Fishing in North Carolina. 109 



catfish sink the bait near the bottom in rivers; 

 while in lakes and ponds the bait should be near 

 the surface. Why this is so I do not profess 

 to know. 



Authority says: "The spawning occurs in 

 summer, the large eggs being first deposited in 

 a sandy depression, and subsequently taken into 

 the mouth of one of the parents, where they re- 

 main until hatching ensues; the young are re- 

 tained in the parent's mouth for sometime after 

 hatching." This has reference to the sea catfish 

 only, and I cannot believe the story because a 

 catfish is too often occupied with swallowing 

 something; for the safety of those young ones 

 in his mouth. 



In our sounds and rivers the catfish spawn 

 in June or July, and appear to protect their 

 eggs and young like the bass. 



And eels go to the sea to spawn, and then die 

 before getting back to fresh water ; thus revers- 

 ing the performance of shad. The young eels 

 go to fresh water in their second year, and re- 

 main there until mature, where, unfortunately 

 for the angler, is its real home in adult life. 



