CENTEARCHID^. 33 



aa. Tongue and pterygoid bones toothless ; mouth moderate or small : 

 d. Operculum ending behind in an entire convex process or flap, which is al- 

 ways more or less black ; dorsal lin not notched ; dorsal spines nor- 

 mally 10; anal spines 3, the soft rays in each about 10 in number; 

 caudal fin emarginate : 

 e. Maxillary with a supplemental bone; gill-rakers long, stout, dentate; 

 mouth rather large, the lower jaw protruding; palatine teeth pres- 

 ent ; spines low ; flap small Apomotis, 6. 



ee. Maxillary without supplemental bone ; mouth rather small, with subequal 

 jaws: 

 /, Lower pharyngeal bones comparatively narrow, with the teeth all 

 conic and sharp, the outer short and small, the inner long and pointed : 

 g. Gill-rakers of anterior branchial arch more or less elongate, ossified, 

 beset with small teeth (gill-rakers long and slender, beset on one side 

 with minute teeth, no palatine teeth, subgenus SeWo^jerca; — or com- 

 paratively short and thick, with larger teeth, palatine teeth usually 



present, subgenus Lepiopomus) Lepiopomus, 7. 



gg. Gill-rakers undifferentiated, all short, thickish, weak, uuossified, 

 provided with but few weak teeth ; no palatine teeth ; opercular flap 

 always large, often greatly developed ; coloration brilliant ; spines 



low Xekotis, 8. 



ff. Lower pharyngeal bones with the teeth or most of them rounded or 



truncate above, i. e., teeth paved, palatine teeth little developed, or 



more usually wanting : 



h. Lower pharyngeals narrow, formed as in Lepiopomus, the teeth 



rounded, not truncate above ; gill-rakers rather long and slender ; 



spines rather high Xystroplites, 9. 



hh. Lower pharyngeals broad, concave, with large truncate teeth close 

 together ; gill-rakers short and thick, more or less strongly dentate ; 



spines high Eupomotis, 10. 



dd. Operculum emarginate behind, ending in two flat points, with a dermal 



border ; caudal fin rounded behind ; gill-rakers in small number, long 



and strong, dentate ; species of small size and brilliant coloration : 



h. Dorsal fin angulated, the middle spines longer than some of the posterior 



ones ; supplemental maxillary wanting (? or rudimentary) ; anal 



spines 3 ; dorsal 10 Mesogonistius, IJ. 



hh. Dorsal fin continuous ; supplemental maxillary bone well developed : 



i. Dorsal spines 9 ; anal 3 Enneacanthus, 1'^ 



ii. Dorsal spines 8 ; anal 4 Hemioplites, 13 . 



in. Dorsal spines 10 ; anal 4 ; anal fin with an elongate basis, its ap 



terior rays being advanced Copelandia, 14 



** Dorsal and anal fins about equal in extent, the soft portions of the latter louge?^ 

 and most posterior, the two fins being obliquely opposed ; lower jav 

 longest ; supplemental maxillary bone present ; palatine teetb 

 present; operculum emarginate behind; gill-rakers setiform, ver^ 

 long, finely dentate, in large number (20 to 30 of the large ones od 

 anterior branchial arch) ; fins large, the soft rays of the dorsal auc^ 

 anal each with 14 to 18 rays ; caudal fin emarginate ; scales not: 

 strongly ctenoid (Ct7i<rarc/n?iffi) : 

 j. Spinous dorsal longer than soft part, the spines about 12 in number, not rapidlr 

 graduated ; anal spines normally 8 ; body deep ; mouth moderate. 



Centrarchus, I'J 



jj. Spinous dorsal shorter than soft part, the spines 5 to 8 in number, rapidly grad 



uated ; anal spines normally 6 ; body compressed and rather elongate ' 



mouth large Pomoxys, 16 



Bull. N. M. F,o. 10—3 



