SERRASALMO. 219 



a bluisli grey, changing to silvery on the sides and 

 belly. Above the lateral line, between the ventral 

 and anal fins, or nearly in the middle of the fish, 

 there is an oval spot of deep black. The dorsal 

 fin is uniform bluish green; the other fins dark 

 but more tinted with yellow, and across the tail 

 there is a dark bluish green bar parallel with the 

 fork. The vent is placed anterior to the insertion 

 of the anal fin. It is probable that this with the 

 last may be congeneric, as they agree in several 

 particulars, and vary from the characters of Anodus 

 as given above. 



D. 11— P. 17— T. 11— A. 11— C. 25— Br. 4— Ribs, 22 pairs- 

 Vert. 40. 



SERRASALMO. 



We have drawings of several species whose cor- 

 rect station it is-extremely difficult to determine 

 from figures only. The characters of Serrasalmo, 

 Tetragonopterus^ and Myletes^ as given by Spix 

 and Cuvier, running very much into each other, 

 and, so far as we can judge, being to a certain ex- 

 tent artificial. We give the characters of the three 

 from Spix's Conspectus Generum, for comparison, 

 but have placed most of the species under the first, 

 though by no means asserting that they should 

 permanently stand there. 



" SERRASALMO, Spix Caput magnum, lateraliter compres- 



sum. Oculi magni laterales. Os amplum, armatum, 

 transversum. Denies maximi, acutissimi, latissimi per 



