N0.15S1. FISHES OF JAPAN— JORDAN AXD RICHARDSON. 649 



Family TRIGLID.^. 



THE GURNARDS. 



Body elongate, usually more or less fusiform, covered with scales 

 or bony plates; head externally bony, entirely cuirassed with rough, 

 bony plates, some of which are armed with spines; eyes high; mouth 

 terminal or sid)inferior; premaxillaries protractile; maxillary with- 

 out supplemental bone, slipping under tlie preorbital; teeth very 

 small, in bands in the jaws, and usually on vomer and palatines; gills 

 4, a large slit behind the fourth; pseudobranchise present; gill rakers 

 various; gill membranes free from the isthmus; ventral fins thoracic, 

 \vdde apart, separated by a flat area, their rays I, 5; spinous dorsal 

 present, short; soft dorsal similar to the anal, which is without spines; 

 caudal narrow, few-rayed; pectoral large, with broad base, with 3 

 lower rays detached, forming feelers, which are used chiefl}" in the 

 search for food, in turning over stones, exploring shells, etc.; air 

 bladder present; pyloric caeca usually present, few in number. Sin- 

 gular looking fishes, found in all warm seas. Species about 40, some 

 of them in rather deep water, these red in color, the others living about 

 rocks; .3 genera and 7 species known from the waters of Japan. 



KEY TO THE GENERA OF JAPANESE TRIOLID.K. 



a. Lateral line unarmed; no teeth on palatines. 



h. Scales relatively large, about 50 to 65 in number: a row of spinous l^ucklers along 



base of dorsal Lepidotrigla, 8 



hb. Scales relatively small, more than 100 in the lateral line. 

 c. Base of both dorsals with a series of shields, each ending in a sharp spine directed 

 backward; opercular spine small; soft dorsal and anal long; dorsal rays 



IX-16; anal 15: no anal spine Chelidonichthys. 9 



cc. Back with blunt shields along base of spinous dorsal Qnly; base of soft dorsal 

 unarmed; opercular spine very long; soft dorsal and anal short; dorsal rays 

 VIII- 10; anal 11: anal spine distinct Otohime, 10 



8. LEPIDOTRIGLA Gunther. 

 L< pidotrigla GvNTHER, Cat. Fishes, II. 1800, p. 196 {aspera=cavillone). 



Scales moderate, about 45 to 55 in number, being much larger than 

 in Chelidonichthys; teeth on vomer; no teeth on palatines; a row of 

 spinous bucklers along base of dorsal fin; characters otherwise those 

 of the family. 



East Indies, South Seas, and Japanese and Chinese .seas; 5 species 

 known from the waters of Japan. 



(XsTris, scale; rpiyXa, Trigla, classical name for MuUus harhatus, 

 the name Trigla transferred to these fishes, for no evident reason.) 



KEY TO SPECIES. 



n. Pectorals short, not reaching middle of dorsal. 



h. Nasal prominences long, pointed, and divergent, the distance between them at 

 tips usually more than U times interorbital distance; dorsal IX-16 or 17; anal 

 16; scales 63; no dor.sal blotch alata, \.\ 



