2148 Bulletin ^7, United States National Museum. 



792. PRIONOTUS,* Lacepede. 

 (GURNARDS.) 



Prionotus, LACEPEDE, Hist. Nat. Poiss., m, 37, 1802 (evolans). 

 Ornichthys, SWAINSON, Nat. Hist. Class'n Fishes, n, 262, 1839 (punctatus). 

 Chriolax, JORDAN & GILBERT, Proc. IT. S, Nat. Mus. 1878, 374 (evolans). 

 Gurnardus, JOEDAN & EVERMANN, new subgenus (gymnostethus) . 

 Merulinus, JORDAN & EVERMANN, new subgenus (carolinus) . 



Body subfusiform ; profile of head descending to the broad depressed 

 snout, which is much longer than the small eye; eyes close together, high 

 up; surface of head entirely bony, the bones rough with ridges and 

 granulations ; scales on head few or none; preopercle with 1 or 2 sharp 

 spines at its angle; *opercle with a sharp spine; nape with 2 strong 

 spines; a spine on shoulder girdle. Mouth rather broad; bands of small, 

 almost granular, teeth on jaws, vomer and palatines; gill membranes 

 nearly separate, free from isthmus ; gill rakers rather long. Body covered 

 with small, rough scales, which are not keeled; lateral line continuous; 

 scales on breast very small. Dorsal fins distinct, the fir.sjb of 8 to 10 rather 

 stout spines, the third usually highest, but mostly shorter than head ; 

 anal fin similar to soft dorsal; pectoral fin with the 3 lower anterior rays 

 thickened, entirely free from each other and from the fin; ventrals I, 5, 

 wide apart, with a flat space between them, the inner rays longest. Pylo- 

 ric caeca in moderate number; air bladder generally with lateral muscles 

 and divided into 2 lateral parts; vertebra 10 or ll-j-15. Species numer- 

 ous, all but 1 being American.! Representing in America the Old Worlcl 

 genus Trigla. Some of them in deep water. They are well defined ancj 

 easily recognized, but vary considerably with age, and are not easily 

 thrown into subordinate groups. Most of the characters in the following 

 analysis have been taken from adult individuals. Young examples in most 

 cases diifer from the adults in the following respects, in addition to those 

 characters which usually distinguish young fishes : The spines on thehead 

 are sharper, more conspicuous, and more compressed in the young, and 

 some spines, especially those on the side of the head, disappear entirely 

 with age. The interorbital space is more concave in the young. The pec- 

 toral fins are also much shorter. The gill rakers are longer in the young, 

 and proportionately more slender, and some of the color markings espe- 

 cially the darker cross shades are more conspicuous, while the spots on 

 body and fins are less so. (rtpiaov, saw; rc5ro, back; 3 free saw-like 

 spines being said to intervene between the two dorsals.) 



a. Mouth comparatively small, the maxillary less than the length of the head, the man- 

 dible usually not extending backward as far as the vertical from the front of the 

 eye; generally a more or less distinct cross groove on top of head behind eye; black 

 spot on spinous dorsal usually more or less distinct. 

 G-URNARDUS (from Gurnard) : 



6. Snout distinctly birostrate, its tip deeply emarginate; anterior profile of head 

 strongly concave;, pectoral fin very short, little if any longer than head; inter- 

 orbital space deeply concave. 



M*??? a detailed account of the species of Prionotus see Jordan & Hughes, Proc. IT. S. 

 Nat. Mus. 1886, 327, et %eq. 

 t The single species found outside our limits is Prionotus japonicus, Bleeker. 



