120 



FISH GALLERY. 



Muree- 

 nicUe. 



and nearly confluent. The eyes are large. The fin-membrane 

 between the rays of the dorsal and anal fins is thin, and in some 

 genera, like Nemichthys (398), the jaws are remarkably long and 

 feeble, forming a slender beak or bill. The Nemichthyidae are 

 deep-sea fishes found in the great oceans of the world, and do not 

 attain any great size. 



The Saccopharyngidse, known in America as " Gulpers," are very 

 grotesque fishes of the deep seas, more or less allied to the Eels 

 (see fig. 6, p. 18). The mouth is very large, and the stomach is 

 extremely distensible and capable of accommodating prey of larger 

 size than the fish itself. The eyes are small and set far forward, 

 the tail is long and slender, ending in a filament. The skeleton 

 is imperfectly calcified. Examples of Saccopharynx (986) and 

 Gastrostomies (985) are shown in the case of "Deep-sea Fishes," 

 Cabinet-case 44. 



In the Muraenidse or Morays the branchial openings into tne 

 pharynx are narrow slits, whereas they are wide slits in the 



Fig. 59. — Moray, Murcena helena. 



Anguillidse ; the external gill-opening on each side is small and 

 round. The skin is without scales. The pectoral fins are usually 

 wanting and in some cases the pectoral arch also. 



The Muraenas are voracious fishes of tropical and subtropical 

 seas and do not hesitate to attack man; they are especially 

 abundant in the vicinity of coral reefs. Many are of large size, 



