The record-union., 1895-04-18
CLOSING QUOTATIONS.
WONDERFUL SUCKER FISH.
Monster Turtles Caught With the Re-
morals AID.

turtles CRuSnC with the I6-
morals Aid.
The remora is a fish that spends its life
in fishing for its fellows. 1t uses no bait,
no line, no hook, but its curious tackle is
very effective. Its dorsal fin, instead of
being placed, as in other fish, at one-third
Of the distance from head to tail, is moved
forward upon the very forehead. The fin
| is, moreover, hattened out and furnished
! with disk-like rim, by means of which
the remOra attaches itself firmly to any
| object with which it comes in contact. 1t
can cling, too. despite any force that can
! be brought to bear. The remora may
| even be killed before his grip is weak
ened.
1t is only another instance of the provi-
dence of Dame Nature that these fellows
have their strange appliance for they are
so constructed as TO be able to swim only
for short distances, though they move
very swiftly for a few rods. With their
vacuum attachment they can dart upon
an unsuspecting shark, swordfish or tur-
tie, and IN twlnkIIng become insepara-
b!e travelling companions. They do not
appear to injure the larger tish IN any
way, but seem to, nevertheless, be a
sourch of great annoyance, for if they
stick to one individual long enough it
will become sickly and poor. The re-
mOras leave their protector and vehicle
| only for few seconds at G time, while
J LleF uaEJ away 10 seize q OIL IOOQ l0tC
/ over from the sharks or the swOrdtisb's
meal. Like a flash the morsel is swal-
lowed, and the parasite resumes his dead
/ head journey. Frequently sharks have
/ been captured with their bodies all
SCARED where they had rubbed against
coral reefs, oyster banks and rocks in
wild efforts to scrape Off the ever present
remoras.
The West Indian turtle fishermen long
ago learned how to make use OF this
strange fish. Having captured a good,
strong, healthy specimen, the fisherman
fastens him to long braided manila
line by loop around the body just above
the tail. Then he rows out TO the turtle
/ grounds, and, having located victim
! proving slowly along on or near the
/ bottom, pitches the remora overheard.
! Quicker than thought the little fish in
/ stinctively makes tor the nearest moving
! object, and, dashing its head against the
! turtles back or under shell, becomes
/ fixture. The fisherman then hauIs in
his line, bringing the unlucky prey to
/ the surface and lifting him into the boat.
/ The remOra, as a rule, at once drops off
when this is done. In this way turtles
/ that are too shy to come to the surface or
within spearing distance are readily
! caught, and, more than thar, are unin-
| jured, which makes them more valuable
1 for market purposes. Now and then the
/ remOra will make fast to a big fish an d
! give its owner a lively tussle. The line
may break or the angler let go, but the
| little sucker fish never loosens his hold
under the water. There are several
/ species. One kind prefers sharks and is
/ always found attached to these monsters,
/ while another usually clings to sword
fish, and third sticks to turtles.
There are three species native to the
Atlantic Coast, and another is an occa-
| sional visitor. They are lovers OF warm
water, and are seldom seen north Of Nir-
ginia Nearly every sea on the globe, in
temperate or tropical climes, contains
some members of this widespread
family. Some Of them grow to the
length of four or five feet, and the power
of these giants may be estimated by COM
pairing their size with the eghteen-inch
specimens which can hold and catch q
200-pound turtle.-New Y ork Sun.