"I. ERYTHRINUS. 283 



4. Macrodon aimara. 



? Eiythrinus macrodou, in Sclwtnb. Fish. Brit. Guiana, i. p. 254. pi. 27 



(very bad). 

 Macrodon aimara, Cuv. ^ Val. xix. p. 523. pi. 586. 



D. 15. A. 11. V. 9. 



Canine teeth very large. {Vol.) 

 Cayenne. 



2. ERYTHRINUS*. 



Er}i;hrinus, Gromv. Mus. Ichthijul. p. 6; Milll. ^ Trosch. Hor. Ichthyol. 

 iii. p. 5. 



Dorsal fin placed nearly in the middle of the length of the body ; 

 adipose fin none ; anal rather short ; ventrals below the dorsal. 

 Body oblong, covered with large scales ; head longish, with the cleft 

 of the mouth wide. Cheeks covered with the enlarged infraorbital 

 bones ; supratemporal plate double. Both jaws armed with a single 

 series of conical teeth, some being enlarged. A band of \iUiform 

 teeth on the palatine, and sometimes on the pterygoid bones ; no 

 detached anterior group of teeth ; vomer toothless. Anterior part 

 of the hinder air-bladder cellular. 



Tropical America. 



I have frequently observed the absence of one or two fins in species 

 of this genus ; sometimes the anal, sometimes one of the ventrals, 

 sometimes a part of the dorsal fin is wanting ; such fishes are evi- 

 dently monstrosities, and had not lost those fins by accident. 



The species may be divided thus : — 



* Pterygoid teeth present : Erythrinus. 

 ** Pterygoid teeth absent : Hetererythrinus. 



* Pteiygoid teeth present. 



1. Erythrinus imitseniatus. 



Erj'thrinus unitfeniatus, Spix,Pisc. Bras. p. 42. tab. 19 ; Miill. 8/- Trosch. 



Hor. Ichthyol. iii. tab. 3. tig. 1 (teeth) ; C«r. Sf Val. xix. p. 486. 

 vittatus, Cuv. <5- Val. xix. p. 499. pi. 585 (not good). 



D. 11. A. 11. V. 8. L. lafe 33. Vert. 23/12. 

 The band of palatine teeth is nearly as broad as the maxillary 

 bone ; pterj-goid teeth present, forming a band which is shorter than, 

 but as broad as, that of the palatine bones. The length of the head 

 is more than one-fourth of the total (without caudal) ; caudal fin 

 nearly as long as the head without snout. The depth of the free 

 portion of the tail is one-half of the length of the head. Posterior 

 dorsal rays not prolonged ; the ventral does not extend beyond, if at 

 all to, the vent. A black ocellus edged in front M-ith silvery, on the 



• 

 » 1. ]\Iaturaque, .Vf/roi/r. p. IfiO; Synodus palustris, JS/. &•/(;(. p. .TOB.— Brazil. 

 2. Erythrinus cincreus, Gill, Ann. Lye. Nat. Hisf. Hew I'ori, 1858, Ti. 

 p. 413. — Trinidad. 



