A SYNOPSIS OF THE FAMILY CATOSTOMIDJl. 



By David S. Jordan. 



Class PISCES. 



Subclass TELEOSTEI. 



Order TELEOCEPHALI. 



Suborder EVENTOGNATHl. 

 Family CATOSTOMID^. 



Catostomoidce Gill. Prcc. Acad. Nat. Sc. Phila. v. 13, p. 8. 1861. 

 Catosfomidce Cope, Pixc. Aru. Assoc. Adv. Sci. v. 20, p. 333, 1872. 

 Cafosfomidce Jordan, Man. Vert. E. U. S. p. 292, 1876. 



Cyprinidm gen. Rafixesque, Eisso, Cuvier, Bonaparte, Girai;d, Bi.keker. 

 Ciiprmidce .subfatn. Meckel, Agassiz, Bleeker, GDnther. 



The familj^ of Catostomidce, or the "Suckers", may be briefly defiued 

 as follows : — Eveiii ognathoiis &shes, haviug the pharyngeal teeth pecti- 

 uiform, in a single row, closely approxi mated, very numerous, and 

 compressed at right angles to the diiectiou of the bone, and the intermax- 

 illaries forming but a small part, of the upper arch of the mouth, the 

 maxillaries entering into it largely on each side.* 



* The following more elaborate diagnosis is given by Professor Gill (Johnson's Uni- 

 versal Cyclopaedia, vol. iv, p. 1574) : — " The body varies between an elongated subcylin- 

 drical and an oblong more or less compressed contour ; the scales are of medium or 

 rather large size, cycloid ; the 'lateral line is generally present and decurved, bnt some- 

 Bull. No M. 1^0. 12—7 * 97 



