262 Percomorphi 
ately developed. It very much resembles the true mackerel, 
but is of smaller size, less excellence as a food-fish, and keeps 
nearer to the shore. It may be usually distinguished by the 
presence of vague, dull-gray spots on the sides, where the true 
mackerel is lustrous silvery. 
This fish is common in the Mediterranean, along our Atlantic 
coast, on the coast of California, and everywhere in Japan. 
Scomber antarcticus is the familiar mackerel of Australia. 
Scomber loo, silvery, with round black spots, is the common 
mackerel of the South Seas, localiy known as Ga. 
Scomber priscus is a fossil mackerel from the Eocene. 
Auxis thazard, the frigate mackerel, has the scales of the 
shoulders enlarged and somewhat coalescent, forming what is 
called a corselet. The species ranges widely through the seas 
of the world in great numbers, but very erratic, sometimes 
myriads reaching our Eastern coast, then none seen for years. 
It is more constant in its visits to Japan and Hawaii. Fossil 
species of Auxis are found in the Miocene. 
The genus Gymnosarda has the corselet as in Auxis, but the 
first dorsal fin is long, extending backward to the base of the 
second. Its two species, Gymnosarda pelamis, the Oceanic 
bonito, and Gymnosarda alleterata, the little tunny, are found 
in all warm seas, being especially abundant in the Mediterra- 
nean, about Hawaii and Japan. These are plump fish of mod- 
erate size, with very red and very oily flesh. 
Closely related to these is the great tunny, or Tuna (Thunnus 
thynnus) found in all warm seas and reaching at times a weight 
of 1500 pounds. These enormous fishes are much valued by 
anglers, a popular “Tuna Club” devoted to the sport of catch- 
ing them with a hook having its headquarters at Avalon, on 
Santa Catalina Island in California. They are good food, 
although the flesh of the large ones is very oily. The name 
horse-mackerel is often given to these monsters on the New 
England coast. In California, the Spanish name of tuna has 
become current among fisherman. 
Very similar to the tuna, but much smaller, is the Albacore 
(Germo alalonga). This reaches a weight of fifteen to thirty 
pounds, and is known by its very long, almost ribbon-like pec- 
toral fins. This species is common in the Mediterranean, and 
