CATAPHRACTI. 6? 



Family, VI— CATAPHRACTI, Muller. 



Body elongated, subeylindrical, or angular. Preoperole having an osseous 

 articulation with the infraorbital ring of bones. Ventral fins thoracic. Body 

 covered with bony plates or scales. 



Geographical distribution. — This family has representatives in most seas : the 

 species are generally of a small size, some forms being pelagic while others are 

 more strictly littoral. 



Only two Genera have been recorded from the British Isles, these being 

 examples of a common Agonus or armed bull-head : the representative of the 

 second being the rarely observed Peristethus or mailed-gurnard. 



Genus I — Agonus, Block, Schneider. 



Aspidophorus, Lacepede : Phalangistes, Pallas : Cataphractus, Fleming : 

 Agonomalus and Paragonus, Guichenot. 



Branchiostegals six : pseudohranchioe well developed. ITead and body angular 

 and covered with bony plates. Teeth in the jaws, present or absent on the vomer, none 

 on the palatines. Two dorsal fins, fin-rays unbranched : no free pectoral rays. 

 Lateral-line present. Pyloric appendages few. Air-bladder absent. 



Liitken remarks upon the numerous attempts which have been made to 

 subdivide this Genus. Agonopsis he considers may be retained because it 

 possesses palatine and vomerine teeth, the former having been overlooked by 

 Krbyer. He likewise observes upon the way in which species have been unduly 

 multiplied, Agonus Ghiloensis, Jenyns and Giinther, being the same as A. niger, 

 Kroyer and Giinther. Also Agonus melarmoides, Deslongch, being identified with 

 A. decagonus, Bl. Schneider, and also with A. spinosissimus, Kroyer and Giinther. 

 While Agonus cataphractus, Fabricius, is A. decagonus, it being an error to 

 suppose that Agonus cataphractus is found in Greenland. 



Geographical distribution. — Greenland, Iceland, and as far south as the coasts 

 of Britain, also Kamtsohatka, the Kurile Islands, and A. sturioides, Guichenot, from 

 China. In the South Pacific a species has likewise been taken ofi" the coast of 

 Chili. 



1. Agonus cataphractus, Plate XXVIII, fig 1. 



Cataphractus, Schonevelde, Ich. p. 30, pi. iii ; Jonston, Hist. Pise. lib. ii, t. ii, 

 c. ix, p. 114, t. xlvi, f. 6 ; Willughby, p. 211, t. N. 6, f. 2, 3 ; Ray, p. 77. Gottus, 

 Artedi, Gen. p. 49, Spec. p. 87; Gronov. Zooph. p. 79, No. 271; Klein, MSS. iv, 

 p. 42 ; Pallas, Spic. vii, p. 30. Armed bull-head. Pennant, Brit. Zool. (Ed. 1) 

 iii, p. 217, pi. xxxix (Ed. 2), iii, p. 293, pi. xliii. 



Gottus cataphractus, Linn. Syst. i, p. 451 ; Gmel. Linn. p. 1207 ; Bloch, t. xxxix, 

 f. 3, 4 ; Donovan, Brit. Fish, i, pi. xvi ; Shaw, Zool. iv, p. 263, pi. xzxv ; Turton, 

 Brit. Fauna, p. 95 ; Faber, Faun. Groenl. p. 155 and Fische Isl. p. 117 ; Gronov. 

 ed. Gray, p. 103 ; Schlegel, De Dieren van Nederland, p. 50, pi. v, f . 4. 



Agonus cataphractus, Bl. Schn. p. 104 ; Nilss. Syn. p. 95 ; White, Catal. Brit. 

 Fish. p. 7 ; Giinther, Catal. ii, p. 211 ; Collett, Norges Fiske, p. 38 ; Liitken, 

 Vidd. Medd. 1876, p. 384 ; Mcintosh, Fish. St. Andrew's, p. 172. 



Gataphractus Schoneveldii, Flem. Brit. An. p. 216. 



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