Giant Fish of Florida 
would become of such polluting offal but for services such as 
are rendered by these useful scavengers, one shudders to 
think. These catfish have no scales, their bodies being shiny, 
and sleek to the touch, but the fisherman must beware of 
insidious spikes hidden behind the fins. Any one familiar with 
the salmon will not fail to notice a similar adipose fin on 
the back of the catfish, in front of the tail, and the other 
distinctive feature is the growth of whiskers, in reality sensitive 
feelers, on the head. Many catfish are found only in the 
rivers of the warmer regions of the globe, and German and 
Austrian anglers have their own siluroid in the giant wels of so 
many continental rivers and lakes. 
In the picture will be seen a couple of sea-bream, apparently 
hovering around to pick up the leavings of the larger fish, 
and, for this or some other reason, sea-bream are very often 
caught in company with catfish. 
Catfish and buzzards are not the only scavengers of that 
coast. No tarpon that is wanted again should be left on the 
shore, for no sooner are you out of sight than every hole and 
cranny in the sand above high-water mark gives up its ghostly 
crabs, elfish little body-snatchers that creep stealthily, and 
quickly eat their way into the soft parts of the fish. Ghost- 
crabs they call them thereabouts, and phantom-like they look 
when disturbed and tearing seawards with their attenuated 
white legs held on high. 
130 
