CUNNER, FLOUNDER, SMELT
_Tautogolabrus adspersus._ The Cunner. Family _Labridæ_, the
Wrasse fishes. Body oblong, not elevated, slender and
compressed, with cycloid scales; lateral line well developed;
mouth moderate, terminal; premaxillaries protractile;
maxillaries without supplemental bone, slipping under edge of
preorbital; head pointed; snout moderate; maxillary reaching
front of eye; preopercle serrate; opercles scaly; interopercle
naked; head 3-1/4; depth 3-1/4; D. XVIII, 10; A. III, 9; scales
6-46-12; 5 canines in front of upper jaw, about 4 in the lower;
bands of small concave teeth behind canines; preopercle with 5
rows of small scales; opercle with 4 rows, rest of head naked;
gill-rakers very short, about 6 + 11.
_Pseudopleuronectes americanus._ The Flatfish or Flounder.
Family _Pleuronectidæ_, the Flatfishes. Head 4; depth 2-1/4; D.
65; A. 48; scales 83; body elliptical, an angle above the eye;
head covered above with imbricated ctenoid scales, blind side
of head nearly naked; body dextral; teeth compressed,
incisor-like, widened toward tips, closely set, forming a
continuous cutting edge; right side of each jaw toothless;
highest dorsal rays less than length of pectorals, and more
than half the length of head; anal spines present.
_Osmerus mordax._ The Smelt. The American smelt belongs to the
family _Argentinidæ_. The body is long and slender; head 4;
depth 6-1/2; eye 4; D. 10; A. 15; P. 13; scales 68; head and
mouth large; small teeth along the edge of the maxillary;
strong, fanglike teeth on tongue and front of vomer; cardiform
teeth on palatines, pterygoids, and hyoid bone; mandible with
moderate teeth, its tip projecting; maxillary reaching middle
of eye; scales deciduous; dorsal fin rather posterior, the
ventrals under its front.
THE CUNNER
(_Tautogolabrus adspersus_)
The cunner was named _adspersus_, meaning "besprinkled," by Walbaum, in
1792, from the description of Schöpf, who simply gave its common name,
burgall, in his "History of New York Fishes," in 1788. Its specific name
is in allusion to the fancied mottled markings. It belongs to the
_Labridæ_ family. Its habitat is the North Atlantic coast from Labrador
to Sandy Hook, not appearing much farther south.
The cunner is known by various other names, as burgall, chogset,
blue-perch, etc. It has an oblong and rather robust body, its depth
being about a third of its length. Its head is about as long as the
depth of the body and pointed, with a mouth of moderate size, well
filled with unequal, conical, and sharp teeth, in several series.
The coloration is variable, though usually bluish, more or less mixed
with bronze or brown, with brassy sides and pale belly; sometimes brassy
spots on the head and back; young examples exhibit dark blotches and
markings. It resorts to the same feeding grounds as the tautog, and
about old wharves and bridges where shrimp and barnacles abound,
and in such situations is always abundant. It spawns in the early
summer, about June. Its eggs are small, about twenty-five to the inch,
and hatch in four or five days. It grows to about a pound in weight,
though it usually does not exceed half that amount.
[Illustration THE FLOUNDER]
[_Pseudopleuronectes americanus_]
[Illustration THE SMELT]
[_Osmerus mordax_]
[Illustration THE SPANISH MACKEREL]
[_Scomberomorus maculatus_]
While it is generally considered worthless, or at best a poor food-fish,
it is really a pretty fair pan-fish, and if it were not so common would
be found oftener on the table of fish lovers. As a game-fish it is
anathema with most anglers. It is despised because it responds so
readily to the angler's lures, taking the bait intended for larger and
more desirable fish. But on this very account it is ever dear to the
heart of the juvenile fisherman, who glories in his string of cunners
with as much pride and enthusiasm as his larger brothers with their
tautog, sea-bass, or striped-bass.
It can be caught with almost any kind of tackle or bait. The cunner has
no particular vanity in the way of either. A piece of liver on an
ungainly hook and twine string is as welcome as the choicest shrimp on
one of Harrison's best Sproat hooks on a snell of the finest silkworm
fibre. My heart goes out to the boy angler with his cane pole and
cut-bait, fishing for cunners. And should he in time become the most
finished salmon fisher, he will look back to his cunner days as
conducive of more real pleasure than any he may have found since. The
cunner is here recorded for the urchin with the cane pole.
THE FLOUNDER
(_Pseudopleuronectes americanus_)
There are quite a number of flounders, or flatfishes, on the East Coast,
but the one best known to juvenile anglers is the one with the long name
recorded above. It belongs to the flatfish family _Pleuronectidæ_, and
was noticed by Schöpf as early as 1788, and from his description was
named by Walbaum _Pleuronectes americanus_, which means, literally, "the
American side-swimmer." It inhabits the North Atlantic coast from
Labrador to the Chesapeake Bay, and is abundant in all the bays and
estuaries of the Middle states, where it is variously known as flatfish,
flounder, winter flounder, mud-dab, etc.
