NOTE ON THE FISHES OF THE GENUS CHARACINUS. 



By Theodore Gill, LL. D. 



For over fifty years the family name Characini or Gharacinidw has 

 been iu use, but during all tbat time no one bas used tbe generic name 

 Characimis. Tbe family name, indeed, bas remained without a recog- 

 nized name-giving genus. It is time tbat tbe nomenclature sbould be 

 accordant with tbe facts, and tbe object of this note is to resuscitate 

 tbe long-neglected name. 



In 1754 Gronovius took tbe name Chafa.r for two Sontb American 

 fisbes, subsequently referred to tbe genera Anacyrtns and Teiragonop- 

 terus. 



In 1758 Linnteus referred tbe two Gronovian fisbes to bis genus 

 Salmo, and to tbe section of tbat genus named Characini. 



In 1777 Scopoli adopted tbe genus Charax from Gronovius, and thus 

 formally introduced it into tbe binomial nomenclature. 



In 1S02 Lacepede adopted tbe section of Cbaracini as a genus and 

 gave to it tbe singular form Gharacinus. 



It will only be necessary to examine tbe tentb edition of tbe " Systema 

 Nature" of Liunoeus to select tbe type, but, for the sake of comparison, 

 tbe species admitted into tbe twelfth and Gmeliu's editions are added. 



liefereiices io Cliaracbii in the tenth, ttcelflh mid thirteenth editions of Linnaus' Si/stema 



Xafurtv. 



a Myletes nilolims ^ Salmo niloticus ^ Gyprinus dentex, Linna?u8 S. N., 10. ed., p. 325; Mus. Ad.Fr., 

 p. 108, 1764. Many would therefore jirefer Jf. niloticus. 



Proceedinsis of the United States National Museum, Vol. XVIIl— No. 105S. 



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