128 
BULLETIN OF THE BUREAU OF FISHERIES 
the gill covers; dorsal spine bearing a filament, varying in length, frequently reaching to or past 
adipose fin; adipose fin rather small, inserted over or a little behind the middle of the base of the anal, 
its base 6.1 to 7.75 in head; caudal fin deeply forked, the upper lobe slightly the longer; anal fin 
moderate, its outer margin rather deeply concave, its base 1.43 to 1.6 in head; ventral fin inserted 
about equidistant from the tip of the snout and the base of caudal; pectoral spine bearing a com- 
pressed filament, reaching nearly or quite opposite the origin of the anal, the spine 1.15 to 1.48 in head. 
Color, top of head and back uniform steel blue, blending into bronze; sides silvery; under- 
neath white; dorsal fin white or bluish, adipose blue, caudal dusky or gray, anal white or pale blue, 
ventrals plain white or slightly dusky, pectorals more or less dusky. 
The Chesapeake Bay collection contains five female specimens, ranging in length from 
325 to 565 millimeters ( 12 % to 22 % inches). The gaff -topsail catfish is characterized by the reduced 
number of barbels or whiskers, only two pairs — the maxiliary and mandibular barbels — being 
present. Other characters that readily distinguish this fish from all others of the Atlantic coast of 
America are the long, flat, ribbon-shaped filaments borne by the dorsal and pectoral spines. The 
filament on the dorsal often projects far above the surface of the water as the fish swims, and it is 
from this character and habit that the fish has received the name “gaff -topsail catfish.” 
The stomachs of the specimens at hand were not examined for food content, as the fish were 
taken from a pound net where the usual foods may not have been available and where other foods 
probably were taken. According to Gudger (1918, p. 39), the principal food of the gaff-topsail 
Fig. 69 . — Felichthys Jelis 
catfish at Beaufort, N. C., consists of crabs, supplemented by an occasional shrimp or fish or both. 
According to the same author, while carrying eggs and young in the mouth the male fish does not 
feed at all. 
The sexual organs of our specimens taken on May 17, 1921, at Lynnhaven Roads, Va., are 
completely collapsed, as if the fish had spawned shortly before being captured. The ovaries of two 
fish caught in the same locality on May 25, 1922, contained eggs in various stages of development, as 
follows: A fish 557 millimeters in total length contained 5 eggs about 20 millimeters in diameter, 51 
eggs 10 to 12 millimeters, 16 eggs 8 to 9.5 millimeters, 30 eggs 5.5 to 7.5 millimeters, and 50 eggs 
3 to 5 millimeters, all opaque. In addition many undeveloped, translucent eggs, from less than 3 to 6 
millimeters in diameter also were present. A fish 537 millimeters long contained 25 eggs 10 to 12 
millimeters in diameter, 9 eggs 7.5 to 9 millimeters, 17 eggs 5 to 7 millimeters, and 21 eggs 3 to 4 
millimeters, all of which were opaque. In addition about 22 translucent eggs, 2 to 4 millimeters in 
diameter, were present. A fish 476 millimeters in total length, taken on June 25, 1924, in the lower 
Potomac, contained numerous immature translucent eggs 2 to 4 millimeters in diameter. 
The breeding season at Beaufort, N. C., according to Gudger (1918, p. 30-32), occurs during 
the last half of May and to a lesser extent in June. The eggs of the catfish are very large; Gudger 
(1918, p. 35) gives the size as varying from 15 to 25 millimeters (three-fifths to 1 inch) in diameter. 
After they are laid and fertilized the eggs are transferred in some mysterious manner to the mouth of 
the male, where they are held until hatched and where the young are retained for some time after 
hatching. The largest number of eggs found in the mouth of one fish by Gudger (1918, p. 36) was 
