222 



UNDERWATER GUIDE TO MARINE LIFE 



BtUterfish. 



The large pomfret, Brama rai, family Brarriidae, is very similar in shape to the 

 butterfish but is of dusky coloration and has small ventral fins. It reaches 2 to 4 

 feet in length and is rare in the Atlantic but not uncommon in the Pacific from 

 southern California southward. 



The California pompano, PaJometa simillima, is found from Puget Sound 

 to southern California. It is sought for food and has a similar appearance to 

 the butterfish. 



Perchlike Fishes: Suborder Percoidei 



The perchlike fishes, often called "typical fishes," are the principal inshore 

 predators, conforming to the preconceived notion of a fish more than any other 

 group. This is a group that is even more complex than the mackerellike fishes. 

 Most are not of pelagic habits as mackerellike fishes tend to be, and they are 

 more familiar to the swimmer than the mackerels. Therefore, they may not 

 offer as much trouble as mackerels in identification. 



These fishes are closely related to the mackerellike fishes, and, with them, 

 make up the bulk of spiny-rayed fishes. The fins are very spinv, and the tail 

 is not constricted at its base as in the mackerels. The scales are rather large and 

 the colors extremely variable, including all the shades of the spectrum, being 

 silverv in only a few groups. 



There are large numbers of these important and common fishes in all seas. 

 The greatest diversity is in the tropics. The various families are anatomicallv 

 very similar to each other and are separated by ichthyologists on a technical 

 basis. Even though the field study of fish habits is in its infancv, certain 

 characteristics— their habits, general silhouette, and movements— are known that 

 serve to separate the families. The swimmer should look for and learn to use 

 his own clues, however. 



CARDINAL FISHES: Family Cheilodipteridae 



These are large-eyed, usually red, little fishes, typical of coral reefs of all 

 tropical seas. These are the only small red perches in which the spiny and soft 



