CERTAIN CITIZENS OF THE WARM SEA 
135 
The Porpoise in great schools move up and down the Atlantic coast during certain periods of the year. 
They are said to devour their weight in fish every forty-eight hours. 
led inevitably to the fish being dubbed by 
its common name. 
The Marlin fish, which is a close rela¬ 
tive of the Sailfish and built very much on 
the same lines, has the sharp, protruding 
snout, but the dorsal fin is much smaller. 
It is purely a pelagic species. It is an 
excellent food-fish. The Marlin is not so 
numerous as the Sailfish, nor does it grow 
to be as large in Florida waters, but it 
is gamier, and, like most of the fighting 
fishes of southern localities, has a pen¬ 
chant for leaping clear of the water in its 
struggles for freedom (Color Plate, page 
157)- 
THE DOLPHIN OF THE MARINER NOT 
THE FISH OF THE ANCIENTS 
Of the game fishes the Dolphin must be 
mentioned in the front rank. Much has 
been told of this wonderful species, and 
by the speed-loving American it is looked 
upon as one of the greatest of fishes, for 
there is probably no other citizen of the 
deep which travels so swiftly. It spends 
its entire life in the open seas. While 
idling, its movements are sluggish, but 
when in quest of its prey it moves with 
incredible rapidity, and to one observing 
its movements it appears like nothing so 
much as a dash of color in the sea—a 
yellow-blue-whitish streak that is almost 
lost in the green water (Color Plate, page 
150). 
Of all deep-water fishes, the Dolphin 
possesses the greatest power to change its 
color. A dying Dolphin affords a most 
beautiful and spectacular sight, when, 
with all the iridescence of an opal, it 
changes hue so rapidly that the brain 
cannot grasp the beauty of one color be¬ 
fore another comes into view. In life its 
general color is a blue or emerald green 
above, with brighter blue dots showing on 
the base; the under parts are silvery and 
the caudal and pectoral fins afe a clear 
yellow. It is an excellent food-fish, but, 
being not common in quantity, has little 
commercial value. It is caught usually 
only by chance, when one is fishing for 
other game fishes which inhabit the re¬ 
gions where the Dolphin lives. 
THE BONEFISH, A STEEL SPRING OF 
THE DEEP 
The Bonefish represents a single species, 
inhabiting all warm and tropical seas. It 
is considered to be among the most inde- 
