Fishes of the Western North Atlantic 309 



Ventral scutes: 35-38. anal 19-22; pectoral 15-18, usu- 



Gill rakers: 42-48 in adults. ally 16 or 17. 



Fin rays: dorsal 16-20, usually 17-19; Vertebrae: 55 (i specimen). 



Body shaped as in A. sapidissima, the depth in general increasing with age and 

 growth, 2.8-3.9 '" SL in adults. Head 3.7-4.25 in SL. Snout 3.8-4.4 in head. Eye 

 4.2-6.5. Interorbital 4.1-6.0. Maxillary 1.95-2. 15. Scales only moderately ad- 

 herent, about 15 or 16 rows between base of pelvic and anterior rays of dorsal fin. 

 Pelvic fin 2.2-2.5 in head. Pectoral fin 1.4-1.5. 



A. alabamae differs from J. sapidissima in only the few respects shown in the 

 following comparison: 



A. sapidissima A. alabamae 



Gill rakers close-set, those at angle of Gill rakers less crowded, those at angle 



first arch longer than snout, 59-73 of first arch about as long as snout, 



on lower limb in adults 300 mm and 42-48 on lower limb in adults 300 



upward. mrn and upward in length. 



Surface of cheek and opercular bones Surface of cheek and opercular bones not 



glossy, generally without conspicu- glossy, covered with conspicuous mu- 



ous mucous pores and canals. cous pores and canals. 



Axillary scale of pelvic fin generally only Axillary scale of pelvic fin generally about 



a little more than half of length of fin. 75 "/o of length of fin. 



Size. The Alabama Shad seems to run smaller in size than the American shad; the 

 largest female seen was 510 mm (20.4 in.) and the largest male 435 mm (17.4 in.) 

 long, both from the Ohio River at Louisville, Kentucky. 



Development. Apparently the eggs and young have not been described. Ten small 

 specimens, 48-90 mm TL, 36-73 mm SL, all previously misidentified as Pomolobus 

 chrysochloris (USNM 36424, 36620, 36835, and 62225), are no doubt in their first 

 year; they were collected from: the Stone River at Nashville and the Clinch River at 

 Clinton, Tennessee; the Washita River, and the Mulberry River at Mulberry, Arkan- 

 sas. There is also at hand a specimen 105 mm TL (93 mm SL) taken in brackish water 

 at Grand Isle, Louisiana. The young differ from their adults principally in having a 

 more slender body and in possessing notably fewer gill rakers; the depth is 3.6-4.1 in 

 SL and the gill rakers on the lower limb vary between 27-33. The increase in the 

 number of gill rakers seems to be rapid, as five half-grown examples 175-215 mm TL 

 (145-17 1 mm SL) from Pensacola already have 38-41 gill rakers. 



"Numerous young, 8 or 9 inches in length" were reported for Pensacola, Florida, 

 by Jordan and Gilbert (75: 247) as A. sapidissima, before A. alabamae had been recog- 

 nized; five of these (USNM 30809) may be part of that material; they are typical 

 of the Alabama Shad and are the only half-grown samples at hand. They, like the smal- 

 ler American shad, are more slender than their adults and have fewer gill rakers; but the 

 raker count in these is higher than in the smallest examples of alabamae reported above. 



