Jordan and Evermann. Fishes of North America, 2295 



Family CXCV. TEICHODONTID.E. 

 (THE SAND-FISHES.) 



Body rather elongate, compressed, naked. Head short, flat on top, the 

 sides vertical. Eyes large, high up, but not superior. Mouth large, 

 almost vertical; lower jaw projecting, its tip entering the profile; lips 

 fringed; premaxillaries protractile; maxillary very broad, without sup- 

 plemental bone, not vslipping under the very narrow preorbital. Teeth 

 moderate, slender and sharp, but not setiform, in bands on jaws and 

 vomer; palatines toothless ; inner teeth of jaws depressible. Gill rakers 

 short, slender; gill membranes narrowly united, free from the isthmus. 

 Branchiostegals 5. Gills 4, a slit behind the fourth. Pseudobranchise 

 large. Preopercle with 5 prominent spines, the 2 upper directed strongly 

 upward, the 2 lower downward, the middle 1 downward and backward; 

 no barbels ; opercle small, strongly striate, unarmed ; preorbital with 

 spines; no suborbital stay. Lateral line obsolete. Dorsal fins separate, 

 the first the larger, of numerous slender spines; anal fin elongate, with- 

 out distinct spines, the rays of anterior third of the fin much shorter 

 than the others, the beginning of the fin below middle of spinous dorsal; 

 pectorals with a very broad, curved, procurrent base; a broad lunate 

 area between pectoral and gill opening, nearly covered by the opercle ; 

 soft rays of dorsal, anal, and pectoral fins all simple; ventrals I, 5, close 

 together, thoracic, but behind the pectorals, the middle rays longest; 

 caudal lunate, with many accessory rays, on a slender peduncle. Verte- 

 brae numerous, 48 in typical species. Two genera and 2 species known; 

 from the North Pacific; living in sand near the shore. The fringed lips 

 and other characters indicate the relationship of these fishes with the 

 Uranoscopidce. (Trachinidcc, genus Trichodon, Giinther, Cat., n, 250.) 



a. First dorsal long and rather low, of 14 or 15 spines. TRICHODON, 850. 



aa. First dorsal short and high, of 10 spines. ARCTOSCOPUS, 851. 



850. TRICHODON (Steller) Cuvier. 



< SAND-FISHES.) 



Trichodon, STELLER, in Tilesius, Mem. Acad. St. Petersburg, iv, 1811, 468 (trichodon) . 

 Trichodon, CUVIER, Regne Animal, Ed. n, vol. 2, 149, 1829 (trichodon). 



Characters of the genus included above, the first dorsal long and rather 

 low, of 15 spines. One species. (0/>z'6, hair; odovc,, tooth.) 



2632. TRICHODON TRICHODON (Tilesius). 



(SAND-FISH.) 



Head from tip of upper jaw, 3*; depth 3*. D. XIII-1, 18; A. 28; P. 22; 

 eye 4 in head, snout 4|; maxillary 2; interorbital 3; pectoral 1; ventral 

 If; height of spinous dorsal 3. Body moderately elongate, compressed; 

 dorsal outline slightly concave and sloping gently upward from snout to 

 dorsal, thence turning at a very slight angle nearly straight to caudal ; 



