1b almost oontlnuouB ulth the eaeond* and its first spine is shorter and weaker 

 than the foUpvlng ones. 



Except in the genas Sarda. the median keel of the caudal pedonole is covered 

 with fine scales, and the cross- section of the peduncle is rou£^i3jr round. 



The pyloric caeca are dendriform. 



The skeleton is rather coarse and the skull is long, niere is no cartilage in 

 the dorsal part of the skull, and ^e opening at the posterloventral end of the 

 skull is snail and opens horizontally. Scales az«. usually visible on the operole, 

 the dorsal edge of wlilch is convex. 



The number of vertebrae is very indeterminate, but most species have from 40 

 to 50. The greatest number is found in the kamasuaawara [ Aoanthocybiumi . which has 

 6Up and the fewest in the isomaeuro | ]Gymno sarda] . iriilch has 38. The ratio of 

 pectoral and caudal vertebrae has not been determined. The last vertebra is fused 

 to the hypural. The first vertebra is not fused to the orahium and its neural spine 

 is separate. 



The flesh is almost colorless, but the upper layers of tissue along the median 

 part of the sides are slightly reddish. The flavor is generally excellent. 



The fishes of this family sometimes reach Teiy large sises. Most of them swim 

 near the surface in pelagic waters or close to the shore, and they are distributed 

 between temperate and tropical waters. They form schools of varying sizes and feed 

 voraciously on sardines, anchovies, decaptorids, Tfachurue laponlcus. and mackerel. 

 They sometimes leap out of the water, and they are very clever at escaping through 

 the meshes of nets. They often damage fishing gear with their sharp teeth. 



The color of the back varies between green and steel-blue, with a purplish 

 cast in some cases, and the belly Is silvery white. Although there are some fish 

 vriiich have longitudinal or transverse lines on the sides of the body, most of them 

 have dark spots. Rarely individuals are found iriilch have no markings at all. The 

 first dorsal is ordinarily blackish. 



This family approaches the broadblH swordfish in the genus Acanthocvbium. 

 which has reticulated gill filaments and no gill-rakers, while the su.1ikatBuo 

 nsoQus San^l f with its short thick body and scaleless keels, is closer to the 

 Thunnidael The flattened sharp-toothed fishes of the genus Cvbium link the family 

 to tee Scombrldae through the genus Qrawmatorcvnus. 



This family has four genera, the relationdiips of iriiioh are shown below. 



Body slender, teeth in both Jaws compressed and sharp, teeth on vomer 



Gill filaments connected in reticulated form ... Genus Acapthocvbium 

 Gill filaments not reticulated ... Genus Cvbium 



Body short and thick, teeth in both Jaws compressed but roiuided on both sides, no 



teeth on vomer 

 No teeth on the tongue, whole body covered with scales ... Genus S^qIA 

 Teeth on tongue, no scales except on the corselet ... Genus Ovmnosatrda 



There are four species of the genus Cvbium in Japan (excluding Formosa), and 

 only a single species in each of the other genera. The following shows the 



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I 



