CENTROPRISTES TRIFURCA. 47 



CENTROPRISTES TEIFUECA. — Linnmis. 



fid. Y^ I.C ' 



Specific Characters. Body marked with seven dusky bars ; dorsal spines 

 with filaments, those of the third, fourth, and fifth as long as the spines them- 

 selves ; tail trifurcate. D. 10-11. P. 17. V. 1-5. A. 3-10. C. 16. 



Synonymes. Perca trifurca, Lin., Syst. Nat., torn. i. p. 489. 



Perca trifurca, Gmel., Ed. Syst. Nat., torn. i. pars iii. p. 1316. 

 Lutjanus tridens, Lacip., Hist. Nat. Poiss., torn. ii. p. 137. 

 Centropristes trifurca, Cuv, et Val., Hist. Nat. Poiss., torn. iii. p. 43. 

 Centropristes trifurca, DeKay, Zool. N. Y., part iv. p. 25. 

 Centropristes trifurca, Storer, Synops., p. 35. 

 Rock Black-fish, Vulgo. 



Description. The form of this fish is more oblong, and the outline of the back 

 is much less arched, than in the preceding species ; the head is also smaller, less 

 prominent, or is even flattened between the eyes ; and the snout, instead of being 

 rounded, is truncated. The eyes are very large and prominent, and their upper 

 margin is on a plane with the outline of the head above ; the pupil is black and 

 the iris golden, intermixed with grey. The posterior nostril is round, and about 

 the middle plane of the eye ; the anterior is the smaller, and is placed on a line 

 without the superciliary ridge, and about midway between the orbit and snout, but 

 on a line rather within the edge of the orbit. 



The mouth is large, the posterior extremity of the upper jaw reaching to the 

 middle of the orbit. The upper jaw is protractile, though less so than in Centro- 

 pristes atrarius, and the lower projects slightly beyond the upper; both are armed 

 with numerous small, sharp-pointed teeth, nearly all of the same size, except the 

 anterior, which are sHghtly longer than the rest. The tongue is small, very nar- 

 row, triangular, smooth, thick at its root, pointed, and very free in front. The pre- 

 opercle has its angle rounded and minutely serrated, with its ascending border 



