898 Bulletin 47, United States National Museum. 



411. OLIGOPLITES,* Gill. 

 (LEATHER JACKETS.) 



Oligoplites, GILL, Proc Ac. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1863, 1G6, (occidentalism saurus). 



Body compressed, oblong or lanceolate. Caudal peduncle slender, not 

 keeled. Head short, compressed, acute. Occipital keel sharp. Mouth 

 rather large, with small sharp teeth in bands on jaws, tongue, vomer, and 

 palatines, none on the pterygoids. Jaws about equal, the upper not pro- 

 tractile, except in the very young, in which it is movable as in other 

 CarangidcKj maxillary very narrow, without distinct supplemental bone. 

 Gill rakers rather long. Scales small, linear, and extremely narrow, 

 embedded in the skin at different angles. Lateral line unarmed. Dorsal 

 spines rather strong, 3 to 5 in number, nearly free in the adult ; second 

 dorsal very long, its posterior rays pencillated and nearly or quite discon- 

 nected, forming finlets ; anal rather longer than soft dorsal, much longer 

 than the abdomen, its last rays forming similar finlets ; anal spines strong ; 

 ventral fins depressible in a groove ; pectoral fins very short. Species few, 

 in the tropical seas of America. (6/Uyof, few ; OTTAITTJS, armed.) 



a. Body rather elongate, elliptical, the depth about 4 in length. 



b. Maxillary not reaching posterior border of eye; lowest iufraorbital bone usually nar- 

 rower than the one above it. SAUHUS, 1284. 

 bb. Maxillary reaching beyond posterior border of eye; lowest infraorbital bone usually 

 broader than the one next above it. SALIENS, 1285. 



mi. Body rather deep, the depth in adult about 3 in length of body; lowest infraorbital bone 

 broader than the one above it; maxillary nearly reaching posterior margin of eye. ALTUS, 1286. 



1284. OLIGOPLITES SAURUS (Bloch & Schneider). 

 (LEATHER JACKET; RUNNEK; ZAPATEBO; QUIEBRA; SAUTEUR.) 



Head 5 ; depth 4. D. V-I, 20 ; A. II-I, 20. Body lanceolate, slender, and 

 compressed. Eye as long as snout, about 4 in head ; opercles short. 

 Maxillary reaching beyond middle of orbit, nearly to its posterior edge ; 

 lowest bone of infraorbital series usually narrower than the bone above 

 it. Scales very long and narrow, embedded in the skin, placed obliquely 

 at angles with each other, their appearance unlike ordinary scales. Fins 

 low; pectoral as long as eye and snout; caudal very deeply forked, the 

 lobes equal. Bluish above, bright silvery below ; fins yellow. Both 

 coasts of Tropical America, very common in the West Indies and along 

 the Florida Coast, ranging north to New York and Lower California ; 

 not valued as food, being dry and bony. The Pacific Coast form called 

 inornatus seems to us inseparable from saurus. (saurus, cavpoc, lizard.) 

 Scomber saurus, BLOCH & SCHNEIDER, Syst. Ichth., 321, 1801, Jamaica; based on the Leather Coat 



or Saums argenteus of BROWNE. 



Chorinemus occidentalis, GUNTHER, Cat., 11, 475, 1860; not Gasterosteus occidenialis, LINN#;US, whih 

 is some other Carangoid fish seen by LINN^KVS in the Museum de Geer; the description un- 

 identifiable. 

 Oligoplites occidentalis, GILL, Proc. Ac. Nat. Sci. Phila., 166, 1863. 



* In the Old- World genus Scombroides there are seven dorsal spines, the pterygoids are armed 

 with teeth, and in most of the species the scales are normally developed. 



