Jordan and Evcrniann. — Fishes of Norih America. 1673 



Body short, deep, very strongly compressed, especially above and Lehind ; 

 head small, compressed, almost everywhere scaly; mouth very small, 

 terminal, the jaws provided with long, slender, flexible, bristle-like teeth; 

 vomer sometimes with teeth; preoperculum entire or neaily so, without 

 spine. Dorsal fin single, continuous, not notched, the spinous part longer 

 than the soft part, of about 13 spines, the spines not graduated, some 

 of the middle ones being longer than the last; last rays of soft dorsal 

 usually rapidly shortened, some of them occasionally filamentous (in East 

 Indian species); caudal peduncle short, the caudal fin fan-shaped; anal 

 similar to soft dorsal, preceded by 3 or 4 strong spines. Body covered 

 with rather large ctenoid scales, somewhat irregular in their arrangement; 

 the lateral line curved, high, parallel with the back. Gill openings rather 

 narrow, the membranes narrowly joined to the isthmus; branchiostegals 

 6. A very large genus of singular and beautiful fishes, aliouudiug in the 

 tropical seas, especially about volcanic rocks and coral reefs; most of 

 them have the body crossed by transverse black bars. They are all very 

 active, feeding on small animals, {xairf), bristle; oSov^, tooth.) 



a. Scales on trunk all subequal, their posterior margins regularly rounded. None of 



the rays of the soft dorsal produced. 

 Ch^todontops ( Chcetodon; mxjj, appearance) : 



b. Series of scales below axis of body running obliquely upward and backward, the low- 



est becoming more or less horizontal. 

 c. Ocular band extending from nape only to eye; a transverse band between eyes. 



NIGRIROSTEIS, 2085. 



cc. Ocular band extending from najie beyond eye across the cheek and interopercle. 

 d. Base of soft dorsal with a large black spot, not ocellated. 



OCELLATUS, 208G. 

 dd. Base of soft dorsal without black spot. 



e. Humeral band present. humeralis, 2087. 



ee. Humeral band absent. 



/. Body with a dark band between dorsal and anal, no caudal 



ocellus. 



g. Ocular band edged with yellowish or whiti-sh above, soft 



dorsal aiid aual with much black, sedentarids, 2088. 



gg. Ocular band jet-black, not white edged; soft dorsal and 



anal without black. aya, 2089. 



//. Body without black cross bands, the ocular band only present; 



an ocellus on caudal peduncle. at^niatus, 2090. 



Chjetodon : 



bb. Series of scales below axis of body extending downward and backward, forming an 



angle with those above, each series marked by a continuous black streak. 



h. Body without ocelli, crossed by d.irk bands. striatus, 2091. 



hh. Body with a large black ocellus below soft dorsal. c.\pistratds, 2092. 



hhh. Body with 2 ocelli, a large one on caudal peduncle and a smaller one on tirst 



8 or 9 soft rays of dorsal. beicei, 2093. 



Subgenus CH.ETODONTOPS, Bleeker. 



2085. CH^TODON MGRIROSTRIS (Gill). 



D. XII, 24; A. Ill, 20; scales 44. Body deep, the depth If in extreme 

 length ; snoiit little produced, its length less than that of eye ; ocular band 

 extending from dorsal only to eye, not across the cheek; muzzle with a 

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