Its body is elliptical in outline, about twice as long as broad, and
very much compressed or flat. The head is small, less than a fourth of
the length of the body, with a small mouth containing closely set,
incisor-like teeth. As usual with all of the flatfishes, the dorsal and
anal fins are very long, horizontally, the color on the exposed or right
side is rusty brown, obscurely mottled, with the under or left side
white.
The flounder is partial to sheltered coves and quiet bays, preferring
bottoms of sand or mud, though sometimes it is found in rocky
situations. It is sedentary in its habits, partially burying itself in
the sand or mud, where it remains during the entire year, feeding on
minute shells, crustaceans, worms, etc.
It spawns in the spring, during March and April. The eggs are very
small, about thirty to the inch; and unlike those of most marine fishes
they do not float, but are heavy enough to sink, forming bunches or
clusters on the bottom, adhering to the weeds, etc., where they hatch in
from two to three weeks. The fry swim upright, like other fishes, with
an eye on each side of the head, but as they grow older they incline to
one side, the under eye moving gradually to the upper side, so that at
the age of three or four months both eyes are on the upper side, as the
result of a twisting of the bones of the head. The right side, being
constantly exposed to the light, becomes darker or colored, while the
left side, being deprived of light, becomes pure white.
It is an excellent food-fish, its flesh being firm, white, and of good
flavor; and as it is easily procured in winter when other fishes are
comparatively scarce, it is a favorite at that season. It rarely grows
to more than a foot in length or a pound in weight. As it can be caught
in early spring, late fall, and winter, when other fishes are absent or
not inclined to bite, the angler with light tackle may obtain
considerable sport with this fish, as it will eagerly take almost any
kind of natural bait. A bait-rod used for trout or black-bass or a light
cane rod can be utilized, with very fine linen line, a three-foot
leader, and hooks Nos. 7 or 8, on gut snells; a reel is not necessary,
but is convenient. Using as light a sinker as possible, with clam or
sandworm bait, the angler may be assured of success. The fishing may be
done from a boat anchored at low tide on muddy or grassy flats, or from
wharves or piers favorably located.
THE SMELT
(_Osmerus mordax_)
The smelts were formerly classed with the salmon family, but are now
placed in a separate one, _Argentinidæ_, in which are included a number
of allied species. To all external appearances the smelt is a true
salmonid, and differs from the trouts and salmon chiefly in the form of
the stomach and its appendages. The American or Atlantic smelt was first
described by Dr. Mitchill, in 1815, from the vicinity of New York; he
named it _mordax_, or "biting." Its habitat is along the Atlantic coast
from the Gulf of St. Lawrence to Virginia, but it is most abundant
northward. It islandlocked in a number of northern lakes.
The smelt is a very pretty, graceful fish, with a long, slender body,
long, pointed head, and large mouth, with a somewhat projecting lower
jaw. The small adipose fin, which is peculiar to all of the salmonids,
is situated far back, opposite the end of the anal fin; the caudal fin
is deeply forked. Its color is pale olive-green above, silvery below,
translucent, with an obscure, longitudinal, broad, satin-like band along
the sides. The fins are greenish, with a few punctulations.
The smelt enters the tidal rivers and brackish bays in the fall and
winter in countless myriads, preparatory to spawning. It feeds
principally on the small fry of other fishes, mostly at night, and along
the shores in shallow water. It spawns in March, in both fresh and
brackish water. The eggs are small, about twenty to the inch, and are
adhesive. A medium-sized fish yields fifty thousand eggs, which hatch in
two or three weeks, according to the temperature of the water, though
usually in from sixteen to eighteen days. Though small, it is highly
prized as a food-fish, having a delicate and delicious flavor. When
fresh it emits an odor resembling that of cucumbers. Its usual size is
from five to nine inches and weighing from two to four ounces, though
occasionally reaching a foot or more in length. The smaller fish are
more prized, the largest having a rank oily flavor. It is caught in
large seines by fishermen and shipped fresh to the markets, and in
winter is taken in great numbers with hook and line through the ice.
Smelt fishing is a very popular pastime along the East Coast in the fall
and winter, as it is at a time when not many other fishes are to be
caught. In the inland lakes it is, as has just been mentioned, caught
with hook and line through holes cut in the ice; but this is tame sport
compared with fishing in open water with very light tackle. The angler
can utilize his trout fly or bait-rod, or if he prefers, a very light
natural cane rod eight or ten feet long. A reel is not necessary. The
line should be of the smallest size, linen or silk, though silk lines
soon rot in salt water. A fine leader three or four feet long, with
hooks Nos. 3 to 6, on single gut snells, are next in order. When the
fish are swimming in schools near the surface, especially at night, a
sinker need not be used; under other circumstances, and when the tide is
strong, one of suitable weight should be added. The fishing is usually
best on the flood tide, and almost any kind of bait will answer; but
shrimp is best, though sandworms, very small minnows, or even earthworms
are useful. Given the proper time and place, and with tackle and bait in
readiness, it only remains to cast the baited hook, retrieve the fish,
and so on _ad infinitum_.