666 TELEOSTEI 



The British species are Mullus ~barbcdnf, and M. surmuletus, 

 remarkable for their beautiful pink or red colour, and much 



FIG. 407. Scapular arch of Mullus surmuletus. cl, Clavicle ; cor, coracoid ; pt, ptery- 

 gials ; ptd, post-clavicle ; pte, post-temporal ; sc, scapula ; scl, supra-scapula. 



valued on the market, although no longer held in the high 

 estimation for which they were noted by the Romans 



Fam. 25. Scorpididae. -Second suborbital with an internal 

 lamina supporting the globe of the eye ; entopterygoid present ; 

 palate toothed. Ribs sessile, behind the parapophyses when these 

 are present. Two nostrils on each side. Gill-membranes free 

 from isthmus ; 7 branchiostegal rays ; gills 4, a slit behind 

 the fourth ; pseudobranchiae present. Lower pharyngeal bones 

 separate. Ventral fins, if present, with 1 spine and 5 soft rays. 



This family embraces 12 species from the coasts of Africa, 

 Southern Asia, Australia, and New Zealand, referable to 5 genera : 

 Scorpis, Atypiclithys, Atyposoma, Henoplosus, Psetti/s. The fish 

 here figured (Psettus sebae, Fig. 408) is remarkable for the exces- 

 sive depth of the body, which is greater than in any other species. 



Aipichtliys, one of the few Acanthopterygian types known to 

 have existed in the Cretaceous period, appears to belong to the 

 family Scorpididae as here defined, and not to the Carangidae. 



Fam. 26. Caproidae. Characters of Scorpididae, but supra - 

 temporal completely ankylosed to the skull. 



The Boar-Fish (Capros aper} of the Atlantic and Mediter- 

 ranean is occasionally found on our southern coasts, and is highly 

 remarkable for the hair-like bristles with which its scales are 





