150 CORVINA OCELLATA. 



the median plane of the head ; the pupil is dusky, the iris silvery, mixed with red- 

 dish-grey. The nostrils are double, nearly on the same plane, and below the 

 median plane of the eye; the posterior is larger, and both are round. 



The mouth is inferior, large, and opens on a line vertical with the middle of the 

 orbit; the upper lip is tolerably fleshy, and protractile; the lower is shorter 

 than the upper, and received within it. The tongue is broad, flat, thick, placed far 

 forward, rounded in front, with a very thin margin, and movable, as it has an exten- 

 sive fraenum. Both jaws are armed with a broad band of small, villiform, card- 

 like teeth ; but the upper has an additional external row of much larger teeth, 

 which are conical, sharp-pointed, and curved backwards at their tips ; they are 

 about sixteen in number, and those in front are largest. The middle pharyngeal 

 teeth are stout, rather short, conical, some with obtuse or rounded points, others 

 almost flat ; the marginal teeth of these bones are small and sharp-pointed. 



The pre-opercle is rounded, and dentated at its angle, and finely serrated at its 

 ascending border, which is nearly vertical. The opercle is rather short, and termi- 

 nates posteriorly in two flat points. The gill-openings are large, and there are 

 seven branchial rays. 



The dorsal fln begins in a line with the origin of the pectoral, and terminates 

 before the root of the caudal ; it has ten spines ; the anterior is very short, the 

 second, third, and fourth are longest, and all are partially received in a groove 

 formed of scales ; the soft portion has twenty-six rays. The pectoral is small, 

 narrow, with fourteen rays, and terminates in front of the ventral. The ventral 

 begins behind the root of the pectoral, extends farther back, and has five rays. 

 The anal fin is rather large, but does not reach as far back as the dorsal ; it has 

 two spines, the anterior exceedingly small and soft, the posterior large, long, and 

 strong, with eight soft rays, which are covered nearly half way with scales. The 

 caudal is large, nearly square, and has seventeen rays. 



The lateral line is concurrent with the back, and is continued along tlie middle 



