286 FISHES OF NORTH CAROLINA. 



supplied with teeth on jaws and usually on vomer and palatines; premaxillaries 

 moderately protractile; maxillaries long, slipping under a sheath formed by the 

 .preorbital; supplemental bone absent; opercles without spines, preopercles 

 serrate or entire; gill-arches 4; gill-rakers short, moderate, or long; gill-membranes 

 separate and not joined to isthmus; pseudobranchise conspicuous; air-bladder 

 present; intestines short; pyloric cceca few; lateral line present; scales ctenoid, 

 of moderate size, adherent, and completely covering body and usually sides 

 of head; dorsal fin single or double, with 10 or 12 rather strong spines; anal 

 similar to posterior dorsal, with 3 spines; caudal concave or forked; pectorals 

 long and pointed; ventrals thoracic, the rays i,5, with modified scales at base. 

 Of the 15 American genera only one, Lutianus (or Neoma'nis) is represented 

 in the state, although several others, which occur on the coast of South 

 Carolina and Florida, may be looked for. 



Genus LUTIANUS Bloch. Snappers. 



A numerous genus of cosmopolitan distribution, characterized by an oblong, 

 compressed body with moderately elevated back; a long, pointed head; a large 

 mouth, well supplied with bands of villiform teeth in jaws, 2 to 4 canine teeth in 

 front of upper jaw, and bands or patches of teeth on vomer, palatines, and tongue 

 (in adult); preopercle finely serrate; gill-rakers few and moderately long; scales 

 deficient on top of head except for an oblique band on nape; lateral line concur- 

 rent with dorsal outline; dorsal fin single, the spines 10 or 11; anal rays 7 to 9. 

 Upwards of 20 American species, of which 4 have thus far been detected in North 

 Carolina. 



Key to North Carolina snappers.* 



i. No black spot on side, young with dark cross bands; anal fin rounded, its middle rays less 



than .5 length of head; caudal with concave margin. 



a. Depth contained 2.75 to 3 times in length; mouth large, maxillary .4 length of head; 



scales in lateral series about 50; 7 oblique series of scales between dorsal and lateral line; 



pectoral short, less than .66 length of head; soft dorsal, anal, and caudal blackish. 



griseus. 



aa. Depth contained 2.5 times in length; mouth smaller, maxillary .33 length of head; 



scales in lateral series about 43; 5 or 6 oblique series of scales between dorsal and lateral 



line; pectorals longer, more than .66 length of head; soft dorsal, anal, and caudal orange 



or yellow apodus. 



a. A black blotch on side, either permanent or growing fainter with age, young without dark 

 cross bands; anal fin angulated, the middle rays much more than .5 length of head; 

 caudal fin forked. 

 6. Lingual teeth well developed, in a broad patch; color nearly uniform rose red. 



hlackfordi. 



66. Lingual teeth few, in a narrow patch; color greenish above, with dark cross bands, 



nimierous oblique streaks, and a persistent black spot on side analis. 



(Lutianus, a latinization of a Malayan name for one of the snappers.) 



S51. LUTIANUS GRISEUS (Linnseus). 

 Gray Snapper; Mangrove Snapper. 



Labrus griseus Linnaeus, Systema Naturae, ed, x, 283, 1758. 

 Nsomcmia griseus, Jordan & Evermann, 1898, 1255. 



* The key is based on adult characters 



