File:The American angler (1896) (18112463401).jpg

Title: The American angler
Identifier: americanangler261896harr (find matches)
Year: 1896 (1890s)
Authors: Harris, William Charles, 1830-1905, ed
Subjects: Fishing
Publisher: New York : (The Angler's Publishing Company)
Contributing Library: Harvard University, Museum of Comparative Zoology, Ernst Mayr Library
Digitizing Sponsor: Harvard University, Museum of Comparative Zoology, Ernst Mayr Library

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The Fishes of NortJi America. 261 never seen one that was over five pounds, and the average of those caught on the coasts of Florida will certainly not exceed two pounds. The tarpon or tarpum, Tarpon at/aii- tiens, is the typical representative of the big-eyed herrings. It is the largest of our so-called game-fishes taken on rod and line, and, with the exception of the jewfish, or warsaw, and the sawfish, the heaviest fish ever killed on the rod.' The angler will find no difficulty in identifying this fish, as there exists no other of its size in sub-tropical waters with which it might be confused. The long filamentous last ray of the dorsal fin will serve as a signal mark at once, as this formation does not exist in any other fishes except the gizzard-shad or hickory-shad, and in the thread-herring, which, although sometimes found in the same waters as the tarpon, seldom ex- ceed a length of twelve inches. The scale upon the tarpon is another distin- guishing mark; it is very large, and I have one in my possession which is nearly three inches in breadth. The outer or exposed portion of each scale is covered with a rich, silvery epidermis, and they are highly prized for fancy- work by the curiosity-shop keepers in Florida, who, it is said, pay about fifty cents per dozen for them, and retail them for twenty-five cents a-piece. Little is known of the habits of the tarpon. In the St. John's river, Florida, they appear in June and leave in Octo- ber, and it is thought they follow the coast-line southward and winter in the lower Florida Keys. In many of the streams of southwest Florida they are said, by the natives and others, to be residents, and do not visit the lower or briny portions of the streams. I observed them frequently in March, 1895, entering the waters of the passes
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