Blame Paul Prudhomme, the beloved Cajun chef whose 1980s popularization of “blackened redfish” started this mess. In North Carolina, Sciaenops ocellatus was variously called “red drum,” “channel bass,” and, occasionally, “spottail” or “spottail bass,” but it was hardly ever called “redfish.” That was pre-Prudhomme. Now the moniker “redfish” has nearly replaced the venerable “red drum.” But the fish haven’t noticed. The official state saltwater fish of North Carolina — “channel bass,” to be precise — still skulks in the heavy surf of nearshore breakers, still feeds in the fertile currents pouring out of the salt marsh, still quickens the hearts of anglers who hear the reel zinging with a fish so strong you can’t stop it at first, so you hang on to the rod, listening to the line ripping from the reel, whining in the wind, the unofficial theme song of the saltwater autumn.
Feature image, above: Channel bass are a favorite catch of North Carolina sport fishermen like Dave Lusk.
For our editor in chief, the familiar songs of trilling birds sound like home.
These flower arrangements inspired by Biltmore, Reynolda, Duke, and Elizabethan gardens are proof that blooming where you’re planted can be truly awe-inspiring.
Taste, bake, explore, and celebrate what North Carolina has to offer this month.
When schools across North Carolina closed last year, one family turned their home in Greensboro into a different kind of classroom.
