Some how or another, things can sometimes have weird names. It seems that a lot of things tied to the sea fall into this category..Weird Named Stuff in the Water. Tonight as we were casting for shrimp, I started to think about some of the unusual names that are attached to local fish and critters of the Bay. Just about that time, I caught a "Ground Mullet" in my net. At least that is what Hubby identified it as..a Ground Mullet. So we are going with that! Now the ground mullet is not to be confused with the "Popeye Mullet".. completely different fish and for that matter I am not even sure if they are kin! They sure do not look alike! Actually, ground mullet is a local name for the Southern Kingfish. One might ask, "Why is it called "ground mullet?" I questioned that myself..why ground mullet. That conjures up the thought that this mullet (which is not a mullet) does not live in the water but on land (ground)..and that is just ridiculous! Or perhaps someone took to grinding it into tiny bits sort of like ground beef..nope..it is still intact. Actually, according to all I can find, the ground mullet gets its name from its color. It has some stripes? umm.. blotches?? that run along the sides at sort of random pattern. (There is an oxymoron for you..random pattern (?) hehe!) These markings are mostly a brown color with maybe some grey thrown in for good measure. The ground mullet is supposed to be very "good eatin'" even though they are a small fish..usually around one pound. When I caught mine tonight, I decided he was too small and "accidently" flipped him over into the water. 
Then we have the Gaff Topsails. These are a strange named fish..but then again, they are a strange looking fish! As the name implies, it has a topsail. Its dorsal fin is very elongated and sits high on the fish's back not unlike the gaff topsail on a schooner. Now the gaff part could also be referring to the "horns" or barbs that are on the fins..after all this is a catfish! The name is funny enough as it is but some of the locals actually call them by other names..gas tossils or gap topsuls. Great names, both, but they do make me giggle! I suppose these come from a misunderstanding of the pronunciation of the name. They are very fun to catch, they are very slimy, and are a tad "dangerous" if you are not careful of those horns! Although some folks do eat them, I do not. I would have to be mighty hungry to eat something this slimy!
Now on to Jelly fish. What a misnomer that is! Jelly Fish are not fish at all, they are an invertebrate species of a sea animal. They get their name from their gelatin-like bodies so at least that part is understandable. This is a whole slew of different things all thrown in one group which we could call..The Gooey Body Things That Live In The Bay. The ones that I was catching tonight were harmless little blobs of jelly that have a very unique characteristic..they glow! I am not even positive that they are actually Jellyfish but they are pretty much like a tablespoon of clear jelly that lives in the water so in my book that makes them a Jellyfish along with all the others. These little blobs glow bright green when they are touched! There are times that they are so thick in the waters of the Bay, that a paddle dipped into the water will create the most
fantastical display of green swirls! Ever since I was a kid fishing with my dad, I loved poking these little fellows just to see the flashing glow. While we are on this subject..we call our Jellyfish..Sea Nettles! Now these are the Jellyfish that most people will recognize..the ones with the stinging tentacles. What better name than Sea Nettles is there for something that lives in salt water and stings! If you look in the dictionary for nettle you will see it is a plant that is covered with near invisible "hairs" that can deliver an intense "sting". Hence..salt water dwelling + stinging = Sea Nettle!
So now you can see why I made the statement that we have weird names for things connected to our Bay and Bayou. The list is endless and periodically I will try to explain the logic or lack of behind a few more. I think this jargon of the locals adds to the charm of living on the Gulf Coast, it just needs a bit of explaining to those that do not understand it!
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