Jo7-dan and Evenuann. — Fishes of N'orth America. 1393 



Nothing could be more unnatural or more ineffective than the subdivision 

 adopted by Cuvier, whereby the Sciceniiue without barbels are divided into 

 3 groups, Corviva, Johnius, and Sciwna, solely on the strength of the second 

 anal spine. This is large in Corvina, very feeble in ScUvna, and inter- 

 mediate in Johnius. Giinther's arrangement, by which the species referred 

 to Johnius, are divided between Corvina and Seiwna, is no better, as very 

 many of the species have this spine neither large nor small, and could as 

 well be placed in the one group as the other. Bleeker divides this group 

 into Pseudosciwua, species with the month oblique and the. jaws subequal, 

 the lower jaw with the teeth of the inner row enlarged, and Johnius with 

 the month horizontal and the lower Jaw included, the teeth of the lower jaw 

 being in villiforin bands. This arrangement is better than the other only 

 in theory. The characters chosen are of more value as indicating relation- 

 ship, but they can not be applied in practice, as there are intermediate 

 gradations of all sorts. The ty])e of Pi^eudoscia'na {Svia'tia aquila) is in fact 

 much more nearly related to the type of Johnius than to nmst of the 

 species associated with in in Pseudosciivnn. 



As we proceed along the series of Sda'nitKV from Larimus toward Menti- 

 cirrhus, the following changes are notable: In the Larimus type the pores 

 on the snout are small and few, and there are no distinct slits or lobes on 

 the snout above the upper jaw; in the other type the pores become large 

 and conspicuous, 4 to 6 in number, and the thickened snout above the 

 upper jaw has two slits on each side, bounding two dermal lobes. The 

 mouth becomes smaller, narrower, more horizontal as we proceed toward 

 Meniicirrhus, the lower jaw shorter, and the bands of teeth in both jaws 

 more and more broad, those in the lower more decidedly villiform ; the 

 pores on the chin become larger and more numerous, the number rising 

 from 2 to 5; the lower pharyngeals become larger, and their teeth larger 

 and less acute; the preorbital becomes wider and more gibbous, the gill 

 rakers, shorter, fewer, and more like tubercles; the anal fin is placed far- 

 ther forward, and the spines of the fins generally are less slender; the 

 scales, as a rule, become rougher and the rows of scales less regular in 

 their direction. The llesh, as a rule, becomes firmer, coarser, less agree- 

 able in flavor, and of less value as food; but this, like some other charac- 

 tei's mentioned above, is subject to much variation. It may be noted that 

 in some Sciwnidw the middle rays of the caudal are more produced in 

 young specimens. In some, also, the serrations on the preopercle become 

 weaker or even obsolete with age. {Sciwnida', Giinther, Cat., ii, 265-318.) 



OtOLITHIN^ : 



I. Vertebrfc 14 or 15 f 10 or 11, the abdomin.il portion of the spinal column liaving always 

 more vertebra; than tlic, caiulal portion, the anal tin being posterior in its inser- 

 tion ; body more or less elongate, the mouth large, the lower jaw projecting, the 

 preopercle with a crenulate, membranaceous border; snout without distinct pores 

 or slits; no barbels; preorbital narrow; gill rakers slender, moderate, or rather 

 long; anal tin with ] or 2 very weak spines, the second closely connected with the 

 first soft ray; scales small, smoothish. 

 a. Aual flu long, of 15 to 21 soft rays, its length more than half tluat of soft dorsal ; dorsal 

 fins more or less separated ; soft dorsal .and anal fins closely scaled. 

 b. Teeth small, shiirp, subequal, uuisorial below, in a narrow baud .above; no 

 canines; anal .and solt dorsal with 20 to 22 rays each, the former but little 



