Creature Feature

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	Everybody loves cobia May 01, 2012 at 4:16 pm Cobia, also locally called lemonfish or ling, are a prized Gulf of Mexico fish. My first experience with them was when I was working as a wireline helper on a small satellite offshore oil platform on Ship Shoal in May of 1965. I was a lot more attracted to the fish beneath the platform than my work. Of particular attention were the large brown “sharks” that kept appearing and smacking at the surface.

	Speckled trout myths April 01, 2012 at 7:25 am The popularity of speckled trout in Louisiana eclipses that of any other saltwater species, perhaps by several fold. We love to catch them, and we love to eat them. Twelve-inchers are great in the pan, and a 7-pound-plus mounted speck on the wall is a mark of angling success.

	Unwelcome transplant March 01, 2012 at 3:18 pm It seems that few people, at least in the United States, have much use for the common carp, Cyprinus carpio. But in its native lands, Europe and Asia, it is loved and esteemed. It has been cultivated over 4,000 years in Asia and loved in Europe for nearly 2,000 years. But before the 1870s, there were none in North America.

	It’s a bird; it’s a plane February 01, 2012 at 2:28 pm If it’s not a bird and it’s not a plane and it’s over the ocean, its bound to be a flying fish, one of the most interesting fish in the Gulf of Mexico. Actually, there are more than one species of flying fish in the Gulf: 12 of them, in fact. Four of them are “monoplanes,” meaning that only their pectoral fins (the paired fins immediately behind the head) are enlarged for soaring. Eight of them are “biplanes.” They not only have enlarged pectoral fins, but large pelvic fins (the other set of paired fins), as well.

	Do we have a tiger by the tail? January 01, 2012 at 1:00 am Louisiana is a shrimp-crazy state. Until being battered by cheaper imports, shrimp fisheries were the backbone of the economies of many coastal communities. The value of the fishery dwarfed the others.

	This perch is a hussy December 01, 2011 at 2:20 pm Sometimes we can’t help but assign human traits to other creatures, no matter how scientifically incorrect it is. So it is with the green sunfish, Lepomis cyanellus. One scientific guidebook says that the green sunfish is “especially promiscuous and indiscriminate.”

	Stupid horse November 01, 2011 at 12:07 pm Scientists, I am convinced, have a droll sense of humor. It is most evident in the scientific names that they conjure up to hang on some poor creature. Take, for example, the king mackerel, Scomberomorus cavalla. The “scomber” part isn’t too bad, meaning mackerel in Latin. But “morus” is derived from the Greek word “moros,” which means silly or stupid. And “cavalla,” well that stems from the Latin word “caballa,” meaning horse.

	Do you know a fat sleeper? September 28, 2011 at 8:47 am No, I am not talking about a family member or acquaintance. The fat sleeper to which I’m referring is the storm minnow, known to scientists as Dormitator maculatus. Fat sleeper is the “accepted common name” by the American Fisheries Society.

	Homebodies...Studies show bass don’t move much August 30, 2011 at 2:01 pm Like any other non-migratory critter, each largemouth bass has a home range, loosely defined as the area that the animal uses regularly in its quest for survival and reproduction each year. Lots of anglers assume that largemouth bass rove widely in their pursuit of food and oxygenated water.

	Who named the gag? July 28, 2011 at 12:15 pm Sometimes fish names make no sense whatsoever. Take for example, gag. Excuse my language ahead of time, but that’s a helluva name for such a wonderful fish. They didn’t even dignify it by adding the word “grouper” after it, but a grouper it is. It, and its kissing cousin, the scamp, are the two most common grouper species caught by Louisiana sportsmen. Unfortunately, gag may only be kept during a short season each year.

	Mullets are mobile munchies June 29, 2011 at 9:56 am Among the most common as well as most poorly regarded fish species in Louisiana coastal waters are mullets. The term is used in plural because at least three and possibly four of the six Atlantic mullet species can be found in the state.

	Trying to manage bluegills can be tricky June 09, 2011 at 11:26 am Bluegills are a member of the sunfish family, Centrarchidae. The two largest members of the family are largemouth black bass and spotted black bass. Probably the most popular family members, certainly amongst fish eaters, are the black and white crappie.