6 FISHERY BULLETIN OF THE FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE 



Key A — Continued 



20. Body very broad and flat; mouth enormous Goosefish, p. 532 



Body deep and flattened sidewise; mouth small Sargassum fish, p. 541 



21. The first (spiny) dorsal fin is longer than the second (sofVrayed dorsal) ; neither dorsal fin is fleshy Sea raven, p. 454 



The first (spiny) dorsal fin is much shorter than the second (soft-rayed dorsal) ; both of the dorsals are thick and 



fleshy Toadfish, p. 518 



22. Fishes which lie flat on the one side, with both of their eyes on the other side; the upper side is dark, the lower side 



normally is pale _. refer to Flatfish tribe key, p. 248 



Fishes which do not lie flat on one side 23 



23. Two or more separate and well-developed dorsal fins, each with continuous membrane refer to Key E, p. 7 



Only one well-developed dorsal fin with continuous membrane (this, however, may be preceded by isolated spines or 



rays) 24 



24. Top of snout with several barbels or beards Rockling (cod family in part) , p. 234 



No barbels or beards on the top of the snout 25 



25. Jaws with very large canine tusks refer to Wolffishes key, p. 503 



No large canine tusks in either jaw 26 



26. Dorsal fin soft^rayed throughout its length, except that it may be preceded by a few separate spines. 



refer to Key F, p. 8 

 At least the forward one-third of the dorsal fin is with stiff sharp rays or spines refer to Key G, p. 9 



Key B 



Fishes with tubular snouts (from No. 5, p. 5). 



1. Head is horselike; rear portion of trunk is slender, prehensile; no caudal fin Sea horse, p. 315 



Head is not horselike; rear part of trunk is not prehensile; there is a caudal fin 2 



2. Body and head (measured from tip of snout) are only about 4 times as long as deep; the dorsal fin has a long, strong, 



saw-edged spine Snipefish, p. 30 1 



Body and head (measured from tip of snout) are at least 25 times as long as deep; the dorsal fin does not have a 

 large spine 3 



3. The snout is not longer than the dorsal fin; the anal fin is very small; no ventral fins; the caudal fin is rounded 



Pipefishes, key, p. 312 



The snout is more than 6 times as long as the dorsal fin; the anal fin is about as large as the dorsal; ventral fins are 



present though small; the caudal fin is forked Trumpetfish, p. 316 



KeyC 



Fishes with bills or swords (from No. 6, p. 5) 



1. Both of the jaws are elongated 4 



Only one of the jaws is elongated 2 



2. Upper jaw elongated, as a sword.. 3 



Lower jaw elongated Halfbeak, p. 169 



3. The sword is flattened dorso-ventrally, and is sharp-edged; the first dorsal fin is shorter than the sword forward of 



the eyes ; no ventral fins Swordfish, p. 351 



The sword is round-edged; the first dorsal fin is nearly twice as long as the sword refer to Spearfishes or Marlins 



and Sailfish, key, 12 p. 358 



4. The caudal fin is well developed 5 



No caudal fin; the tip of the tail is whip-like Snipe eel, p. 159 



5. There are several finlets behind the dorsal and anal fins Needlefish, p. 170 



No finlets behind the dorsal and anal fins refer to Billfishes or Silver gars, key, p. 167 



Key D 



Bony fishes with snouts of ordinary form; with only one gill opening on each side, and with the anal fin continuous 

 with the caudal fin around the tip of the tail (from No. 12, p. 5). 



1 . Only one dorsal fin 2 



Two separate dorsal fins, the first much bigger than the second, but shorter 7 



2. Body band-shaped, the tail tapering to a whip-like tip Cutlassfish, p. 350 



Body thick, eel-like; the vertical fins continuous around the tip of the tail in a broad band 3 



3. The dorsal fin is spiny from end to end 4 



The dorsal fin is soft-rayed, at least for almost all its length 5 



» The sailflsh would also come under this heading should one ever be taken in the Gulf of Maine. The distinctions between it and the spearfishes are 

 given on page 358. 



