![[THE BLACK GRUNT]](#4874689659045165388_illo_378.jpg.id-3579401247667462028.wrap-0.html.html){kind=link}
![[THE RED SNAPPER]](#4874689659045165388_illo_378.jpg.id-2888051706461233744.wrap-0.html.html){kind=link}
D. XII, 16; A. III, 8; scales 5-50-17; anterior profile more or less S-shaped; the nape gibbous; mouth very large, the gape curved, maxillary reaching beyond front of eye; lower jaw slightly included; teeth strong, in broad bands, those of the outer series enlarged; antrorse teeth of posterior part of both jaws strong; interorbital space convex; preorbital rather deep; preopercle finely serrate; scales above lateral line much enlarged anteriorly.
Hæmulon sciurus. The Yellow Grunt. Body oblong, the back not much elevated; head 2-3/4; depth 2-3/5; eye 4; scales 7-53-14; D. XII, 16; A. III, 8; interorbital space convex; preopercle finely serrate; profile nearly straight; snout moderately acute; mouth large, the gape curved, the maxillary reaching a little past front of pupil; lower jaw slightly included; teeth strong; upper jaw in front with about 3 strong canines on each side; front teeth of lower jaw rather strong; blue stripes on body.
Hæmulon album. The Margate-fish. Body comparatively deep, the back much elevated and compressed; the anterior profile steep; head 3; depth 2-2/3; eye 6; scales 7-46-16; D. XII, 16; A. III, 7; snout pointed; mouth large, the maxillary extending to front of eye; lower jaw included; teeth not very large, in narrow bands; interorbital space strongly convex; preorbital deep; preopercle finely serrate; soft part of anal and dorsal fins covered with thin, translucent scales.
Hæmulon parra. The Sailor's Choice. Body comparatively deep, the back compressed and arched; anterior profile rather steep and convex; head 3; depth 2-2/3; eye 4; scales 5-50-14; D. XII, 17; A. III, 7; mouth rather small, the maxillary extending to front of eye; teeth in bands, rather strong, the outer large, antrorse teeth of lower jaw well developed; preopercle finely serrate; lower jaw slightly included; interorbital space convex; preorbital rather deep.
Orthopristis chrysopterus. The Pig-fish. Body ovate-elliptical, somewhat elevated at shoulders, considerably compressed; head 3-1/8; depth 2-3/4; eye 5; scales 10-60-19; D. XII, 16; A. III, 12; snout long and sharp; jaws equal, each with a narrow band of slender teeth, the outer above a little larger; mouth small, the maxillary not reaching to eye; preopercle very slightly serrate above; snout and lower jaw naked, rest of head scaly; dorsal and anal spines enclosed in a deep, scaly sheath; soft rays naked.
Anisotremus virginicus. The Pork-fish. Body ovate, the back very much elevated; the anterior profile steep; very much arched at nape; head 3-1/8; depth 2-1/10; eye 4; scales 11-56-17; D. XII, 17; A. III, 10; mouth small, the maxillary extending to anterior nostril; jaws subequal; outer row of teeth enlarged; about 6 gill-rakers.
THE BLACK GRUNT
(Hæmulon plumieri)
The black or common grunt is the most abundant and one of the most popular food-fishes in the vicinity of Key West. It was named by Lacépéde, in 1802, in honor of Father Plumier, an early naturalist, who sent drawings of the fishes of Martinique to the museums of Europe. It belongs to the West Indian fauna, and is abundant near Key West, and not uncommon about the rocks and reefs at the lower end of Tampa Bay and other rocky localities on the Gulf coast of Florida. On the Atlantic coast it is found as far north as Cape Hatteras.
The depth of the body is a little more than a third of its length, compressed, with elevated shoulder. The head is as long as the depth of the body, with a large, curved mouth and a pointed and projecting snout. The profile is concave in front of the eye. The jaws are armed with bands of strong and conical teeth, the outer ones largest and the rear ones curving forward. Its color is bluish gray, with the bases of the scales bronze, tinged with olive, forming oblique stripes running upward and backward. The head is golden bronze, with many bright blue stripes, very distinct, a few of which extend to the shoulder. The inside of the mouth is scarlet, becoming lighter, or yellowish, on the jaws. The dorsal fin is grayish, with a yellow border on the spinous portion; the anal fin is gray tinged with yellow; the ventral fins are bluish gray; the pectoral fins are gray with a dusky bar at the base; the caudal fin is plain gray.
The common grunt grows usually to a foot in length, though more are caught under that size than over. It is often called "sow grunt" by the market fishermen, in contradistinction to the "boar grunt," as the yellow grunt is often designated by them, wrongly supposing one to be the male and the other the female. While the general remarks on its feeding habits, as given in the paragraph relating to the family characteristics of the grunts, are correct, it may be stated that they are essentially carnivorous, devouring small fishes, crustaceans, and other marine invertebrates that abound on the coralline reefs. They spawn late in the summer, on the rocky shoals and hard, sandy bars, congregating at such times in large schools. As a food-fish it is held in greater esteem than any other fish in the Key West market, and selling from a nickel to a dime for a bunch of about half a dozen, it forms the staple breakfast dish of all Key Westers, who are inordinately fond of it.
While assistant chief of the fisheries department of the World's Columbian Exposition at Chicago, in 1893, I had among other visitors a young lady friend from Key West, who never before had been away from her island home, having been educated at the convent of Key West. She could not find words to express her delight at scenes so entirely new and novel, and said that some things gave her a better idea of heaven; but there was one thing, she said, that was lacking amidst all the wonders and delights from the four quarters of the globe, and without which everything else paled into insignificance,—"fried grunts for breakfast." I made her happy by escorting her to the Aquarium and showing her the live grunts swimming in a tank, seemingly as much at home as on the coral reefs of Florida. The methods of angling, and the tackle and baits used for grunts, are given in the opening paragraphs of this chapter, to which the reader is referred.