Jordan and Evermann, — Fishes of North America. 1759 



usually with 2 spinous processes ; preopercle with 4 or 5. Mouth terminal, 

 usually large, with villiform teeth on jaws and vomer, and usually on the 

 palatines. Premaxillaries protractile ; maxillary broad, without supple- 

 mental bone, not slipping under preorbital. Gill openings wide, extending 

 forward below; the gill membranes separate and free from the isthmus; 

 usually no slit behind the fourth gill. Scales ctenoid, or sometimes 

 cycloid, usually well developed, sometimes nearly obsolete. Lateral lino 

 single, continuous, concurrent with the back ; a narrow bony stay extend- 

 ing backward from the suborbital toward the preopercle. Ventral tins 

 thoracic, of the normal percoid form, I, 5, the rays branched ; dorsal tin 

 continuous, sometimes so deeply notched as to divide it into 2 parts, with 

 8 to 16 rather strong spines and about as many soft rays ; anal rather short, 

 with 3 spines and 5 to 10 soft rays; soft rays in all the tins l)ranched, 

 except some or all of rays of the pectorals; pyloric c;¥ca in moderate or 

 small number (less than 12). PseudobranchitC large. Air bladder usually 

 present. Actinosts moderate, inserted on the posterior edges of hypercora- 

 coid and hypocoracoid; ribs borne on enlarged pleurapophyses. Post- 

 temjjoral bifurcate, normally connected ; myodome more or less developed. 

 Genera about 30; species about 250, inhabiting all seas, but especially 

 abundant in the temperate parts of the Pacific Ocean, where they form a 

 large proportion of the fish fauna. They are nonmigratory fishes living 

 about rock^. Most of them are of large size, and all are used as food. 

 Many of them are viviparous, the young being produced in great numbers 

 when about \ inch in length. {Triglidw, group Scorixcnina, Glinther, Cat., 

 II, 95, 1860.) 



a. Dorsal spines more than 12 ; vertehrai more than 10 + 14. 



b. Dorsal spines 15 or 16; vertebra) about 12 + 19; palatine teeth present; top of 

 head scaly, scales ctenoid, 

 c. Anal III, 7 or 8; pectorals long, narrow; vertebra) 12 + 19 = 31. 



Sebastes, 688. 

 ee. Anal III, 5; pectorals with lower rays broadened or prolonged into lingni- 

 form lobe ; vertebrse 11 + 18 = 29. Sebastolobus, 689. 



66. Dorsal spines 13 or 14 ; vertebrai 12 + 15 = 27. 



d. Palatine teeth present. Sebastodes, 690. 



dd. Palatine teeth none. Sebastopsis, 691. 



ScORP^NINiE : 

 aa. Dorsal spines 12; vertebra) 10 + 14=; 24. 



e. Palatine teeth present; anal rays usually III, 5. 



/. Bones of head scarcely cavernous; occiput with 2 pairs of spines; scales 

 ctenoid or provided with dermal flaps. 

 g. Pectoral with some of its median rays more or less branched. 



h. Scales on top and sides of head ctenoid; cranium much as in 



Sebastodes, the armature moderate. Helicolenus, 692. 



hh. Scales on top and sides of head cycloid or wanting; cranium 



with many spines. Scokp^na, 693. 



gg. Pectoral rays all simple; head more or less scaly, the scales ctenoid. 



PONTINUS, 694. 

 /. Bones of head with large muciferous cavities; occiput with only 1 pair of 

 spines; scales cycloid ; pectoral rays 20 or more ; head scaleless above; 

 no groove at occiput ; some of the pectoral rays branched. 



Setarchks, 695. 



