FISHES OF CHESAPEAKE BAY 
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form the first suggestions of the reticulations that are to appear later. In specimens upwards of 
10 inches in length the pale bars still persist, and along the lower part of the sides are numerous, 
elongate, pale blotches. It is these pale blotches that are destined soon to be inclosed by darker 
lines, forming the reticulations. In the adults, 12 inches or more in length, the reticulations usually 
are well formed; the pale vertical bars along the upper parts of the sides are very indefinite or 
entirely wanting. The dark bar, which in the young passes from the snout through the eye and over 
the opercle, has entirety disappeared, but instead a dark bar extending downward from the eye has 
developed. It will be seen from the description of the pronounced changes in color that take place 
with age that a general description of the color markings can not be relied upon in classifying speci- 
mens of this fish of varying sizes. The most reliable diagnostic characters are the number of rays 
in the dorsal and anal fins and the number of branchiostegals (the riblike rays under the lower edge 
of the gill cover), as shown in the description and in the key to the species. 
The eastern pickerel, according to Kendall (1917, p. 27), feeds principally upon other fish, 
although it includes many other animals in its diet, such as frogs and other batrachians, and in 
fact any living thing moving in the water within reach and which it can capture and manage. Of 
6 stomachs from specimens taken in the tide waters of Chesapeake Bay, which we examined, 1 was 
empty, 4 contained fish only, and 1 contained fish and shrimp. The fishes (which could be recog- 
nized among the food) consisted of silversides, sticklebacks, and killifishes. 
The usual haunts of the pickerel are weedy streams and bays or coves of lakes. It is character- 
istically found among weeds, with the head slightly projecting. It often remains very quiet in this 
position for a long time, and upon the approach of small fish or other small animals it “shoots” 
forth from its hiding place with great rapidity in an effort to capture its prey. 
Spawning takes place early in the spring. Specimens taken in Severn River early in Novem- 
ber already had the sexual organs somewhat developed. Welsh (field notes) took a ripe female at 
Havre de Grace, Md., on April 11, 1914. Kendall (1917, p. 28) writes that the eggs are laid in 
glutinous strings of a yellowish-white color, which often form large masses and have been seen cling- 
ing to submerged bushes in great mats or long strings. Strings of eggs averaging from 2 to 9 feet 
in length have been reported. The eggs of the pickerel are said to hatch in about a week to 10 
days. The larvae are reported to be very small when hatched, but under favorable conditions 
and with a sufficient food supply growth proceeds fairly rapidly. Nearly all the young collected 
during the investigation were taken in a brackish, marshy pond near Solomons, Md., on April 28, 
1922. These specimens, 90 in number, ranged from 28 to 90 millimeters (134 to 334 inches) 
in length. 
As a food fish it is variously esteemed, being regarded by some as an excellent fish and by others 
as decidedly inferior. (Kendall, 1917, p. 29.) In the Chesapeake drainage it is regarded with 
much favor. 
This species is comparatively common in the tide waters of the Chesapeake, particularly at the 
head of the bay and in the lower Chester and Severn Rivers, where it is common in brackish water. 
The pickerel is one of the important food fishes of the Chesapeake drainage, where, during 1920, 
76,818 pounds, worth $16,591, were caught. The greater part of the catch was taken in fresh 
or slightly brackish water in the numerous tributaries of the Chesapeake. In Maryland, 62,208 
pounds were caught, and in Virginia 14,610 pounds. The largest part of the catch was taken in 
seines and fyke nets, followed by pound nets, gill nets, and trammel nets. 
The greater part of the catch is taken from October to April. During November it is one of 
the principal species found in the large fish markets of Baltimore and Norfolk. It commands a 
good price and sells well. 
It is reported (Kendall, 1917, p. 29) that in Massachusetts this species has reached a weight 
of 4 or 5 pounds in three years when kept in a large, warm pond, covered with lily pads and well 
stocked with young alewives. The largest pickerel of which we have a record weighed 9 pounds 
and was caught during 1909 in a New York lake. Fish weighing more than 5 pounds are rare. In 
Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries the average size of the pickerel, as caught by anglers and 
fishermen, is from 1 to 2 pounds. The following weights were secured: 1034 inches, 3.7 ounces; 
11 inches, 4.3 ounces; 1134 inches, 5.1 ounces; 12 inches, 5.8 ounces; 1634 inches, 12.6 ounces; 
1934 inches, 1 pound 8.4 ounces. 
