STROMATEIDS AND CORYPH^ENAS 2737 



nearly straight line from the back of the head almost to the deeply-forked caudal; 

 the anal resembles the dorsal in having no distinct spinous portion; and the well- 

 developed pelvic fins are thoracic in position, and can be received in a groove in the 

 abdomen. Teeth are present in the jaws, as well as on the vomer, palatines, and 

 tongue; the cycloid 

 scales are small; and 

 there is no air blad- 

 der. The cory- 

 phaenas, of which 

 there are some half- 

 dozen species, are 

 purely pelagic fishes, CORYPH^NA. 



ranging over all tem- 

 perate and tropical seas, and remarkable for the beauty of their fleeting colors. Dr. 

 Giinther observes that so " far as the colors are capable of description, those of the 

 common species (C. hippurus), which is often seen in the Mediterranean, are silvery 

 blue above, with markings of a deeper azure, and reflections of pure gold, the lower 

 parts being lemon yellow, marked with pale blue. The pectoral fins are partly lead 

 color, partly yellow; the anal is yellow, the iris of the eye golden. The iridescent 

 colors change rapidly while the fish is dying, as in the mackerel. The form of the 

 body, and especially of the head, changes considerably with age. Very young spec- 

 imens, from one to six inches in length, are abundant in the open sea, and frequently 

 obtained in the tow net. Their body is cylindrical, their head as broad as high, 

 and the eye relatively very large, much longer that the snout. As the fish grows, 

 the body is more compressed, and finally a high crest is developed on the head, and 

 the anterior part of the dorsal fin attains a height equal to that of the body." This 

 species ranges over all tropical seas, and attains a length of from five to six feet; al- 

 though its flesh is unpalatable to Europeans, it is eaten by the natives of Madras. 

 Powerful swimmers, and associating in large shoals, coryphaenas are determined en- 

 emies to flying fish, pursuing them as they skim from wave to wave, and capturing 

 them as they again fall into the water. 



_ fi . As an example of genera in which the body is much compressed, 



short, and deep, we may select the sunfish {Lampris luna), of the 

 North Atlantic and Mediterranean, the sole representative of its genus. The body 

 is covered with very small deciduous scales, the mouth has a narrow cleft, and is 

 devoid of teeth, the dorsal has its anterior portion elevated into a narrow point, and 

 the pelvic fins are composed of numerous rays. This fish, which attains to the 

 length of four feet, is remarkable for the beauty of its coloration, the body being 

 bluish, with round silvery spots, and the fins brilliant scarlet. Its flesh is reported 

 to be of good flavor. In the allied Mene, also represented by a single species (M. 

 maculata) , inhabiting the Indian and Malayan seas, and attaining a length of eight 

 or nine inches, the jaws are toothed, the mouth is very protractile, and the first rays 

 of the pelvic fins are greatly elongated. This genus is found in a fossil state in the 

 middle Eocene of Monte Bolca; while in the London Clay we have the extinct 

 Goniognathus. 

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