FAMILIES A.N1) SUBFAMILIES OF FISHES. 



Hy Theodore (Iill. 



In 187., the presont author published au "Arraugemeut of the Fa,n:hes " F-h - ». CU.se 

 Pise s, Ma;.sip..branchii,aud Leptocardii, prepared for the «-f -"-!' "^ '^^7^; ,^^^^^ 

 onus,.le the iving fin-beariug brauehiferous vertebrates were div.d.'d .uto ,U- lasses, .1 old. rs, 

 .Itia il I . The se.iuen?e was based upou a cousideration of the,.. ,u..rphology. real y <-.mv 

 ; ench>Vw rjh the u.ost generalized or prinntive types and ending with the n,os speem hze.l. ihe 

 '"'"'"-^ ,: 'so t^eir appn.xin.ate relations were given in the introduction t<. the men.oo- 



r::':: .1^;:) ^. :; r . js:-;ai;;r;;;;; .^^^a .. .. ,owest „f the vert^ra^s .... 



rPedicula e ; n some respects, the most specialized. Nevertheless, in obedience to the wish of 

 ?rof S'lt that time Assistant Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, the sequence was 



reversed in the list of families, and the series commeiicea wun lue .uur. x '^•^^"'-:"""- 7" "^ 

 ;^Ue;r^ti;^t1.e Leptocardii. It that time people generally had not been accustomed to^see the 



was preserved. 



t;;:^Et;;:t:fV;;r;;;ng;m;nt;— on oi,servers have published thei.s,iW 



PS in the various departments of morphology and taxonomy of thebranchiferousclas.es 



d several entirely new types have been discovered and described, and he light 



that his been thrown upon the .structure of various forms, living and extinct, renders ,t des.rab e 



that n.ih oeen iniowu 111 ^ clas.ses '-^— ^^ ^- *"i'"" ''">•" nrespnt list of families and sub- 



a review. 



vertebrates arranged with 'the lowest first, and it was with the desire of eonforming as nearly as 

 possible to prevailing usage that the ge"^"''''[J\''_'^';i'^*:'^,_'^„'^^^^^^^^^^ 



Since 

 their studies in the various departments 



ATmv new snecies and several entirely new i.jrpi;oxx«.v- >.v.«... —- ■.,..., 



Man> ne« P^^^^^^^ ^^^ ^^^^^^^^.^ ^^ ^^^. ,„, ,.„,„,^ li^j^g and extinct, renders it desirable 



that a new census of the several chisses should be taken. The present list ot families and si, 



'^:^;tZ:::l, ^r ":S™;gement of the Eamilies of Fishes" of 1.7. the names of 



"44 families appeared. In the introduction it was remarked-that- 



The families have been much multiplied an.l, it may be urged, uuduly so, au.l sueh may really be »!«;<=»«;. Jn 

 Ihelam. les niNc u e '' ^ , compieUeusivo families have either not received 



:i'^L7»t:: JT:;;^::;:,.ri':,:,:"r^^^^^ • -.- - .- » 



attract future examination. ,-,,.■ 



Subsequent studies, instead of invalidating the families that were thus regarded as being o 

 susplious value, have rather conHrmed them (or at least most of them), and all ot t e series ,ust 

 named have been retained in the pre.sent list. The latest author.s that have published .. y of 

 tho.se groups are Dr. and Mrs. Oarl Eigenmann, who have studied the long neglected lul ...1 c- 

 tions of Nematognath or siluriform lishes made by the late Prot. Agassiz and asso.-mte.s ,n S.mth 

 America. All of the families named in the arrangement have been adoj.ted as a consequence ot 

 tte p o ound studies of I,r. and Mrs. Eigenmann. The author, therefore has little hesiat.on in 

 retaUiing all ..f the families named in the arrangement and has even addcHl a number of othe. 

 some of which have been dissevered from previously ixH.ognized groups, while others an, the result 

 of discoveries made since 1872. Several other ..f the most independent ichthyologists of the 

 United States ami who are well entitle.l to the most attentive consideration on account of the 



