FISHES OF THE GULF OF MAINE 251 



THE SEA BASSES. FAMILY SERRANID^ 



The sea basses are an extremely numerous tribe of perchlike fishes, with both 

 spiny and soft-rayed portions of the dorsal fin well developed, and either separate 

 or at least divided by a deep notch. The ventrals are thoracic in position and 

 situated under the pectorals. The anal fin is nearly or quite as long as the soft part 

 of the dorsal; the caudal peduncle is deep and the tail is broad. The anal fin is 

 preceded by several stout spines, the margin of the gill cover bears one or two sharp 

 conical spines, and when the mouth is closed the maxillary bone is not sheathed 

 nor hidden by the preorbital bone. Smooth cheeks are a ready field mark to dis- 

 tinguish any of the sea basses from the rockfish family (p. 304) ; long anal fin rela- 

 tive to the soft dorsal distinguishes it from the croaker family (p. 269) ; spiny giU 

 cover from the porgy family (p. 262) ; and large mouth from the cunners (p. 280). 



KEY TO GULF OF MAINE SEA BASSES 



1. With a single continuous dorsal fin — its front half spiny, its rear half soft rayed 



Sea bass, p. 259 



Two separate dorsal fins — the first spiny, the second soft rayed 2 



2. The two dorsal fins are separated by a distinct space; there are two sharp spines on 



the margin of each gill cover; the sides are distinctly striped Striped bass, p. 251 



The two dorsal fins meet at their bases; there is only one sharp spine and one blunt angle 

 on the margin of the gill cover; the sides are not distinctly striped- -White perch, p. 257 



97. Striped bass {Roccus Uneatus Bloch) 

 Rockfish; Rock; Squid hound 



Jordan and Evermann, 1896-1900, p. 1132. 



Description. — No one character alone characterizes the striped bass, but the 

 combination of fin structure and arrangement with general outUne and structure 

 of the jaw. Its rather deep and keelless caudal peduncle, stout body, the presence 

 of two well-developed dorsal fins (spiny and soft rayed and of equal length), the 

 lack of dorsal and ventral finlets, and a tail but slightly forked, mark it off from all 

 mackerels, swordfish, bluefish, and pompanos. The fact that its anal fin is almost 

 as long as the second dorsal and (less obvious) that its maxillary (upper jaw) bones 

 are not sheathed by the preorbital bone, separate it from all the weakfish tribe 

 (p. 269). Nor is there any danger of confusing it with the sea bass, cunner, tautog, 

 or rosefish, for its two dorsal fins are quite separate whereas in all these the spiny 

 and soft-rayed parts are confluent. Closest to it in general appearance is the 

 white perch, but the two dorsal fins of the latter are so close together that there is 

 no free space between them (p. 257), and its spines arestiflFer. Furthermore, there 

 are two sharp spines on the margin of the gill cover of the striped bass and only 

 one, a blunt angle, in the perch. 



The striped bass is moderately elongate (three to four times as long as deep), 

 stout, its back hardly arched, but sway beUied, with moderately stout caudal 

 peduncle, long head (almost as long as the fish is deep), obhque mouth gaping 



