5G2 CONTRIBUTIONS TO NORTH AMERICAN ICHTHYOLOGY IV. 



290. SCORPIS CuviiT & Valenciennes. 



(Cuvicr A. Yalriiriniiii's, Hist. Nat. Poiss. viii, 503, l-1'.l : type Scotyisgeorgianus Cuv. & 

 Val.) 



Body ovate or suborbicular, covered with small, firm, ctenoid scales, 

 which also cover the membranes of the soft parts of the vertical fins; 

 mouth small, terminal, horizontal ; the maxillary narrow, slipping under 

 the edge of the rather narrow preorbital ; sides, top of head and 



* 



jaws chxely scaled; preopercle entire or minutely crennlate; jaws with 

 broad bands of slender teeth; those in the outer series incisor-like,* 

 compressed, narrow and lanceolate in form, the outer surface transversely 

 convex, the inner concave ; the other teeth of the jaws are similar, but 

 grow progressively smaller backward toward the inside of the mouth ; 

 incisors without conspicuous roots behind ; all the teeth are somewhat 

 movable, as in GircUa; no molar teeth; vomer, palatines, and tongue 

 with patches of minute villiform teeth; gill-rakers slender, rather long; 

 dorsal spines low, in a slight groove, about 10 in number ; soft part of the 

 fin elongate, much longer than the spinous part, sometimes falcate; 

 anal spines small, graduated, the soft rays numerous; caudal lunate; 

 >< ales thinnish, adherent, with smaller ones intermixed; pyloric coeca 

 extremely numerous ; air-bladder small ; branchiostegals 7. Warm seas. 

 ;-:- 7 name of some sea-fish; from axofir.ios, scorpion.) 



a. Body ovate; fins iiot falcate. (Ccesionoma Kanp t) 



88. S. califoniiensis Steimlachner. Mli1n>ia. 



Blackish above, tinged with bluish ; steel-blue or grayish below, some- 

 what mottled; sides with faint oblique verticalliues of spots ; lins black- 

 ish. I'.o.h elliptic-ovate, its outlines regular; head bluntish, rounded, 

 strongly convex; maxillary not reaching front of eye: eye small, l.\ in 

 -limit, .") iii head; middle spines of dorsal highest, their height scarcely 

 greater than the diameter of the eye : soft dorsal low, not elevated in 

 front, little higher than the spines; anal low; caudal Innate, the upper 

 'ulte .-slightly Ion ;er; pectorals short and narrow; ventrals rather small. 

 Head .5 r ; : depth L'J. 1). IX, I, 22; A. Ill, 19; scales 9-58-19. L. 12 

 inches. Coast of California, from Point Conecpcion southward; a hand- 

 some lish, of considerable value as food. 

 ^< iml.-M lmrr. Ii-htlivol. H'.-ih-ii^i', iii, 19, 



* In .sVor/M* i/i'orii'uiiniH, thu ty|i<- of the ynnis. Hit- miter trrtli ;iiv said to be conic. 

 Tins is prnlialily crnmcoiis. <>i hmvisr our sjn-rics docs not lirltmy lot In- ^miis. 

 , S\ striua 1'i'K -arnni ii, 11, 1 .-?.">: t \ \- Hairpin uijiiqntinia Rich. 



