SPAROID FISHES OF AMERICA AND EUROPE. 455 



ANALYSIS OF AMEIilCAN SPECIES OF APSILUS. 



a. Body rather deep (depth, 2| iu length) ; head large, 3 in body. D. x, 10; A, in, 8; 

 scales small, regularly arranged, 8-60-16 ; those above lateral line in series paraIh-1 

 with the lateral line; gill-rakers numerous, about 17 on lower part of arch; 

 mouth rather small, the canines moderate; tongue toothless; vomerine teeth in 

 a /\-shaped patch ; preorbital narrow ; caudal well 1< irked ; anal spines graduated ; 

 last rays of anal slightly produced, the lobes pointed; color, dusky violet, with- 

 out distinct markings Dentatus, 25. 



25. APSILUS DENTATUS. (Arnillo.) 



Apuilus deiitatiis Guicheuot, in Ramon de la Sagra, Hist. Cuba, Poiss., 29, pi. 1, f. 2, 



1815 (Havana^. 

 Mesoprion dentatus, Giiuther, i, 188, 1859 (Jamaica). 

 TropidinUis dentatus, Jordan »fe Swain, 1. c. 

 Mesoprion arnillo Poey, Mem. ii, 154, 1860 (Cuba). 

 Tfopidinius arnillo, (Gill Mss.), Poey, Synopsis, 296, 1868 (Cuba); Poey, Enumeratio, 



30, 1875. 

 Lutjanus arnillus, Cope, Trniis. Am. Philos. Soc. 1869, 470 (St. Croix). 



Habitat: West Indies. 



Etymology : Dentatus, toothed. 



This beautiful little lish is rather common in the markets of Havana, 

 where it is known as arnillo. The name dentatus is set aside by Poey 

 in tavor of his later name arnillo, because the species is a Lutjanus 

 rather than an Apsilus, and all the Lutjani are dentate. Such reasons 

 are not sufficient to warrant interference with the law of priority. The 

 species, however, is a genuine Apsilus, and has perhaps stronger teeth 

 than its congener /«sc«.9. 



VI. APRION. 



Aprion Cuv. & Val., Hist. Nat. Poiss., vi, 1830, 543 (virescens). 



? Chaetopterus Temmiuck & Schlegel, Fauna Japouica, Poiss., 78, 1850 (duhius). 



Pristipomoides Bleeker, Natuurk. Tijdschr. Nederl. Ind., 1852, in, 574 (ij/jjus). 



Platyinius Gill, Proc. Ac. Nat. Sci. Phila. 1863,237 {corax^^^macropltthalmus). 



? Sparopsis Kner, Fische Mus. Godeffroy, 1868, 303 (elonyatus). 



Type: Aprion virescens Cuv. &. Val. 



Etymology: a privative; Ttpiutv, a saw. 



The superficial characters separating Aprion from Lutjanus are not 

 very important, but the structure of the upj)er jjart of the cranium (in 

 the sj)ecies examined, macro2)hthalnn(s and virescens) differs Avidely from 

 that of Lutjanus, Ocy urns, Khomhopl ites, awd Apsilus, (.•ioiie]y resembling 

 that of Etelis, with which genus Aprion has very near affinities. 



The American species {macrophthalmus) has been nuide by Dr. Gill 

 the tyi)e of a genus Platyinius, regarded as distinct from Aprion. An 

 examination o^ Aprion virescens shows that our species has the same form 

 of the skull, differing chietly in the specific characters of deeper body, 

 weaker teeth, and narrower preorbital. It is strange that so excellent a 

 naturalist as Dr. Klimzinger should regard Aprion merely as a subgenus 

 under Gentropristis (Fisclie des Rothen Meers, j). IG). 



