U. S. Bureau of Fisheries.
Spanish Mackerel. (Scomberomorus maculatus.)
The Kingfish (Scomberomorus cavalla)
The kingfish—not the fish known by that name in Northern waters, but a second cousin to the Spanish mackerel—is found along the reefs from Cape Florida to Boca Chica. It is one of the principal food fishes of Key West, and is taken by the fishermen trolling with a strip of bacon rind, which is something in the nature of an indignity, for it is a grand game-fish on the rod, and will take fly or bait on long casts. It grows much larger than the Spanish mackerel, often to twenty pounds or more, and is of a more somber hue. Its cousin, the cero, is very similar in size and appearance, but has dark spots along its graceful sides. All of this genus are among the best for the table, as all real game-fishes are.
The Redfish (Sciænops ocellatus)
The best member of the drum family is the redfish, or channel bass. It is one of the common game-fishes of the brackish water bays on either coast. It is a handsome fish with a coat of old red gold and a vest of silver and pearl. It is characterized by a large black spot near the tail; sometimes there will be two spots, and occasionally these are split up into a half dozen. While the redfish is very susceptible to bait it often rises to the fly, if a large and gaudy one. In either event it offers a stubborn resistance when hooked, and when of large size—from twenty to forty pounds—a good strong rod is a sine qua non, though I once killed one on a Henshall rod of eight ounces, which was fully thirty-five pounds in weight. Most of the fish-scale jewelry and artificial flowers are made from the scales of redfish.
U. S. Bureau of Fisheries.
Fig. 1. Kingfish. (Scomberomorus cavalla.)
Fig. 2. Cero. (Scomberomorus regalis.)