FAMILY SILURIDZ — ARIUS. 179 
under the adipose dorsal, and with twenty-three rays. Caudal deeply lunate ; its tips acute, 
and its lobes occasionally unequal. 
Color. Blue above, tinged with green; sides silvery ; abdomen opaque white. 
Length, 19:0. 
Pinrays, D.1.7 3 Pol l223Vs05, Av203, C..17. 
This marine Cat-fish has a wide geographical range, having been found in the Atlantic from 
23° south to 41° north latitude, along the shores of the two Americas. Its flesh has been 
represented to me by those who have eaten of it, as having an exquisite flavor. It is fre- 
quently abundant in Communipaw creek, on the Jersey side of the harbor of New-York. It 
swims frequently with its long dorsal above the surface, in the manner of sharks, and imitat- 
ing those animals in voracity. 
In accordance with the law of priority, I have restored the original name given by Dr. 
Mitchill, although unmeaning. It is not predccupied in this genus. 
GENUS ARIUS. Cuvier. 
With the general form of the preceding, but the palatine teeth form two distinct and distant 
& it Ss 2 
plates ; rarely any on the vomer. Branchial rays five or six. 
Oxs. This genus, recently separated from Bagrus, and forming a passage to the genus 
Pimelodus, now comprises about forty species, chiefly from Asia, Africa, and the southern 
parts of America. They may be subdivided into those which have acute card-like teeth, and 
those in which they are so closely approximated and rounded as to appear paved. To the first 
division belongs 
MILBERT’S ARIUS. 
ARIUS MILBERTI, 
I) Arius de Milbert. Cuv. et Vat. Hist. des Poiss. Vol. 15, p. 74. 
Characteristics. Casque granulated all over, and not in radiating strie. Length five to fifteen 
inches. 
Description. Head one-fifth of the total length. Snout round ; its casque granulated as far 
as between the eyes. A narrow slit ascends half way up the casque. The interparietal pro- 
cess is one-third the length of the remaining part of the head. Its base equals its length ; 
truncated at the end by the crescent of the buckler, which is itself truncated anteriorly. The 
granulations are equal, distinct but not Jarge. Front and sides of the head smooth. The 
humerus with a smooth skin. The prominence of the upper jaw not very great. Palatine 
teeth on two oval plates, nearly touching in front by a small point. The maxillary cirri 
or barbels extend slightly beyond the end of the opercle ; the external submandibulary cirri 
a fourth less. The spines moderate, with feeble teeth towards the tips, both in front and 
