38 
THE BOOK OF FISHES 
mass. On the edge of the mass the Pollocks bored 
in, eating their voracious way, while from above 
the screeching sea gulls plunged down to share the 
feast. In dire panic the young Cods darted this 
way and that and broke through the line as best 
they could. 
The Pollock appear about Cape Cod early in 
May, passing Race Point so close inshore that 
they are often caught with seines on the “tide 
rips.” A favorite spawning ground is off Cape 
Ann, where they stay from early May to late 
January, and by October get so numerous at times 
that they annoy the Cod fishermen by taking the 
bait before it has time to sink to Cod depth. 
The liver of the Pollock is particularly rich in 
oil, the medicinal quality of which is not inferior 
to cod-liver oil. The Pollock, like the Haddock, is 
rarely salted. 
CODFISH (Gadus callarias) 
{For illustration see Color Plate^ 39) 
The Codfish belongs to a family which com¬ 
prises many species, including some of our most 
valuable marine fishes. The principal species are 
the Cod, Haddock, Pollock, Hake, and Cusk. 
Until recent years the annual value of the Cod 
has exceeded that of its close relatives, but during 
the past decade the Haddock fisheries have on 
several occasions assumed the first rank. The 
Cod owes its value as a food fish to its flavor, 
size, comparatively few bones, year-round abun¬ 
dance, and adaptability to dry-salting. Fishes rich 
in oil cannot be successfully dry-salted, and for 
this reason such species as the Salmon, Bluefish, 
and Mackerel, if salted at all, must be put into brine. 
The Cod is a cold-water fish and its movements 
are largely governed by changes in the water 
temperature. However, the temperature in many 
parts of the North Atlantic is so low throughout 
the year that the Codfish may be caught in equal 
abundance the year round. It is generally taken 
at depths of from 8 to 40 fathoms, but is known 
to inhabit much deeper water. It is found on our 
Atlantic coast from Cape Hatteras northward and 
is also an important species on the European coast. 
It is taken in commercial quantities in all our 
Atlantic States from New Jersey northward. Along 
the New Jersey coast it is found from late November 
until early May, but off the New England coast and 
the offshore “banks” it is caught throughout the year. 
The Cod is taken with otter trawls, trawl lines, 
hand lines, and gill nets. The larger vessels 
employ the otter trawls and are known as “trawlers.” 
Hand lines and trawl lines are the most popular 
methods of fishing, as their use requires only a 
small boat and crew. The boats range in size 
from the small motor and sail type to the large 
steam trawlers. Nearly all boats now carry engines, 
and thus are better equipped to encounter the 
frequent fogs and the violent storms which appear 
almost without warning, and which were the bane 
of fishermen of former days. 
The Cod is an omnivorous feeder, eating almost 
anything it happens upon. Its chief food appears 
to be Mollusks, crustaceans, worms, and fish, but 
articles such as jewelry, glass, stones, leather, etc., 
have been found in its stomach. Its omnivorous 
habit is responsible for the finding in its stomach 
of rare fishes and shells that otherwise might not 
have been known to exist. 
Spawning takes place along the New England 
coast from October to June. The eggs are about 
one-nineteenth of an inch in diameter and since 
t.hey float at the surface, many are cast ashore, 
eaten by birds, or otherwise destroyed. To offset 
this great destruction. Nature has rendered the 
Cod very prolific and a good-sized fish may contain 
several million eggs. 
The largest Cod recorded was more than 6 feet 
long and weighed 21 pounds, but fish weighing 
more than 75 pounds are comparatively rare. 
The usual size of those taken on the banks ranges 
between 10 and 35 pounds. The Cod is not a 
game fish, but when hooked by an angler is a 
welcome addition to his catch. 
It is said that the Cod fisheries constituted one 
of the inducements that led England to establish 
colonies in America. Their early importance was 
so great that the Cod won a place on the seal of 
the Colony of Massachusetts, and in the Massa¬ 
chusetts State House it is honored with an image. 
The Cod has been portrayed on Nova Scotian bank 
notes with the legend “Success to the Fisheries,” 
and on the early postage stamps of Newfoundland, 
where the courts have held that whenever the word 
“fish” is unqualified it must be taken to mean Codfish. 
HADDOCK (Melanogrammus aeglifinus) 
{For illustration see Color Plate^ page jg) 
The Haddock is close to the Cod both in appear¬ 
ance and in its quality as food. It may be known 
at sight by the characteristic black lateral line 
that reaches from gill to tail. The “Finnan Haddie” 
of commerce, which is said to take its name from 
Findon or Findhorn, both towns in Scotland, is 
smoked Haddock. Unlike the Cod, the Haddock is 
seldom salted. 
On the American coast the Haddock rarely 
is encountered north of the Straits of Belle Isle or 
south of Hatteras. On European shores its habitat 
extends from Icelandic waters to those of France 
and entirely surrounds the British Isles. 
More gregarious than the Cod, the Haddock 
swims in large, compact schools in its migrations 
from place to place. It is a bottom-feeder and 
has marine invertebrates for its principal diet, 
Mollusks seeming to be favored above everything 
else. The spawning season of the Haddock is from 
April to June. The average size of those caught 
is from 2 to 4 pounds, with 17 pounds as about the 
maximum. 
In recent years the catch of Haddock has been 
so large as to make it a rival of the Cod, which it 
has occasionally outranked in the annual value of 
the catch. 
WINTER FLOUNDER (Pseudopleuronectes 
americanus), and SUMMER FLOUNDER 
(Paralichthys dentatus) 
{For illustrations see Color Plate^ page 40) 
The Flounder family includes the Halibuts, the 
Flounders, and the Turbots. The Winter Flounder 
{Pseudopleuronectes americanus) belongs to the 
Flounder tribe and is an important food fish on 
the New England coast. Next to the Halibut, it 
is the most widely caught Flatfish in Atlantic 
waters, and^ranges from Labrador to Hatteras, 
being especially abundant on the Massachusetts 
and Connecticut shores. It is not a large species, 
seldom attaining to more than 20 inches in length 
and 5 pounds in weight. A large female produces 
as many as a million eggs, the spawning season 
being from February to April. This species feeds 
on shellfish, young Crabs, and similar foods. It is 
