FISHES OF XKW YORK 721 



This is the fish which was described by Jordan and Gilbert 

 under the name of the southern flounder. It inhabits the south 

 Atlantic and Gulf coast of the United States, ranging north to 

 New York. De Kay described and figured it as the oblong 

 flounder, which he says grows to the length of 15 to 20 inches 

 and occasionally larger. He states that it is common along 

 the sandy shores "of New York, and is procured abundantly in 

 the months of September and October; that it is excellent eat- 

 ing, and usually sells at from 6c to 8c a pound; that it is tena- 

 cious of life and can be preserved in good condition for a long 

 period. 



The southern flounder is very closely related to the fluke or 

 summer flounder. It is, however, always darker in color and 

 almost uniform, while the fluke is usually profusely spotted. 

 The character by which it is best distinguished from the fluke, 

 is the number of gill rakers. The southern flounder has only 

 12, of which 10 are below the angle of the first arch, while the 

 summer flounder has from 20 to 24, of which from 15 to 18 are 

 below the angle of the first arch. 



362 Paralichthys oblongus (Mitchill) 

 Four-spotted Flounder 



Plenronectes oblongus MITCHILL, Trans. Lit. & Phil. Soc. N. Y. I, 391, 1815. 



Platessa quadrocellata STOKER, Hist. Fish. Mass. 203, pi. XXXI, fig. 3, 1867. 



Pseudorhombus oblongus GOODE & BEAN, Bull. Essex Inst. XI, 7, 1879. 



ParalichtJiys oblongus GOODE, Proc. IT. S. Nat. Mus. 472, 1880; JORDAN & 

 GILBERT, Bull. 16, U. S. Nat. Mus. 824, 1883; GOODE & BE AX, Oceanic 

 Ichth. 436. 1896; H. M. SMITH, Bull. U. S. F. C. 1897, 108, 1898; JORDAN 

 & EVERMANN, Bull. 47, U. S, Nat. Mus. Ill, 2632, 1898; IV, pi. 

 CCCLXXIY, fig. 924, 1900. 



Body comparatively elongate, strongly compressed. The 

 depth of the body is contained two and one fourth times in the 

 length of the body, which is four times the length of the head. 

 Eyes large, nearly four times in head, separated by a prominent 

 narrow, sharp ridge; upper jaw with very numerous small, close 

 set teeth laterally, and four or five canines in front, the lateral 

 teeth abruptly smaller than the anterior, each side of lower 

 jaw with seven to 10 teeth; chin prominent, maxillary narrow, 

 reaching past middle of pupil, two and one fourth in length of 



