8 SPARID^E. 



in silver. Rondelet says that the flesh of the Bogue is 

 easily digested, and on that account is a wholesome ali- 

 ment for invalids, but Cornide, who speaks of it as he 

 observed it on the Atlantic coasts of Spain, states that it 

 has a disagreeable taste, and is consumed chiefly by poor 

 people. Mr. Lowe tells us that it is exceedingly common 

 at Madeira, and though he says nothing of its qualities 

 as an article of food, he remarks of another species of the 

 same genus that it is one of the handsomest and most 

 worthless of fishes. 



The Bogue has an elegant, moderately-compressed, ellip- 

 tical form, the curves of the dorsal and ventral profiles 

 meeting at the terminal mouth which is slightly obtuse. 

 The greatest height of the body is at the fifth or sixth 

 dorsal spinous ray, and is contained thrice and one-half 

 times in the length, excluding the caudal fin. The head 

 makes a fourth of the same distance, or a fifth of the entire 

 length of the fish, including the caudal fin. The face forms 

 part of the general dorsal curve without inequalities, and 

 the crown of the head is moderately rounded transversely, 

 the width at the posterior angles of the orbits being a 

 little more than a diameter of the eye, but at the anterior 

 angles a little less. The nostrils are small pore-like open- 

 ings in a membrane near the anterior angle of the orbit, 

 and close to the upper end of the preorbitar. 



The mouth is very small, and is armed above and be- 

 low with a single close-set series of incisorial teeth, 

 which are channelled in front, bevelled and crenated on 

 the edges. The minute crenatures of each of the upper 

 teeth number about seven or eight, the cutting edges be- 

 ing otherwise nearly straight; but the lower teeth have 

 a convexly-curved edge, and from the depth of the 

 lateral crenatures are more or less lobed ; in the St. 

 Mawes specimen none of the under teeth have the 



