Pickled mackerel, salted mackerel, and smoked mackerel are perhaps as highly valued for food purposes as the fresh fish itself.
Menhaden.—The menhaden is not used chiefly as a food fish but to some extent therefor. It is one of the most abundant fishes taken upon our Atlantic coast and is used almost exclusively as a source of oil, the residue being dried and ground for fertilizing purposes. In this sense it has great value because of the high nitrogen content of the residue and also of the considerable quantity of phosphoric acid which is contained therein.
The menhaden is known scientifically as Brevoortia tyrannus. Up to 1880 immense quantities of menhaden were taken off the Atlantic coast. Since that time the supply has not been considered so great. In the year 1877 it is stated by Jordan and Evermann that one oil company took 20 million fish and in one town alone, namely Booth Bay, 50 million fish were caught.
The fecundity of the menhaden is very great, exceeding that of the shad. More than 140,000 eggs have been taken from a single fish. The menhaden are not eaten very extensively in a fresh state as food but preserved in salt they have a considerable value for that purpose. An extract has also been made from the flesh of the menhaden on the same principle of manufacture as is utilized in preparation of meat extracts. The menhaden is known under a great number of common names, some thirty of which have been enumerated by Dr. Goode.
Composition of Menhaden.—
Water, 77.15 percent
Fat, 3.91 "
Protein by difference, 18.94 "
The water-free flesh contains (including bones) 21.7 percent of mineral matter.
Composition of the Mineral Matter.—
Lime, 8.67 percent
Phosphoric acid, 7.78 "
Silicic acid, 1.33 "
Potash, 1.54 "
Soda, 1.02 "
Magnesia, 0.67 "
Chlorin, 0.69 "
_____
Total, 21.70 "
Mullet.—The mullet belongs to the Mugilidæ, an important family of fishes in which there are several genera and species. The mullet is not particular about its food but is in the habit of swallowing large quantities of mud, or rather partially swallowing it and separating the refuse and most obnoxious particles by means of the gills. The common mullet or striped mullet (Mugil cephalus) is a widely distributed species. This fish is common along the Atlantic coast and in Hawaii, usually traveling in large schools, and is most
