FISHES OF HAWAIIAN ISLANDS. 
139 
wide, the membranes separate, free from the isthmus; branehiostegals 5 or 6, giltrakers long and 
slender; gills 4, a slit, behind fourth; pseudobranehhu large; 2 short dorsal fins, well separated, the 
anterior with 4 stiff spines, the last one of which is much shorter than the others; second dorsal longer 
than the first, similar to anal; anal spines 2 or 3, graduated; ventral fins abdominal, not far back, 
composed of 1 spine and 5 rays; caudal forked; air-bladder large, simple; intestinal canal long; 
peritoneum usually black: vertebrae; 24. Genera 8 or 10, species about 100, inhabiting the fresh waters 
and coasts of warm regions, feeding on organic matter contained in mud. “In the genus Mugil , a con¬ 
siderable indigestible portion of the latter is swallowed, and in order to prevent larger bodies from 
passing into the stomach or substances from passing through the gill-openings, these fishes have the 
organs of the pharynx modified into a filtering apparatus. They hike in a quantity of sand or mnd, 
and, after having worked it for some time between the pharyngeal hones, they eject the roughest 
and indigestible portion of it. The upper pharyngeals have a rather irregular form; they are slightly 
arched, the convexity being directed toward the pharyngeal cavity, tapering anteriorly and broad¬ 
ening posteriorly. They are coated with a thick soft membrane, which reaches far beyond the margin 
of the bone, and is studded all over with minute horny cilia. Each branchial arch is provided with 
a series of long gillrakers, which are laterally bent downward, each series closely fitting to the sides 
of the adjoining arch; together they constitute a sieve admirably adapted to permit a transit for the 
water, retaining at the same time every solid substance in the cavity of the pharynx.” (Gunther.) 
a. Jaws without true teeth; anal spines 3. 
h. Orbit with a well-developed adipose eyelid covering part of the iris; cilia slender, in one or few series; cleft of 
mouth chiefly anterior. Mugil, p. 139 
bb. Orbit without distinct adipose eyelid; cleft of mouth lateral; lower jaw narrow, the upper very thick and very 
protractile; cilia broad, in many series, pavement-like. Cluvnomugil , p. 140 
an. Small teeth in 1 or 2 series in the upper jaw, and sometimes in the lower and on the palate; no adipose eyelid; anal 
spines 3. Myxus, p. 141 
Genus 81. MUGIL lArtedi) Linnaeus. 
Body oblong, somewhat compressed, covered with large scales; head large, convex, sealed above 
and on sides; mouth small, subinferior, the lower jaw angulated; jaws with one or a few series of 
short, flexible, ciliiform teeth; no teeth on vomer or palatines; eye large, with a large adipose eyelid, 
which is little developed in the young; stomach muscular, like the gizzard of a fowl. Species very 
numerous, living on mud and running in great schools along the shores and in brackish lagoons of all 
warm regions. 
Mugil (Artedi) Linnaeus, Syst. Nat., Ed. X. 310, 175S (ccpkalus). 
97. Mugil cephalus Linmeus. “ Ama-ama Mullet. Fig. 48. 
Head 4 in length; depth 4.2; snout 4.2 in head; eye 3.9; D. iv-i, 8; A. in, 8; scales 40,-13, trans¬ 
verse series conn ted from anus upward and backward to soft dorsal; dorsal spine 1.75 in head; soft 
dorsal 1.6 in head; anterior base of spinous dorsal midway between end of snout and base of caudal. 
Body, oblong, rather robust, slightly compressed; head subconic; lower jaw slightly included; 
maxillary hidden; no teeth, except a single row of very small teeth in outer fleshy part of upper jaw; 
jaw narrow, the distance from the symphysis to posterior edge of lip being equal to greatest width 
of mouth; eye anterior, moderate, the adipose lid covering entire eye except pupil; head scaly; soft 
dorsal and anal almost naked; soft dorsal concave; anal similar to dorsal but not so concave; caudal 
deeply forked, upper lobe slightly the longer; pectoral not quite reaching to spinous dorsal. 
Color in life,-from a 10.5-inch specimen (No. 02995) taken at Honolulu, bluish gray, white below; 
cheek dusky; spinous dorsal and pectoral dusky; caudal pale, finely dusted with dark specks, edges 
dark; anal sparsely dusted; ventrals white. 
Ten specimens from Honolulu, from 1.5 to 10.5 inches long, and 3 specimens, 3.75 to 4.75 inches 
long, from Kailua. We have also examined a number of specimens collected by Dr. Jenkins at Hono¬ 
lulu in 1889 and 1 specimen 10 inches long collected by R. C. McGregor on Molokai in March, 1900. 
This species of mullet, the ama nma of the natives, is perhaps the most abundant and important 
food-fish of the Hawaiian Islands. It is the species which has received most attention from the natives 
in the way of protection and cultivation. The mullet ponds have been an institution of importance 
