Pigfish; Hogfish 



bright bronze spot behind its centre, these forming nearly continuous 

 streaks along the rows of scales, running upward and backward ante- 

 riorly and nearly horizontally on side, where they are more or less in- 

 terrupted or transposed; head plain gray; dorsal with some streaks; 

 ventrals somewhat dusky. 



O. chalceus occurs on the coast of tropical America, from the Gulf 

 of California to the Galapagos Islands, and is rather common, especially 

 at Cape San Lucas and Mazatlan. It reaches 1 8 inches in length, and is a 

 good food-fish. Colour, paler than in related species ; pale chalky bluish 

 streaks along the edges of the rows of scales; a pale streak below base 

 of dorsal; fins rather pale, the soft dorsal mottled with darker. The 

 young have broad diffuse dusky cross-bands on the side. 



O. poeyi is a rare species known only from Havana. It is close to O. 

 chrysopterus, but the body is more slender, and the scales are rather larger. 



O. cantharimis is known only from the Galapagos Islands. It 

 reaches a foot in length, and is apparently close to O. chrysopterus. 

 Colour, brownish gray above, soiled silvery below; upper parts with 

 8 diffuse cross-bands, as wide as the interspaces extending to below 

 middle of side; membrane of opercle dark; some dark streaks fol- 

 lowing rows of scales; dorsal with some dull orange and some pale 

 round spots. 



Pigfish; Hogfish 



Orthopristis chrysopterus (Linnaeus) 



This is the most important food-fish of the genus. It reaches a 

 length of 12 to 15 inches, and occurs on the South Atlantic and Gulf 



434 



