Isospondyli 43 



for that purpose the white-meated or soft-fleshed forms like 

 Flops or S earns to those which yield a better flavor when cooked. 



The ten-pounder (Flops saurus), pike-like in form but with 

 very weak teeth, is found in tropical America. Flops machnata, 

 the jackmariddle, the awaawa of the Hawaiians, abounding in 

 the Pacific, is scarcely if at all different. 



The tarpon, called also grande ecaille, silver-king, and sabalo 

 (Tarpon atlanticus} , is a favorite game-fish along the coasts of 

 Florida and Carolina. It takes the hook with great spirit, and 



FIG. 30. Tarpon or Grande Ecaille, Tarpon atlanticus Cuv. & Val. Florida. 



as it reaches a length of six feet or more it affords much excite- 

 ment to the successful angler. The very large scales are much 

 used in ornamental work. 



A similar species of smaller size, also with the last ray of 

 the dorsal very much produced, is Me galops cyprinoides of the 

 East Indies. Other species occur in the South Seas. 



Numerous fossil genera related to Flops are found in the 

 Cretaceous and Tertiary rocks. Holcolepis lewesiensis (wrongly 

 called Osmeroides) is the best-known European species. Numer- 

 ous species are referred to Elopopsis, Megalops prisca and 

 species of Flops also occur in the London Eocene. 



In all these the large parietals meet along the median line 

 of the skull. In the closely related family of Spaniodontidos 

 the parietals are small and do not meet. All the species of 

 this group, united by Woodward with the Elopida, are extinct. 

 These fishes preceded the Elopida in the Cretaceous period. 

 Leading genera are Thrissopater and Spaniodon, the latter 

 armed with large teeth. Spaniodon blondeli is from the Creta- 



