FISHES OF NEW YORK 



411 



and three sevenths of length of head; nostrils a little nearer to 

 eye than to tip of snout, the anterior tubular and much smaller 

 than the posterior; interorbital space convex but with a narrow, 

 sharp, low keel, the width of the space equal to length of snout; 

 the slender maxilla reaches to below the hind margin of the eye, 

 the length of the upper jaw being a little more than the snout 

 and eye combined; the mandible is two thirds as long as the 

 head; a double series of small, sharp, curved, conical teeth in 

 each jaw; vomer and palatines with bands of villiform teeth, 

 an oblong patch of villiform teeth on the tongue; gill rakers 

 about 15, mostly below the angle, the longest two thirds as long 

 as the eye. The origin of the spinous dorsal is nearly over the 

 tip of the pectoral and at a distance from tip of snout equal to 

 one third of total length without caudal; the length of the base 

 equals length of head without the snout; the first spine, de- 

 pressible forward as well as backward, is nearly as long 

 as the pupil, the third and fifth equal and nearly as long 

 as the snout; the membrane behind the second to fifth 

 spines one half the hight of spines; the interspace between 

 the dorsals is A'ery short. The second dorsal base equals 

 one half the distance from eye to root of caudal; the fin 

 is composed chiefly of detached or semidetached finlets; 

 the longest ray is equal to length of snout and eye com- 

 bined; the last finlet equal to length of eye. A well developed 

 procumbent spine before the dorsal. The middle caudal rays 

 are one third as long as the external rays, which are as long 

 as the head. The anal fin is preceded by two strong, sharp, sub- 

 equal spines, the second as long as the eye, both followed by 

 membrane; the base of the anal equals that of the soft dorsal; 

 the longest ray two fifths as long as the head, the fin composed 

 chiefly of partly detached rays, the last ray about as long as the 

 snout. The ventral origin is directly under the lower axil of 

 the pectoral; the fin reaches to the vent and to a jjoint below 

 the third spine of dorsal. The pectoral is on the level of the 

 lower margin of the eye; it is three fifths as long as the head 

 and reaches to below the second spine of the dorsal. Head 



