^ PISCES. 



posed of four or five excessively small rays. The teeth are pointed 

 and not crowded, the mouth is directed upwards, and the eye v ry 

 Ia,ge. There are s,x rays tn the brachi, and the abdominal cavity 

 occupies nearly the whole length of the body 



L cep.to Giorna, Mem. of the Imp. Acad, of Turin, 

 1S05, 1808 p. 19, pi. 2. The only species known; it is found 

 though rarely, , the Mediterranean, and becomes ^ery large.(0 



FAMILY IX. 

 THEUTYES. 



Our ninth family is as closely allied to the Scomberoides as 

 the preceding one, but in other points ; such as the armature, 

 w nch .s found in several genera on the sides of the tail, or in 

 others, the horizontal spine before the dorsal, &c. It con- 

 tains but very few genera ; they are all foreign, and have a 

 compressed oblong body, a small mouth, but slightly or not at 

 all protractile, each jaw of which is armed with .a single ran^e 

 of trenchant teeth; palate and tongue without teeth, and a 

 single do,.al. They are herbivorous, feeding on fucus and 

 other marine plants ; their intestines are very large. 



S.GANus, Forsk._Bt;Eo, Commer.-CENTROGAsTER, Hout. 



^Amphacanthus, Bloch. 

 These fishes h.,ve a remarkable character-unique, in icthyology- 

 .n thetr ventrals, which are furnished with two spinous rays one 



as usual. They have five branchial rays, and a horizontal spine 

 befo e the dorsal. The styloid bones of their shoulder curve asThev 



l?the a^aK^T " "'''" " "'"'' ^"""""^^ ^'"' '"= - '""-P"-' 

 Numerous species are found in the Indian Occan.(3) 



Jci Jl" ;'""'P''" f '^'--' p=rfct. because he only had a muShted 



(2) Geoffr., Vh Anat. J, 471, and pi. ix, f. 108. 



Fors^c.,-Jmphac. pundatus, Bl., Schn., or Acanihurus mdca^nis, Shaw-^J 

 ommei s., i.acep., V, 421 .Sigcmus nvulatus, Forsk s-Jlmphac nebu- 



