MACKERELS. 



167 



the south coast of England and southwards to Tasmania. The 

 specimen exhibited in Table-case 38 was caught at Weymouth, 

 and is 8 feet 4 inches long. The Tunny fishery is a regular 

 industry in the Mediterranean and has been so since the time of 

 the ancient Romans, to whom the salted flesh of the Tunny was 

 known as " Saltamentum sardicum." Thunnus pelamys, the 

 Bonito, 709, ranges over all the tropical and temperate seas and Bonito. 

 is well known to sailors, to whom it affords good sport. It rarely 

 exceeds three feet in length. The Bonito pursues the Flying-fish, 

 indeed, the sudden appearance of a crowd of Flying-fish above the 

 surface of the sea generally points to the presence of a Bonito or 

 some similar Scombroid fish. ' Albacore ' is a sailors' name for Albacore. 

 any species of Thunnus with long pectoral fins ; it probably 

 includes other species than Thunnus alalonga (1021, Table-case 38) 

 and Thunnus alba'cora. The Bonito and Albacore are preyed 

 upon by the Sword-fish, which is their chief enemy, and also by 

 Sharks. 



In Cybium (711), as in Thunnus, there is a firm keel at the 

 side of the stalk of the tail, but the teeth of the jaws are 

 large and strong ; they are laterally compressed and are disposed 

 in a single series. The scales are more reduced than in most 

 Scombroid fishes. The species of Cybium occur in the tropical 

 parts of the Atlantic and Indian Oceans, frequenting the coast 

 region rather than the open sea ; they grow to four or five feet in 

 length. 



Elecate (712) stands rather apart from the Scombridae in having 

 no detached finlets in the hinder part of the dorsal and anal fins. 

 It is placed in a family by itself, the Rhachicentridse, Rhachi- 

 centrum being an earlier name than the more familiar Elecate. 

 The spinous dorsal fin is reduced to about eight small spines, 

 which are free and unconnected by fin-membrane; the pectoral 

 fins are not set high up the sides of the body, the head is depressed, 

 and there is no keel on the side of the tail. 



Wall-case 16 is occupied by the family Carangidae, fishes allied Wall- 

 to the Mackerels (Scombridse, Wall-case 15), but not having case 16. 

 separated finlets in the hinder parts of the dorsal and anal fins. 



