Black Drum, Pogonias cromis
Black Drum, Pogonias cromis, Juvenile. Fish caught from coastal waters off Corpus Christi, Texas, March 2019. Length 20 cm (7.9 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Eli (obsessiveangling.wordpress.com).
Black Drum, Pogonias cromis, Juvenile. Fish caught from coastal waters off Charleston, South Carolina, July 2020. Length 25 cm (10 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Luke Ovgard, Klamath Falls, Oregon.
Black Drum, Pogonias cromis, Juvenile. Fish caught from North Topsail Beach, North Topsail, North Carolina, October 2019. Length: 27 cm (13 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Ryan Crutchfield, Tampa, Florida.
Black Drum, Pogonias cromis. Aquarium fish photographed in the Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, Naples, Florida, January 2019.
The Black Drum, Pogonias cromis, is a member of the Croaker or Sciaenidae Family, and is known in Mexico as tambor negro. There is only one global member of the genus Pogonias, this species, which is found in Mexican waters of the Atlantic Ocean.
The Black Drum has an oblong moderately deep compressed body with an elevated back and a nearly straight ventral profile. Adults are a uniform silvery color with bronze to black tinges. All their fins are dusky to black. Younger fish have 4 or 5 bars on their sides. Fish from bays and lagoons are normally darker than those taken from oceanic waters. Their head is short and blunt. Their mouth is under the snout and nearly horizontal and is equipped with simple teeth found in rows. Their chin has 3 pairs of barbels and their lower jaw has a row of 8 to 22 barbels. Their anal fin is small and has 2 spines, the second being long and approximately three-fourths the length of the first anal ray, and 5 to 7 rays; their caudal fin is straight to slightly concave; their first dorsal fin has 11 slender spines with the third being the longest, a deep notch, and their second dorsal fin has 19 to 22 rays; and, their pectoral fins are short and do not reach the anus. They have 16 to 21 short and stout gill rakers. Their body is covered with large scales. Their lateral line extends into the caudal fin.
The Black Drum is a demersal species that is found over sandy and muddy bottoms in shallow coastal waters and in the surf zone in and around large river mouths at depths up to 49 m (160 feet); juveniles can be found in estuaries. They are the largest member of the Drum family and reach a maximum of 1.70 m (5 feet 7 inches) in length and 51.3 kg (113 lbs) in weight. As of January 1, 2024, the International Game Fish Association world record stood at 1.24 m (4 feet 8 inches), with the fish caught in coastal waters of Delaware Bay, Delaware in May 2012 and 51.28 kg (113 lbs 1 oz) with the fish caught in coastal waters off Lewes, Delaware in September 1975. Males and females are of equal size. They are non-migratory, however, larger fish are found in deeper waters. They are bottom scent-based feeders consuming small fish, crabs, mollusks, polychaetes, and squid. Their chin barbels are used to locate food and their strong pharyngeal teeth are used to crush shells. They are preyed upon by a variety of larger fish including sharks. They are known to be a nuisance to commercial oyster farmers. Spawning occurs during the winter and spring months in bays, estuaries, and near shore waters. They spawn multiple times a year, with the average female releasing pelagic eggs every three days for an annual total of 32,000,000 eggs. The eggs hatch within twenty-four hours and the larvae are transported to estuaries via oceanic currents where they habitat seagrasses. They prefer water temperatures between 12oC (54oF) and 33oC (91oF). The eggs and larvae are prone to mass mortality when sudden sustained temperature drops occur. They are also subject to high predation by numerous different fish. They have lifespans of up to sixty years.
The Black Drum is a resident of Mexican waters of the Atlantic Ocean being found throughout the Gulf of Mexico; they are absent from along the east coast of the Yucatán Peninsula in the Caribbean.
The adult Black Drum cannot be confused with any other species primarily due to their extensivte sets of barbels, however juveniles can be confused with the Sand Drum, Umbrina coroides (13-15 gill rakers; yellowish anal and pelvic fins) and the Sheepshead, Archosargus probatocephalus (prominent teeth and no barbels).
From a conservation perspective the Black Drum is currently considered to be of Least Concern with stable widely-distributed populations, however there. They are considered to be an important recreational species in several of the southern states of the United States. They are primarily caught on heavy gear with steel leaders utilizing either shrimp or blue crabs as bait. They are edible but not an esteemed food fish making them of limited interest to commercial fishermen. The larger fish are difficult to clean and have tough meat and are often infested with spaghetti worms. They have some protection in the southern United States with size and bag limits in place in most states.