258 CONTRIBUTIONS TO NORTH AMERICAN ICHTHYOLOGY IV. 



FAMILY XXXIV. ALBULID2E. 



(The Lady-fishes.) 



Hody rather elongate, little compressed, covered with rather small, 

 brilliantly silvery scales. Head naked. Snout conic, subquadrangular, 

 shaped like the snout of a pig, and overlapping the small, inferior, hor- 

 i/ontal mouth. Maxillary rather strong, short, with a distinct supple- 

 mental bone, slipping under the membranous edge of the very broad 

 preorbital. 1'remaxillaries short, not protractile. Lateral margin of 

 upper ja\v formed by the maxillaries. Eye large, median in head, with 

 a bony ridge above it, and almost covered by an annular adipose eye- 

 lid. Opercle moderate, firm. Preopercle with a broad, Hat, membra- 

 naceous edge, which extends backward over the base of the opercle. 

 Pseudobranchiae present. Gill-rakers short, tubercle-like. Gill-mem- 

 branes entirely separate, free from isthmus. Branchiostegals about 

 14. A fold of skin across gill-membranes anteriorly, its posterior free 

 edge crenate. Xo gular plate. Both jaws, vomer, and palatines with 

 bands of villiform teeth. Broad patches of coarse, blunt, paved teeth 

 on the tongue behind and on the sphenoid and pterygoid bones. Lat- 

 eral line present. Belly not earinate, flattish, covered with ordinary 

 scales. Dorsal fin moderate, in front of ventrals, its membranes scaly. 

 No adipose fin. Anal very small. Caudal widely forked. 1'yloric cu-ca 

 numerous. A single species known, found in all warm seas. 

 (Cliijiiidn ^i- t> n]> AUnd'ina ( iiint lu-r, vii. Kis, 4C9.) 



116. ALBULA Gronovins. 



(Cniiniviiis; r.lorh A. Srlmridrr, Sy^t. Idi'li. 1801, -I'lJ: typf .Hindu ciinorJiyni'luiK 

 I'il<n !i A. Sclniciilcr /.'SIM- ruljii-x L.) 



Characters of the genus included above. (Latin (tlhus, white.) 



i:il. A. VllljM'S (L.) Coo. I.-. lMilii-J;*h ; I'.onc-Jixh. 



I'.rilliantly silvery ; oliv.ieeousabove; back and sides with faint streaks 

 along the rows of scales; tins plain; axils dusky. Upper lobe of 

 caudal the longer. A band of peculiar, elongate, nieinbranaceous 

 scales along middle line of back; accessory ventral scale large, lie. id 

 :; : <: depth J. I), lo: A.S; scales !>-71-7. L. IS inches. Cape < ,'od to 

 Southern California and Mast Indies; abundant in tropical seas. Not 

 much valued as food, but beautiful and gamy. 

 (Esoxvulf I. - st. Nat. : Alluda conorhi/urhiiN (iiintlicr. vii, 468.) 



