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Black drum is a mighty fish belonging to the croaker family. It is a common name for this fish because it produces some croaking or drumming sounds.
Texas houses the black drum fishes abundantly. It is also seen on the Atlantic coast starting from New York till Mexico through the Gulf States. Fishing black drum is the easiest activity compared to catching other fishes. It is known to be an enjoyable experience compared to all the anglers out there. It does not require any expensive tackle or bait. A simple rod or a cane pole will be ideal for fishing. They are rarely caught on artificial baits. Squids, small fishes and shrimps are used to catch these fishes normally.
The black drum keeps growing every year. When it is newly born, it becomes five to six inches in the first year. It grows and reaches about 12 inches in the second year, close to 16 inches in the third year. After this, it keeps increasing 2 inches every year. On average, the black drum weighs 40 pounds. The heaviest recorded so far is around 146 pounds. They have very strong scales and fins. The color of the fish keeps changing as they grow. There are vertical lines black in color throughout the body. Drum fishes found in sandy water look slightly gray in color.
The entire geographical range covering the Atlantic coast of New England till Mexico is a crucial region where the Black Drum is present. The Gulf of Mexico and the area south to the Chesapeake Bay is known for abundant numbers. In Texas, the maximum and stable count is known especially on the lower coast.
The black drum survives well on waters with sandy and soft bottom. They get into very calm shells and also on the oyster beds. They are comfortable on shallow waters. They travel to deep waters as the winter season starts. They can stay well when the temperature is between 10 – 30 degrees. If the temperature drops below these lines, it washes off the black drum fish population.
They feed on a variety of items. The larvae of the black drum fishes consume zooplanktons. The very young black drum fishes feed on small fishes and marine annelids. They also eat crustaceans. The adult black drum fishes feed on shrimps and even crabs. The black drum fishes have a cobblestone type of teeth. This enables them to crush the hard crabs. The tooth specialization as this protects it from further competing with other marine animals. They can easily break the shells and crabs.
The black drum has a life span of forty-three years on an average. They are always busy searching for food in deep waters. They also get engaged in an activity called the Drum Run. It basically happens in the month of January and February. We can get to see them roaming on the oyster shell beds many in number. The fishermen concentrate on these seasons to do a bulk fishing activity.