162 PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY OF [1888. 



DISTINCTIVE CHARACTERS OF ODONTASPIS LITTORALIS. 

 BY JOSEPH LEIDY, M. D. 



In the collection of the Academy is a shark, 85 feet long, which 

 'was caught some years ago at Beesley's Point, New Jersey. I was 

 present when the shark was caught, and helped to land it and pre- 

 pare the skin and jaws for preservation. Attached to the shark were 

 a number of lernean parasites, subsequently to be described. Re- 

 cently, wishing to know the exact name of the shark, I determined 

 it to be the Odontaspis littoralis, but found its distinctive characters 

 rather vaguely indicated by authorities. The shark is not uncom- 

 mon on our coast ; and is commonly called the " man-eater. " In 

 color it is iron grey above, paler at the sides and dusky white beneath. 

 In the form, relative position of the fins, and other external characters, 

 it clearly accords with the figure 1, of plate 36, of Storer's Fishes of 

 Massachusetts, referred to Carcharias griseus of Ayres. In the fig- 

 ure the branchial clefts are represented as being placed well in 

 -advance of the pectoral fin, as in our specimen, and not close to the 

 latter as indicated by Miiller and Henle in the figure of Odontaspis 

 taurus. 



Dr. Abbott (Proc. 1861, 400), in describing our specimen named it 

 Odontaspis americamis and gives the dental characters as follows : — 

 " Teeth with a single toothlet on either side, but occasionally one 

 wanting. Upper and lower first tooth smaller than the adjoining 

 teeth ; then follow above two very long teeth ; then another pair of 

 :Somewhat smaller teeth ; then two somewhat increase in length ; then 

 the remainder gradually decrease. In the lower jaw the teeth grad- 

 ually decrease from the first pair. " 



Prof Gill, in a Synopsis of the Eastern American Sharks, (Proc. 

 1864, 260,) names the same species Eugomphodus littoralis, and gives 

 as its synonyms Squalus amerlcanus, littoralis and macrodus of Mitch- 

 ell ; Carcharias littoralis, Dekay ; C. griseus, Ayres ; Eugomphodics 

 griseus, Gill ; and Odontaspis amerlcanus, Abbott. He says that 

 Eugomphodus is distinguished from Carcharias (Raf ), Triglochis or 

 Odontaspis "by the simple first and fourth teeth of the upper jaw, as 

 well as the first of the lower. " 



Giinther, in the Catalogue of Fishes in the British Museum, names 

 the same shark Odontaspis americanus, and includes the other names 

 above given as synonymous, to which is added the Odontaspis taurus 



