SPAROID FISHES OF AMERICA AND EUROPE. 423 



cc. Teeth lu jaws very small, equal; vomerine teeth miuute, iu a O-shaped 

 patch ; dorsal lin deeply divided ; skull with the temporal crest 

 very low, ruuning straight forward to the supraorbital ridge. 



Xenichthyin^, III. 

 bb. Vomer without teeth; palatines and tougue toothless. 



d. Teeth ou sides of Jaws uot molar ; maxillaries formed essentially as in the 

 SerraniiUw. 

 e. Teeth suhequal, or those of the outer series more or less enlarged; no 

 strong cauiuos; i)reopercle more or less serrate, rarely entire ; 



air bladder not constricted H.emumx^, IV. 



ee. Teeth very unequal, one or both jaws with strong canines; preopercla 



entire ; dorsal continuous Denticin^, V. 



dd. Teeth on sides of jaws molar; maxillaries peculiar in form and in artic^ 

 ulatiou, unlike those of the Serrauida'. 

 f. Anterior teeth conical, or else more or less incisor-like; preopercle 

 entire; dorsal fin continuous; preorbital broad.. .Sparin.e, VI. 

 ff. Anterior teeth as well as lateral teeth molar-like ; preopercle dentic- 

 ulate ; dorsal fin divided into two ; preorbital narrow. 



BORIDIIN/E, VII. 



aa. Spines of premaxillary extending backward to the occiput, so that the mouth 



is excessively jirotractile, as in the genus Gerres; teeth in jaws 



small or wanting; vomer with minute teeth or none; dorsal fin 



continuous or deeply notched; preorbital narrow; preopercle 



entire M^NIN Ji:, VIII. 



II. Herbivorous species; intestinal canal elongate; anterior teeth in jaws incisor- 

 like; no molars or canines; premaxillaries moderately pro- 

 tractile. 

 g. Lower rays of pectorals branched like the upper; air bladder 

 usually with two long horns ; vertebrae 2J: to 27 ; dorsal spines, 

 10 to li. 

 h. Pyloric co3ca few ; teeth fixed ; vertical fins not scaly ; no teeth 



on vomer Scatharin^, IX. 



hh. Pyloric coeca very numerous. 

 i. Soft jiart of dorsal and anal fins naked or partly scaled; head 

 more or less naked; teeth in broad bands, all freely movable, 



none on vomer Girellin^e, X. 



ii. Soft parts of vertical iins closely scaly; teeth more or less 



fixed, usually present on vomer Kyphosin/E, XI. 



gg. Lower rays of pectorals simple; vertebrte in increased number 

 (about 34) ; dorsal fin long ; the anterior part with 15 to 17 spines, 

 ' , the posterior with 18 to 20 soft rays ; anterior teeth incisor- 

 like; vomer with or without teeth; scales very small ; pyloric 

 cccca 2 to 4 Aplodactylin.e, XII. 



Of these subfamilies, the Hoplopagrhue, Xenichthyinw, and Boridiinw, 

 are exclusively American. The Denticinw aud 8catliarinni are coufined 

 to the Old World. 



