FISHES OF THE GULF OF MAINE 263 



angular, and that the maxillary bone (the hone forming the margin of the upper jaw) 

 is sheathed and hidden by the preorbital bone when the mouth is closed. Long, 

 pointed pectoral fins are likewise characteristic of the family, while the spiny and 

 soft portions of the dorsal fin are continuous and the anal fin is about as long as 

 the soft part of the dorsal. 



KEY TO THE GULF OF MAINE PORGIES 



1. Outline of caudal fin deeply lunate, with sharp corners Scup, p. 263 



Outline of caudal fin only slightly concave, with round corners Sheepshead, p. 268 



101. Scup (Stenotomus chrysops Linnaeus) 



PORGY 



Jordan and Evermann, 1896-1900, p. 1346. 



Description. — Although the scup is not marked by any one outstanding char- 

 acter it is easily recognizable by the fact that the spiny portion of its dorsal fin 

 is longer and higher than the soft-rayed portion, which, with its deeply lunate 

 caudal fin, separates it from all other Gulf of Maine fishes of similarly deep and 

 compressed body form. The body of the scup is nearly one-half as deep as long 

 and very thin, recalling a butterfish (p. 245), but the dorsal profile of its rather 

 short head is slightly concave and not convex as in the latter. The mouth is small , 

 the eye situated high up on the head, and the margin of the gill cover is rounded. 

 There is one long dorsal fin originating over the pectoral and preceded by a pro- 

 cumbent forward-pointing spine, spinous (25 spines) and soft (12 rays) parts being 

 continuous. As a whole the fin is moderately high, its first spine much shorter than 

 the others, and its rear corner rounded. The anal (3 spines and 11 rays) is about 

 as long as the soft part of the dorsal (under which it stands), almost even in 

 height from front to rear, but with the first spine shorter than the others. Both 

 anal and dorsal fins are depressible in conspicuous grooves. The caudal is deeply 

 concave with sharp corners, and the upper horn is noticeably longer than the lower. 

 The pectorals are very long (reaching to the soft part of the dorsal) , sharp pointed, 

 and with slightly falcate lower margins. The ventrals, situated below the pectorals, 

 are of moderate size. The scales are rather large. 



Color. — Brown above, more or less tinged with reddish or pinkish, paling 

 on the sides (which are silvery) to a silvery belly. W. C. Schroeder contributes 

 the following description of the colors of about 100 scup, 6 to 10 inches long, taken 

 in New Jersey pound nets in June, 1923: 



Dull silvery and iridescent; somewhat darker above than below; sides and back with 12 

 to 15 indistinct longitudinal stripes flecked with light blue; a light-blue streak following the base 

 of the dorsal fin; head silvery, marked with irregular dusky blotches; belly white. Dorsal, caudal, 

 and anal fins dusky and flecked with blue; pectoral fin of a brownish tinge; ventrals white and 

 bluish, and very slightly dusky; iris silvery; pupil black. 



Size. — The scup is said to reach a length of 18 inches and a weight of 3 to 

 4 pounds, but adults usually run only about II to 12 inches in length and 1^ to 

 2 pounds in weight. 



102274—251 18 



