SYSTEMATIC CATALOGUE OF FISHES. 221 



The fish is known to spawn in Chesapeake Bay in summer, and its eggs have 

 been artificially hatched. It feeds largely on crabs, but also eats shrimp and 

 small fish of all kinds, and is very voracious. It attains a length of 5 feet or more 

 and a weight of upwai'ds of 60 pounds. 



Family STROMATEID^E. The Butter-fishes. 



Small marine fishes, some of them food fishes of importance. Body com- 

 pressed, depth moderate or extreme; head more or less blunt; mouth small or 

 moderate, with weak teeth in jaws; tongue, vomer, and palatines rarely or never 

 toothed; esophagus with lateral sacs in which are hooked teeth; nostrils double; 

 opercles entire or serrate; gill-membranes free from isthmus; gill-rakers long or 

 moderate; pseudobranchiae present; branchiostegals 5 to 7; lateral line present 

 and continuous; body and more or less of head covered with small, thin cycloid 

 scales, which extend on vertical fins; air-bladder usually lacking; pyloric coeca 

 numerous; dorsal fin single, preceded by a few weak or obsolete spines, the soft 

 rays numerous; anal similar to dorsal, usually with 3 spines; ventrals thoracic, 

 present in young but sometimes absent in adults. Following the revision of this 

 family by Regan (Annals and Magazine of Natural History, vol. x, 7th series, 

 1902), 4 genera are represented in the local fauna. In addition thereto at least 

 one other, Palinurichthys, maybe provisionally inserted; the rudder-fish, PaZmwr- 

 ichthys 'percijormis (Mitckill), is often observed on the jMiddle Atlantic coast 

 under floating boxes, logs, etc., or about rudders of vessels, and doubtless will be 

 found to occur in North Carolina waters. 



Key to the North Carolina genera of Stroraateidce . 



i. Ventral fins present in adult as well as in young; esophagus with longitudinal folds; dorsal 

 spines 7 to 11. 

 a. Lateral line concurrent with outline of back; dorsal spines high, 10 or 11 in number. 



h. Teeth on vomer and palatines Nomeus 



bb. No teeth on palatines Psenes 



aa. Lateral line curved anteriorly, straight posteriorly; dorsal spines low, 7 to 9 in number. 



Palinurichthys. 

 ii. Ventral fins absent in adult; esophagus without longitudinal folds; dorsal spines 3. 



c. Dorsal and anal fins very high and falcate in front; body almost as deep as long; no 



series of pores along back above lateral line Peprilus. 



cc. Dorsal and anal fins moderately elevated in front and not falcate: body not half as 

 deep as long; a series of conspicuous pores along back above lateral line. 



PORONOTUS. 



Genus NOMEUS Cuvier. Portuguese-man-of-war-fishes. 



In this genus the body is moderately compressed; head rather flat above; 



teeth on jaws, vomer, and palatines, in a single series on jaw^s; pseudobranchia 



large; air-bladder present; about 10 dorsal spines and 3 anal spines; ventrals long 



and attached to abdomen by a membrane; caudal strongly forked. One species. 



(Nomeus, pastor.) 



190. NOMEUS GRONOVII (Gmelin). 



Portuguese-nian-of- war-fish . 



Gobius gronovii Gmelin, Systema Naturce, xiii, 1205, 1788; tropical America. 



Nomeus ffronovii, Jenkins, 1885, 11; Beaufort, Jordan, 1886, 27; Beaufort. .Jenkins, 1887, 89; Beaufort, 

 Jordan & Evermann, 1896, 949. Wilson, 1900, 355; Beaufort. 



