nor about islands. It feeds chiefly on Crustacea 

 and squid ; reaches a length of fifteen inches and a weight of from 

 two to three pounds, and is considered an excellent food fish. 



This species is prettily spotted all over with small round purple 

 spots, and across the body, overlying the spots, run several irregular 

 darker transverse bands. 



Serranus iiebulifer, Johnny Verde — The greenish tint of this spe- 

 cies exphiins its common name, but the lower part of the head 

 exhibits purple spots similar to those of the last species, to which, 

 despite its more elevated dorsal, it is closely related. _ It ranges to 

 Monterey, and is common in San Pedro and San Diego Bays. A 

 large example reaches twenty inches in lengtii, and a weigiit of 

 about four pounds. It is considered a good food fish. 



Serra7ius datliratus, Cabrilla, Rock Bass, Kelp Salmon — From 

 Monterey southward, becoming more abundant towards the south- 

 ern extremity of the State, and constituting one of tiie most impor- 

 tant food fishes of the Santa Barbara Islands. It lives among rocks 

 in not very deep M^ater; feeds on Crustacea and squid, and reaches 

 about the same size as the last species. It is considered one of the 

 • better class of food fish, and is only occasionally split and salted. 



Stereole2)is gigas, Jew-fish, Black Sea Bass — The Farallones appear 

 to be tlie northern limit of the range of this huge sea-perch, M'hich 

 becomes abundant southward, especially about the Santa Barbara 

 Islands. It is said to be an excellent food fish, but from its great 

 size, is not often taken. It is caught by still-fishing, not by trollixig, 

 but individuals are often taken by swallowing white-fish, etc., when 

 the latter are on the hook. Small examples are sometimes brought 

 to San Francisco market, and its occurrence within the Bay of San 

 Francisco is on record. It reaches a weight of four to five hundred 

 pounds. 



FAM. AMMODYTID^ — SAND LANCES. 



Ammodytes jpersonatus, the sole member of this family recorded 

 from this coast, is abundant upon sandy shores from Monterey north- 

 ward. In Puget Sound it is exceedingly abundant,_swi mining about 

 bays close to shore in immense schools. Sometimes it is found 

 buried in sand between tide marks. It reaches a length of five or 

 six inches and is seldom eaten. 



The Ammodytidse have no ventral fins; the gill membranes are 

 continuous around the throat, and the vent is situated far back upon 

 the body. In the Aleutian Islands this fish is called the Candle fish. 



