386 
ORDERS OF FISHES— SPINY-FINNED FISHES 
form and colors, its table qualities are excel- 
lent, and it is a persistent breeder. Its ground 
color is silver-white, on which is laid, along the 
upper two-thirds of the body, a series of seven 
STRIPED BASS, OR ROCK-FISH. 
straight, equidistant stripes of black. It is a 
fish of large size, often attaining a weight of 85 
to 90 pounds, and its flesh is most excellent. In 
the markets it stands next, in desirability to the 
shad and bluefish. The greatest weight re- 
corded for this species (by Dr. G. Brown Goode) 
is 112 pounds. 
The centre of abundance of this fine fish is now 
from Fire Island, New York, to Albemarle Sound, 
on the coast of North Carolina. Many great 
catches have been reported, the most notable of 
which were the following: At Bridgehampton, 
N. Y., in 1874, 8,000 in less than a week; by 
Charles Ludlow, 1,672 bass at one set of a seine; 
at Norfolk, Va., 1,500 at one haul; in eight days 
of June, 1879, off Fire Island, one fisherman 
caught 10,164 pounds. j 
The full range of the Striped Bass is from the 
St. Lawrence River to New Orleans, both along 
the coast and in all the great rivers which flow 
into that region. At Cuttyhunk Island, and in 
scores of other places also, angling for this fish 2 
by heaving and hauling through the surf is 
pursued as one of the most fascinating kinds of 
sport. 
One of the greatest hits ever made by the 
United States Bureau of Fisheries in the planting 
of fish in new localities was the introduction of 
the Striped Bass into the coast waters of Cali- 
fornia. In 1879, 135 live fish were deposited 
in Karquines Strait, at Martinez, and in 1882, 
300 more were planted in Suisun Bay, near the 
first locality chosen. 
Twelve years after the first planting in San 
Francisco Bay, the markets of San Francisco 
handled 149,997 pounds of Striped Bass. At 
that time the average weight for a whole year 
was eleven pounds and the average price was 
ten cents per pound. Fish weighing as high as 
forty-nine pounds have been taken, and there 
are reasons for the belief that eventually the 
fish of California will attain as great weight as 
those of the Atlantic and the Gulf. 
The San Francisco markets now sell, annually, 
about one and one-lialf million pounds of Striped 
Bass. This fish has taken its place among an- 
glers as one of the game fishes of the California 
coast, and affords fine sport. Strange to say, 
however, it has not as yet spread beyond the 
shores of California. 
Regarding this species, the latest records of 
the United States Bureau of Fisheries are of in- 
terest. In 1897, the California markets handled 
2,949,642 pounds, worth $225,527. In 1897, 
which is the last year fully reported upon, the 
catch for the whole United States amounted to 
5,996,882 pounds, worth $440,222. 
THE PERCH AND PIKE-PERCH 
FAMILY. 
Per'ci-dae. 
The festive little Yellow Perch 1 is, to the 
small angler, the next step upward from the 
1. YELLOW PIKE-PERCH. 
2. CHAIN PICKEREL. 
sunfish — a sort of half-way fish on the road to 
the black bass and tarpon. And there is many a 
1 Per'ca fla-ves'cens. See illustration on page 383. 
