22 FISHES OF THE VICINITY OF NEW YORK 



the narrative survey which follows, of those found near New York City, 

 will enable the average fisherman to correctly name such as may come 

 into his hands, besides giving an idea of the various kinds which inhabit 

 our waters. Those kinds which resemble one another have been grouped 

 together, and there are figures of one or more fishes in each group, which 

 will form a basis for comparison with the others. 



The Classification of Fishes 



The dominant type of modern fish resembles a Perch or Bass. It 

 has a large mouth, short body, and spines in the fins, particularly in the 

 back fin (which either has the anterior part made up of spines or*else is 

 divided into two separate fins, the first of which is spiny). 



Probably the majority of species which exist today, in fresh and salt 

 water taken together, are of this type. In attempting to sort out or 

 classify the remaining species, we can make out first, a more or less com- 

 plete series of forms from the most primitive fish, the Shark, leading up 

 to the Perch type, and secondly, several divergent lines of development 

 leading away from it into still more highly specialized or more or less 

 degenerate series. In reviewing the local species of fishes, it has been 

 impossible always to group them so as to bring out their true relationship ; 

 in fact the grouping attempted is a compromise between this and an 

 attempt to group them in a convenient manner for reference. The 

 Lampreys, which are taken up with the Eels (Section IV), have little 

 relationship with any of our other fishes. Many students claim that they 

 are not in the true sense of the word fish at all. The Sharks and Rays (I) 

 stand somewhat less apart from the remaining species, all of which differ 

 from them in having the cartilaginous structures more or less replaced 

 by bone, and all of which may be placed in the comprehensive group 

 known as Teleostomi. The Ganoid fishes (II) stand apart as being more 

 cartilaginous than other Teleostomi , all of which belong in the major 

 group known as Teleostei. There is a rather evident connection between 

 the Ganoid fishes and the Herring and Trout group (IV), and the true 

 Eels (V) seem to be degenerate derivatives from the Herring, Trout 

 group. Just where the Catfish, Carp group (III) should come in is 

 open to question. We follow the conventional treatment in placing 

 them below the Herrings and Trouts, though very probably it will be 

 proved that they are really more recent than these. Between these 

 primitive fishes and the forms which begin to approach the Perch, the 

 line of ascent is obscure and broken, though the Pike (VI) and a variety 

 of specialized forms (VII) doubtless belong to this section of it. 



