Jordan and Evermann. Fishes of North America. 813 



mouth oblique, the maxillary reaching to front of orbit ; upper lip rather 

 thick; lower jaw with a knob at the middle which fits into an emargi- 

 nation in the upper, its angle more obtuse than a right angle ; space 

 on chin between mandibulary bones, broad in front, acute behind, the 

 subopercles meeting below. Teeth very minute, scarcely appreciable. 

 Preorbital minutely serrated. Pectorals reaching about to middle of 

 ventrals, not to spinous dorsal ; spinous dorsal inserted above posterior 

 end of ventrals when fin is depressed; first spine of dorsal the longest; 

 soft dorsal and anal similar, their margins incised; ventrals inserted 

 behind middle of pectoral ; soft dorsal and anal scaly, 23 scales before 

 dorsal. Color slaty bluish above, silvery below ; sides with rather faint 

 longitudinal bluish stripes which follow the rows of scales, fading out 

 on the belly and running into the darker color on the back; ventrals and 

 anal pale ; pectoral and dorsals dusky ; a dusky bar at base of pectoral. 

 Pacific Coast of tropical America from Guatemala to Galapagos ; the types, 

 two specimens (No. 1607, L. S. Jr. Univ. Mus.), the largest 8 inches long, 

 collected by the Albatross in the Galapagos. Close to Mugil incilis, the 

 head larger, and with several minor differences. (Named for Dr. Wilbur 

 Wilson Thoburn of Stanford University in recognition of his work on 

 the Cottidv.) 



1186. MUGIL CUREMA, Cuvier & Valenciennes. 

 (WHITE MULLET; BLUE-BACK MULLET; LIZA; LISA BLANCA.) 



Head 4; depth 3|. D. IV-I, 8 ; A. Ill, 9 ; scales 38-12. Body moder- 

 ately elongate, its depth about equaling that of Mugil ceplialus. Snout 

 rather narrow and pointed, the upper profile not so oblique as lower. 

 Interorbital space slightly convex, 2- in head. Upper lip rather thick. 

 Space at the chin between the mandibulary bones oblanceolate, acutish 

 posteriorly. Preorbital rather narrow, nearly covering the maxillary 

 posteriorly. Eyes hidden anteriorly and posteriorly by a broad adipose 

 membrane. Teeth thick-set, rather small, but distinctly visible to the 

 naked eye. Scales rather small, about 23 from origin or dorsal to tip of 

 snout ; soft dorsal and anal densely scaled. Soft dorsal slightly concave, 

 the seventh and shortest ray 2 in second or longest ray. Anal similar to 

 soft dorsal. Pectoral falling short of spinous dorsal by a distance equal 

 to i its length in adult, sometimes longer in young. Caudal forked. 

 Color dark olive above, with some bluish reflections; silvery below ; no 

 dusky streaks along sides ; a rather small dark blotch at base of pectoral ; 

 spinous and soft dorsal and pectorals pale, with numerous small dark 

 punctulations ; caudal pale, yellowish at base, margin of fin blackish ; 

 anal and ventrals yellowish ; side of head with two yellow blotches. 

 Cape Cod to Brazil; Magdalena Bay to Chili, generally common on both 

 coasts of America, especially in the tropics. A food-fish of importance, 

 entering the sea more freely than does Mugil cephalus, which is a bay 

 fish. Length about a foot. (Curema, a Portuguese name used by Marc- 

 grave, doubtless corresponding to the Spanish Qucrinxtn.) 



Jliigil cnrcinii, CrviER & VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat. Poise., xi, 87, 1836, Brazil: Martinique; 

 Cuba. 



