THE FISHES OF NEW JERSEY. 311 



Known only from Dr. Abbott's record of an example at that 

 time in the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia and 

 labelled from Cape May. I have, however, been unable to locate 

 the specimen. It, like other tropical American fishes, is probably 

 a waif of the Gulf Stream. 



Dules auriga Abbott, Geol. N. J., 1868, p, 807. 



Family PRIACANTHIDiE. 



The Catalufas. 



Body oblong or ovate, compressed. Head deep. Eye very 

 larg-e, forming about J^ length of side of head. Mouth large, 

 very oblique, lower jaw prominent. Villi form teeth on jaws, 

 vomer and palatines, none on tongue. Premaxillaries protractile. 

 Maxillary broad, without supplemental bone, not slipping under 

 very narrow preorbital which is usually serrate. No suborbital 

 stay. Posterior nostril long, slit-like, close to eye. No barbels. 

 Preopercle more or less serrated, i or more strong spines at 

 angle. Opercle very short, ending in 2 or 3 points behind. Gill- 

 membranes separate, free from isthmus. Gills 4, a slit behind 

 fourth. Gill-rakers long-. Branchiostegals 6. Air-vessel large. 

 Pyloric coeca few. Vertebra in reduced number, 9 or 10+ 13^ 

 22 or 23, first vertebra being very small or absent. Transverse 

 process beginning on seventh (sixth) vertebra, last 2 precaudal 

 bridged across. Ribs attached to transverse processes. Epi- 

 pleurals absent on last 3 precaudal vertebrae. Supraoccipital 

 crest very low, continued forward to over front of orbit 

 where it is joined by parietal crests. Processes of pre- 

 maxillaries moderate. Body covered with small firm rough 

 scales. All parts of body, even snout and maxillary, densely scaly. 

 Each scale with a more or less developed plate on its posterior 

 border, and most developed in young. Spines of fins g-enerally 

 rough, with small serrse. Lateral line continuous, not extending 

 on caudal. Dorsal fin continuous, X spines depressible in a 

 groove, 9 to 15. Anal II, 9 to 15, rayed part long, similar to rayed 

 dorsal. Spines strong. Caudal truncate or lunate. Pectoral 

 small, pointed, not symmetrical, of 19 or 20 rays, upper longest. 



