114 



Memoir Sears Foundation for Marine Research 



Body with almost vertical sides; the dorsal outline of head nearly straight and 

 horizontal, the back somewhat elevated, with ventral outline strongly curved anteriorly, 

 depth 3.4-4.3 in SL. Scales large, firm, with crenulate membranous border. Lateral 

 LINE complete, decurved anteriorly, the pores branched. Head moderately short and 

 deep, its depth at middle of eye not quite twice its width at the same place, 3.2-4.7 

 in SL. Snout to rim of upper jaw considerably shorter than eye in small specimens, 

 gradually becoming equal to and finally longer than eye during growth, 4.5-5.5 in 

 head. Eye 3.3-4.7 in head, much nearer to dorsal than to ventral profile, wholly in 

 anterior half of head in adults. Gill rakers rather long and slender, scarcely dentic- 



FicuRE 19. Tarpon atlanticus, from ofF New Jersey, USNM 14924; from Goode. Drawn by H.L.Todd. 



ulate. Mouth superior. Mandible projecting far beyond the gape, entering dorsal 

 profile in advance of mouth. Maxillary broad, strongly curved, extending under 

 posterior part of eye in young (80-100 mm) but far beyond eye in large examples, 

 1. 5-1. 9 in head. 



Dorsal fin high anteriorly, its last ray produced in specimens over 100 mm long, 

 quite long in large specimens, reaching to end of base of anal fin in some specimens 

 seen; its origin about equidistant between base of caudal and anterior margin of eye. 

 Caudal deeply forked, the lobes of about equal length, generally somewhat longer 

 than head. Anal somewhat elevated anteriorly, its last ray produced in adults, some- 

 times reaching the base of lower rays of caudal, its origin at least an eye's diameter 

 behind end of dorsal base, its base 4.6-5.6 in SL. Pelvic rather large, inserted more 

 than an eye's diameter in advance of origin of dorsal, and somewhat nearer to base of 

 pectoral than to origin of anal in large specimens. Pectoral rather long, extending to 

 base of pelvic in small specimens, not nearly to pelvic in large ones, 1.2-1.4 in head. 

 Axillary scale of pectoral rather small, only about a third of the fin length, 2.7-3.4 

 in head. 



Color. Preserved specimens bluish silvery above, sides and lower parts bright to 

 pale silvery. Pectorals and pelvics pale; other fins all more or less dusky. Longley 



