180 REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER OF FISHERIES. 



tern. The families were not defined, and in this respect Yarrell was 

 still the exemplar. Yarrell was not followed, however, in the style of 

 synonjaiiy, which was often quite misleading. For example, under 

 the caption P\eprilus\ trlacanthus^ Feck (p. 00), are references to (1) 

 "Memoirs of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, v. ii, p. 

 48, et fig. f (2) " Mitchell, Trans. Lit. et [sic!] Philosoph. Soc. N. York, 

 p. 365, et fig.;" and (3) ''Cuv. et Valenc. Hist. Nat. des Poiss." In 

 not one of those works does the name "P. trlacanthus"' appear. 

 Peck (in the IVIcmoirs) called the species Stroniateus triacdntJim^ 

 Mitchill (not Mitchell'^') named it Stroinatcus cri/jjiosus^ und forCuvier 

 and Valenciennes (ix, p. 408) it was Ehomhus ('/'i/j)tos>/.'^. Many of the 

 references to pages are also erroneous. 



The slight knowledge Storer had of fishes general]}' entailed on him 

 descriptions deficient in aptness and the element of comparability, 

 and, in a few cases, they were obviously erroneous.^ '"For many 

 years,"' however, according to his obituarian biographer, "it [the 

 Report] was the standard work on our fishes and was only supplanted 

 in New England esteem b}' the revised, extended, and fully illustrated 

 work completed in 1867.'' 



The History is really an amplified edition of the Report with some 

 of the species that had been discovered in the meanwhile incorporated, 

 and with plates illustrating all the species described in it but one, the 

 so-called Bleniiias suhhifurcatus^ w^hich is a typical stichteid. The 

 principal contributor of new material for the History was a master of 

 a fishing vessel, Capt. Nathaniel E. Atwood, of Provincetown, who had 

 acquired considerable knowledge of fishes generalh' and comnmnicated 

 some interesting notes on habits to the Proceedings of the Boston 

 Society of Natural History. 



Storer claims to have ""carefully redescribed all the species" for his 

 History, and it has been declared by an eulogist that "it would be 

 difficult to point out a work of greater accuracy in detail." Conse- 

 quently it has been proclaimed to be "a classic in North American 

 ichthyology that nuist serve as a basis for the future histories of the 

 New England fishes." Naturally such a work calls for examination. 

 If some discrepancy shall be found to exist between the estimate of 



a Mitchill's name was always spelled Mitchell by Storer in his Report; he corrected it in later papers 

 and in his History. 



bOne new genus and 10 nominal new species were described in the Report, 4 of which are 

 recognized at the present time. The 4 of acknowledged validity are indicated in the following list 

 by italics: 



Cryptacanthodec (n.g.) macttlaius. Storer (p. 28). 



PholU Siibbifurcatus (p. 6^) = Eumcsor/ramJiius .yuhbifurcatus (Storer). 



Leuciscus argenteus (p. 90)=Semotilus corporalis (Mitchill, 1817). 



Leuciscus pulchellus (p. 91)=Semotilus corporalis. 



Morrhua americana (p. 120) =Gadus callarias Linnocus, 1758. 



Platessaferraginea (p. 121)=Limandaferruginca, Storer. 



Echeneis quatuordecimlaminatus (p. 155)=Rcmora brachyptera (Lowe, 1839). 



Syngnathusfuscus (p. 162) =Siphosto ma fuscum, Storer. 



Syngnathus peckianus (p. 103)=8iphostoma fuscum, Storer. 



Mouoeanthus massachusettensis (p. 174)=Monacanthus liispidus (Linnaus, 1758). 



