ON THE EAST COAST OF FLORIDA. 77 



life : Olive gray or olive brown, clouded with paler olive, with no 

 clear red shades except on jaws and lower part of sides of head and 

 breast, these regions being usually a salmon color ; besides these, very 

 irregular rounded blotches of grayish white over the body ; preorbital, 

 suborbital region, and snout with numerous round points of dark 

 orange brown, most numerous on preorbital, these points brown in 

 spirits ; inside of mouth posteriorly bright orange ; iris gilt ; vertical 

 fins colored like the body, the shades from the body extending on 

 them ; soft dorsal, anal, and caudal with a broad ridge of blue black, 

 with a narrow whitish edge ; spinous dorsal narrowly edged with 

 blackish ; ventrals slightly dusky ; pectorals light olive. With age this 

 species becomes more and more of a flesh red, especially below and 

 on mouth, the pale spots and blotches are less distinct in old 

 examples. Length, 1 to 3 feet." 



Illustration. Page. 



68. "EPINEPHELUS STRIATUS." 483 1157 



Grouper; "Head 2-i ; depth 2f ; eye rather large, 5^ 



Nassau Grouper ; in head (young). D. XI, 17; A. Ill, 8; scales 



Hamlet; 13 to 18 _i 10 to 125-45 to 55; pores 55 to 65. 



Cherna Criolla ; „ , . , . , 



Body rather deep, not strongly compressed, its 



greatest width 2-f in depth. Head somewhat 

 pointed, the anterior profile nearly straight to the front of the dorsal. 

 Mouth moderate, the lower jaw little projecting, the maxillary reach- 

 ing posterior border of eye, 2}i in head. Teeth in moderate bands ; 

 2 moderate canines in front of each jaw, the lower smallest. Nostrils 

 close together, the posterior a little the larger, ovate. Interorbital 

 space narrow, flattish, or somewhat concave, 8^ in head. Angle of 

 preopercle slightly salient, a shallow notch above it, the teeth at the 

 angle somewhat larger. Gill rakers slender, about 16 below the angle. 

 Scales moderate, strongly ctenoid. Dorsal spines of moderate strength, 

 higher than in most species, the second much higher than tenth, the 

 third highest, 2^ in head; soft dorsal rather high ; caudal rounded, 

 14 in head ; soft anal rounded, the largest ray 2^ in head; second 

 anal spine stronger than third and about as long, 4 in head ; pecto- 

 rals reaching tips of ventrals, 1|- in head. Ventrals short, barely 

 reaching vent. Color in life : Rather pale olivaceous gray, paler 

 below, and with obscure whitish clouds along sides ; body with about 

 4 vertical bars, very irregular and undulating, of an olive-brown 



