THE FISHES OF NEW JERSEY. 375 
Genus HeMITRIPTERUS Cuvier. 
The Sea Ravens. 
Hemitripterus americanus (Gmelin). 
PLATE 81. 
Sea Raven. 
Etedd, 252 >. depthi4: As LV,)X11-l,..125 Abviaeetubercles. in 
lateral line about 45 to base of caudal; snout 334 in head, meas- 
ured from tip of upper jaw; eye 624; maxillary 1°°/,,; inter- 
orbital space 334; width of mouth 144; second dorsal spine 2; 
sixth dorsal ray 21/,,; ninth anal ray 2'/,,; least depth of caudal 
peduncle 51%4; caudal 134; pectoral 1%; ventral 2%. Body 
moderately elongate. Head large, broad, well convex above, 
flattened below. Snout broad, convexly elevated. Eye elongate 
or ellipsoid, in first third of head and high. Mouth very wide, 
nearly horizontal. Mandible protruding. Maxillary reaching 
a little beyond eye. ‘Teeth slender, sharp, conic, numerous and 
in rather broad bands in jaws, on vomer and palatines. Inter- 
orbital space and top of head medianly concave, former with a 
large depression in shape of plumb-bob. Nasal spines strong. 
Supraocular ridge much elevated, with 2 blunt osseous tubercles. 
On each side of occiput 2 blunt osseous tubercles, outside of 
which and a little anterior 3 others. Opercle small, with bony 
ridge. Posterior margin of preopercle with 2 strong blunt 
spines, lower longer and horizontal. Suborbital stay very strong, 
forming a sharp ridge. Gill-rakers as several broad finely as- 
perous tubercles. Body villous, prickles enlarged and tubercle- 
like along back and lateral line. Supraocular ridge with 2 dermal 
flaps, and 3 pairs.of fleshy flaps on nasal bones. Smaller ones on 
maxillary and preorbital, several on lower jaw. Spinous dorsal 
much longer than soft part, first 2 spines highest, and origin of 
fin about midway between tip of snout and base of tenth spine. 
Fourth and fifth shorter than those succeeding and fin deeply 
notched. Rayed dorsal inserted about midway between origin 
of pectoral and base of caudal, margin entire and a little higher 
