| Water, | 46.52 | percent |
| Ash (chiefly salt), | 22.81 | „ |
| Fat, | .33 | „ |
| Protein, | 30.85 | „ |
Eels.
—The common eel is a fish which is extremely long in proportion to its size and gives the general appearance, to the uninitiated, of a snake. The resemblance of the eel to a snake in shape is probably one of the reasons why it is not more highly valued as a food. The eels, perhaps, are not to be considered as true fish. The common eel (Anguilla chrysypa) is widely distributed throughout most parts of the United States, especially the eastern part. It extends southward as far as the West Indies, and is found in more or less abundance on the Gulf coast. Although a salt-water fish, it differs from most other eels in its penchant for ascending fresh-water streams. It often goes to the very headwaters, especially in the rivers of the Atlantic coast and Mississippi valley. Eels are often found in lakes which seem to have had no communication with the sea, which shows that they are able to surmount barriers which seem impossible to cross. Jordan and Evermann claim that the eel is really a fresh-water fish and that its real home is in the fresh-water rivers and lakes, and that it runs down to salt water only at spawning time, thus showing a quality or characteristic exactly opposite to that of the salmon and shad, which are true salt-water fish and come into fresh waters for spawning. Eels, like the carp, are more or less scavengers, feeding upon all manner of refuse, especially dead fish. They are very destructive of other fish, especially of young shad and herring. When nets are placed for shad and herring and the fish are caught therein the eels often invade the net, and when it is drawn it is filled largely with the skeletons of the fish, the flesh of which has been removed by the eels. Eels have a high value as food fish, both on account of their nutritive value and their flavor. The average length of the eel is from 2 to 3 feet, though much larger examples are sometimes found.
Composition of the Eel.—
| Fresh. | Dry. | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water, | 71.60 | percent | ||
| Protein, | 18.28 | „ | 65.25 | percent |
| Fat, | 9.11 | „ | 31.92 | „ |
| Ash, | 1.01 | „ | 3.60 | „ |
These data show that the eel is rather richer in fat than the majority of fish, although there are some that exceed it in this constituent.
Conger Eel.
—The conger eel belongs to the family Leptocephalidæ. It inhabits salt water only, is scaleless, and grows to much larger sizes than the common eel, sometimes as long as 7 or 8 feet. It is not used for food in the United States, but is to some extent in Europe and the West Indies. On the east coast of the United States they do not occur very frequently. Only a few species are known, and these are of small extent and have little food value.
Summer Flounder.
—This fish (Paralichthys dentatus) is quite abundant on the Atlantic coast, frequenting the coast from Cape Cod to the Carolinas. It reaches a length of from 2 to 3 feet and has a weight of about 15 pounds. It is caught very extensively off the New England coast. The principal fishing grounds are in the region of Block Island, Marthas Vineyard, and the eastern end of Long Island. There is another species known as the southern flounder (Paralichthys lethostigmus), which flourishes from Charleston southward, and is found along the entire Gulf coast. There is also another species on the Gulf coast called the Gulf flounder (Paralichthys albiguttus). There is also a wide flounder or common flatfish (Paralichthys americanus). It is found on the coast of Labrador and extends down to the Carolinas. It is especially abundant along the coast of southern New England. It is a small species, rarely being over 20 inches in length, the average length being from 12 to 15 inches, and weighs from 2 to 3 pounds. This species of flounder has been extensively propagated by the U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, as many as 100,000,000 fry having been planted in one season.