FISH. 



77 



and Valenciennes, except in having two soft rays less in the dorsal, and one less 

 in the anal. Their description, however, is not very detailed. 



Family.— ATHERINIJDjE. 



1. Atherina argentinensis. Cuv. et Val.l 



Atherina argentinensis, Cuv. et Val. Hist, des Poiss. torn. x. p. 350. 



Form. — Depth exactly one-sixth of the length, measuring this last to the end of the middle caudal 

 rays. The length of the head is five and a-half times in the same, measuring this last to the end 

 of the caudal lobes. Thickness of the body at least half the depth. Head broad and flat, its 

 breadth across the crown behind the eyes equalling three-fourths of its depth. Snout rounded 

 horizontally, but sharp vertically. The profile is perfectly horizontal; and one uniform straight 

 line extends from the extremity of the upper jaw to the commencement of the second dorsal. 

 Ventral line swelling a little outwards, with its greatest curvature about the middle. Upper 

 jaw a very little longer than the lower, which ascends to meet it at an angle of 45° : gape not 

 reaching more than half-way to the eye, at first horizontal, afterwards deflexed. In each jaw 

 two rows of teeth, stronger and more developed than usual in this genus, widely asunder, and 

 at irregular intervals : in the upper jaw these two rows are equal ; in the lower the outer row 

 is stronger than the inner : the outer row above contains about thirty-two or thirty-three 

 teeth ; that below twenty-six or twenty-eight : no teeth on the tongue, and scarcely any that 

 can be seen on the vomer or palatines, though a slight roughness can be felt on the last two. 

 Eyes moderately large; their diameter a very little less than one-fourth the length of the 

 head ; situate a little in advance of the middle point, and also a little above the middle of the 

 depth. Cheeks and gill-covers scaly. Form of the scales of the body, as well as the number 

 of longitudinal rows, exactly as stated by Cuvier and Valenciennes. The same may be said of 

 the lateral line, and the situation of the dorsal fins. The second dorsal and anal terminate in 

 the same vertical line. Pectorals exactly the length of the head. Ventrals attached imme- 

 diately below the tips of the pectorals. Breadth of the silver band, which runs straight along 

 the middle of the sides, exactly one-fifth of the greatest depth of the body. 



D. 5—1/9; A. 1/19; C. 17, &c. ; P. 15; V. 1/5. 



Length 8 inches. 

 Colour. — " Silvery, with a silver lateral band : above bluish grey." — D. In spirits, it appears 

 greenish brown, becoming deeper above the silver band and on the ridge of the back : the free 

 margins of the scales are finely dotted with black : the rays of the caudal have been worn at 

 the tips, but there is a trace of the dusky edging noticed by Cuvier : the pectorals are also 

 stained with dusky. 



Habitat Maldonado. 



I conceive there is but little doubt of this being the A. Argentinensis of 

 Cuvier and Valenciennes ; but as the description in the " Histoire des Poissons " 

 is short, I have thought it advisable to give a more detailed one of the above 



