THE LIVING WORLD. 
IOI 
dorsal fin, and the anterior one just in front of the anterior dorsal fin; it has 
also gill fins; all of the fins are spiny. The pharyngeal bones are joined into 
a triangle studded with teeth, and it is by means of these bones that the 
fish makes the noise which resembles the muffled beat of a drum. It has 
queer variations at different stages of its growth; its fins are largest when it 
is youngest, and the uniform silver-gray of the adult is preceded in the 
younger fish by several broad, dark, bar-like markings. It is to be found where 
the oyster makes its bed, and occasions great loss to the oysterman; it is 
a regular Goth, for it is not satisfied with what it requires for food, but 
destroys the oyster with the most wanton cruelty. 
The fresh-water Drum (. Haplodinotus grunniens or Sheepshead ), is to be 
found in many of our rivers and lakes. It is smaller than its marine 
relative, and its chin is unadorned by 
barbels. By some its flesh is con¬ 
sidered a delicacy, while others hold 
it in little esteem. 
The Scup, Scuppang, or New 
York Porgy ( Stenotomus chrysops , 
or argyrops), is caught in great quan¬ 
tities, and is marketable, although 
probably undervalued. 
The Sheepshead ( Diplodus pro- 
batocephalus ) is highly esteemed at 
the South, and its capture is always a 
delight to the home angler. 
The Red Snapper (. Lutjanus 
vivanus ), is another Southern fish, 
whose exportation has been rendered 
possible by our increasingly rapid 
transit. Those who are fond of 
fish regard the red snapper as a 
great delicacy, and pay in proportion 
for it. 
The Striped Bass ( Roccus line- 
atus ) is • a well-known fish of large 
size, averaging twenty pounds in weight 
and having a proportional length. Its 
flesh is highly prized, and though they 
are generally caught with a seine, 
lucky anglers at times enjoy the excit¬ 
ing sport of capturing them with the hook. The fresh water striped bass , or 
white bass (. Roccus chrysops) is esteemed alike by the sportsman and by the 
epicure. Most of the fishing stories of the Northwest have this fish for their 
subject. . . 1 , , 
The Common Ocean Sun-fish is almost circular, and its fins look as though 
they had accidentally been stuck into the truncated body. It sometimes weighs 
a quarter of a ton, and has been found five feet long by four feet thick. It is 
brilliantly phosphorescent, and looks like a living ball of fire. Its oil is valued 
by seamen as a panacea for bruises. 
drummers (Pogonias chromis ). 
