104 HUNTING AND FISHING IN FLORIDA. 
bay among the reefs is probably one of the finest fishing grounds on 
the Florida coast. Tarpon are abundant in the bay and run up 
many of the rivers. Of course the Tarpon is the king of all Florida 
game fishes, and phlegmatic indeed must be the man who does not 
feel a thrill of excitement when the magnificent fish hurls himself 
completely out of the water again and again, shaking his head 
savagely in his frantic efforts to dislodge the hook. May and June 
are the best months for Tarpon fishing ; but good sport may be had in 
April and sometimes in March, and a few fish are taken during the 
winter months by patient and enthusiastic fishermen. ‘Tarpon are 
numerous in Biscayne Bay, and very fine fishing may sometimes be 
had at Steamboat Creek at the south end of the bay. 
All kinds of fishing may be had in and about Biscayne Bay. 
Kingfish are unusually abundant; perhaps the very best placefor King- 
fish is near the black and white channel buoy off Cape Florida. For 
those who enjoy bottom fishing and want large fish and plenty of 
them, I would advise them to try in the vicinity of Alligator Reef 
Lighthouse, where the fishing is most excellent. 
Crocodiles are to be found in Biscayne Bay, but in most cases 
they are very shy and difficult to shoot. Continuing farther south 
from Card Sound into Barnes Sound, crocodiles are more numerous 
and not nearly so shy. From Cutler going south, the road, if it may 
be called one, is very bad, and one enters a country which is rarely 
visited by a white man. It is rocky pine land, bordered by a low 
and wide marshy prairie and occasional mangrove swamps. In 
these prairies deer are abundant and very tame. They are rarely 
hunted, as but few white men have ever been in this country, and it 
is too far away from any settlement for an Indian to carry out game 
to sell. 
Deer are numerous and wolves commence to appear in some places 
east of Whitewater Bay. A few panthers wander about this country, 
but they are not numerous. In some of the ponds and marshes alli- 
gators are plentiful, and many of them are large, as that country is 
seldom visited by hunters. Deer and bears were at one time com- 
mon on the larger keys, but there are few left on them now. 
