FISH AND FISHING. 



THE FISH FAUNA OF FLORIDA. 



B. W. Evermann, in a recent pamphlet issued by the 

 U. S. Fish Commission. 



There is perhaps no State in the Union 

 whose fishes have attracted more general 

 attention than have those of Florida. The 

 interest in the fishes of this State is shared 

 by the commercial fishermen, the angler, 

 and the ichthyologist. The number of 

 species that are sought because of their 

 commercial value is far greater than in any 

 other section of America. Those that are of 

 interest to the angler are more numerous 

 than any other State can boast, while the 

 richness and peculiarities of the fish fauna 

 of Florida have made this State a fasci- 

 nating field to the ichthyologist and stu- 

 dent of geographic distribution. 



The total number of species of fishes 

 known from Floridian waters is about 600, 

 or about 1/5 of the entire fish fauna 

 of America North of Panama. This num- 

 ber is far larger than can be found in any 

 other section of our country, and is due 

 to the diversity and peculiarities of the 

 climatic conditions already mentioned. The 

 Florida fish fauna may be regarded as made 

 up of at least 5 more or less distinct 

 faunas: (a) The salt water fauna of our 

 South Atlantic States, (b) the subtropical 

 fauna of the Florida Keys, (c) the Gulf of 

 Mexico fauna, (d) the fresh water fauna of 

 the Southern portion of the Lower Missis- 

 sippi Valley, and (e) the fresh water fauna 

 of the Everglades. 



These, of course, overlap more or less, 

 and in a consideration of the entire fish 

 fauna of America these regions would not 

 be regarded as constituting distinct faunal 

 areas; but for our present purpose they 

 may properly be considered as fairly dis- 

 tinct. From Fernandina Southward to 

 Biscayne bay are found most of the species 

 characteristic of the coast South of Cape 

 Flatteras. From Biscayne bay to Key 

 West and the Tortugas is found a fish 

 fauna marvelous in its multitude of species 

 and in their richness of coloration. 



Among the fishes of this region which 

 deserve special mention are the great num- 

 bers of groupers, snappers, grunts and por- 

 gies, all important food fishes; the many 

 labroid species, such as the hogfish, pud- 

 ding-wife, and the various parrot-fishes, all 

 remarkable for their brilliant coloration; 

 the many species of pipefishes, the tangs, 

 angel-fish, and chaetodonts, among them 

 several of the most gorgeous of American 

 fishes. 



The fish fauna of the Florida Keys re- 

 sembles that of Cuba very closely. Nearly 

 all the food and game fishes at Key West 

 are also found at Havana. The warm 

 waters of the Keys serve as a more or less 

 effective barrier to the passage of fishes 

 living in colder water. As a result, many 

 species are found on the East coast of 

 Florida which do not occur on the Gulf 

 coast, and vice versa. There are so many 

 species found on the West coast of Florida 

 that are not known from the East side that 

 the 2 coasts may be regarded as having 

 separate faunas. This West coast fauna 

 extends from the bay to Pensacola and 

 beyond, and is not essentially different 

 from that found elsewhere on the Gulf 

 coast. 



In the fresh waters of the Northern part 

 of the State the fishes are essentially the 

 same as occur in the streams and ponds of 

 the other Gulf States, and include several 

 species of minnows, sunfishes, catfishes, 

 suckers, Amia, and a few darters. From 

 the little that is known about the fresh 

 water fishes of the extreme Southern part 

 of the State, it is believed that the species 

 are to a large extent distinct and peculiar 

 to that region. There is great need, how- 

 ever, of further investigation in this region. 



Of the 600 species of fishes credited to 

 Florida waters about 51 are fresh water 

 species, 20 may be regarded as brackish 

 water species, and the remaining 529 con- 

 stitute the salt water fish fauna of the 

 State. 



The number of fresh water species 

 known from the State is not large. They 

 belong to the following families: 



Plromyzonida: (Lampreys) 1 



Lepisosteida (Gars) 3 



Awiidce (Bowfins) I 



Siluridce (Catfish) 8 



Catostomida (Suckers) I 



Cyprinidcz (Minnows) 7 



Luciida (Pikes) \ 2 



Pceciliidce (Killifishes) 13 



Aphredodtridce (Pirate Perch) 1 



Atherinidce (Silversides) 1 



Elasso??iidce (Pygmy Sunfishes) 1 



Centrarchidce (Sunfish and Bass) 10 



Percidce (Darters), 2 



Of these 51 species the only ones of com- 

 mercial importance are the catfishes, pikes, 

 sunfishes, and the large mouth black 

 bass. This list is remarkable in that it con- 

 tains so few of the Castostomidce, Cyprinidce, 

 and PercidcF. Each of these is a very large 

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