446 ORDER MALACOPTERYGII ABDOMTNALES. 



jaws, the vomer, the palatines, and the tongue as in 

 the trouts. 



Those which are known live in the fresh waters of 

 North America \ 



Erythrinus, Gronov., 



Have, like all this family, small intermaxillaries, and 

 the maxillaries forming a great portion of the upper 

 jaw ; a range of conical teeth occupies the edges of 

 each jaw, and among those in front there are some 

 larger than the others. Their palatines have each 

 two plates of close and even teeth ; there are but five 

 broad rays to the gills ; the head is round, blunt, fur- 

 nished with hard bones, and without scales ; the 

 whole cheek is covered with hard suborbitals. The 

 body is oblong, but little compressed, and invested 

 with broad scales, as in the carps. The dorsal cor- 

 responds to the ventrals. The stomach is a broad 

 sac, and there are numerous small cceca : the nata- 

 tory bladder is very large. 



These fishes inhabit the fresh waters in warm 

 climates, and their flesh is agreeable 2 . 



1 Hyodon clodalus, Lesueur, Ac. des Sc. Nat. de Philad. I. pi. 

 xiv. and p. 367. ; H. tergisus, Id. ib. p. 366. 



2 Esox malabaricus, Bl. 392. ; Synodus erythrinus, Bl. Schn., 

 Gron. Mus. vii. 6. ; Syn. tareira, Bl. Schn. pi. 79., Marcg. 157. ; 

 Syn. palustris, Bl. Schn., maturaque, Marcg. 169. ; Erythrinus tce- 

 niatus, Spix. xix. ; probably also the Esox gymnocephalus, Linn. 



N.B. The Synodus vulpes, known only from Catesb. II. xxx., 

 appears to me to be the same as the Butirin banane ; and I believe 



12 



