Hogchoker

Zoological name of the Hogchoker fish is Trinectes maculates. Hogchoker has almost flat body and is usually of brown color. The fish has small eyes and very short mouth. The average length of the fish is around 6 inches.

Hogchoker is found in abundance in shallow waters with muddy bottom, where they cannot be easily located by predators. They are found abundantly in Cheasepeake Bay , and there is no particular season when their population grows.

Hogchokers eat small creatures and have the ability to bury themselves in the mud to deceive their prey. They have also the ability to change colors making them perfectly adaptable to their environment. While hidden in mud they keep their eyes on their prey to attack it within no time.

Summers offer the perfect breeding environment for the fish. An interesting fact about small Hogchoker larvae is that when they are born the eyes are on the either side of their heads, however when they grow the left eye shift its position to the top of their heads.

Trinectes maculates is called Hogchoker as the farmers use the fish as food for hogs and choker part comes from the fact that while eating has choke the fish.

The fish has extraordinary defense mechanism as it is almost impossible to locate it once it has changed its color to match the mud beneath the water. The average age of the specie is 7~8 years.