NOMENCLATURE AND MORPHOLOGY. 73 



on the jaws, front of vomer, and palatine bones. Tongue 

 smooth. Cheeks and opercular apparatus scaly. Branchial 

 apertures continuous under the throat. Two dorsal fins contig- 

 uous upon their base. Three small anal spines. Insertion of 

 ventrals on a line immediately behind the base of pectorals. 

 Caudal fin posteriorly sub-cresentic. Scales well developed and 

 posteriorly ciliated." (GiRARD, U. S. Pac. R. R. Surv. X, 

 Fishes, 4, 1858.) 



GRYSTES Gunther, 1859. " Six or seven branchiostegals. 

 All the teeth villiform without canines ; teeth on the palatine 

 bones ; tongue smooth. One dorsal, with ten spines, the anal 

 fin with three. Operculum with two points, prseoperculum with 

 a single smooth-edged ridge. Scales moderate. The number 

 of the pyloric appendages increased. Air-bladder simple, 

 slightly notched behind." (GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus. I, 

 252, 1859.) 



HURO Gunther, 1859. " Six branchiostegals. All the teeth 

 villiform, without canines; palatine bones ?; tongue ? Two 

 dorsals, the first with six, the anal fin with three spines. No 

 denticulations on the bones of the head; operculum with two 

 flat obtuse points. Scales moderate." (GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes 

 Brit. Mus. I, 252, 1859.) 



MICROPTERUS Gill, 1873." Body ovate-fusiform, compressed, 

 deepest behind the ventrals, with the caudal peduncle elongated, 

 scarcely contracted towards the base of the fin. 



"Scales small or moderate; quadrate, rather higher than 

 long, with the exposed portion densely muricated, rounded 

 behind and about twice as high as long ; with the fan with few 

 (4-9) folds ; extending to the nape and throat. 



"Lateral line regularly parallel with the back, in scales 

 nearly like but smaller than the adjoining ones. 



"Head compressed and oblong conic, with the lower jaw 

 prominent and the profile rectilinear ; with scales (more or less 

 smaller than those of the trunk) on the cheeks, operculum, sub- 

 7 



