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this unique family : and, in consequence of certain characters present in the 
newly discovered form, the family characters of this group must now read 
as follows : 
Fam. Char. Vent jugular or thoracic, either in front of or between the 
ventrals. Dorsal fin single, with three or four spines. Ventrals thoracic, 
without spines and with more than five soft rays. Some bones of head 
spinous; teeth on jaws and palate ; scales ctenoid ; branchiostegals six; 
coecal appendages about twelve ; air bladder simple. 
The following table shows the characters of the two genera of this 
family as they now stand ; 
. Aphredoderus . 
Vent jugular, in advance of ventral 
fins. Dorsal nearly equidistant between 
snout and caudal. Last anal spine 
short and rather slender. 
Sternotremia , Gen. Nov. 
Vent thoracic, between bases of 
ventral fins. Dorsal nearer snout than 
base of caudal. Last anal spine long and 
slender. 
Below is a comparison of the specific characters of the two forms. I 
may here express my thanks to Mr. F. W. Putnam for the specimen of A. 
aayanua from which the following description is made ; 
A. say anus, ( Gilliams ) DeK. Hab- 
itat, brooks near the coast from New 
York to Louisiana. 
Vent nearer lower jaw than to ven- 
trals, and less than twice the diameter 
of the eye from the junction of the gill 
membranes. Pectorals 1 3-5 in head. 
• Ventrals the same. Longest dor- 
sal ray the same. Longest dorsal 
spine 234 in head. Longest anal ray, 
1 %. Longest anal spine, 2%. Caudal 
fin, 1 1-5. Diameter of caudal peduncle 
twice in head. Ventrals well separated, 
slightly decurrent. Vent opposite mid- 
dle of opercle. 
Longest anal spine less than from 
snout to middle of orbit. Scales consid- 
erably larger anteriorly, larger on 
opercle than on cheek. Lower posterior 
angle of cheeks about a right angle. 
Eye=snout, and also inter-orbital space. 
Ventrals considerably in front of dorsals. 
Distance from snout to anterior ray of 
dorsal 234 times base of dorsal. Scales 
on cheeks and opercles large and loose. 
S. isolepis , sp. nov. Habitat, small, 
weedy tributary to the Calumet river 
near Chicago, and small streams in South 
Illinois. 
Vent more than twice as far from 
lower jaw as from ventrals ; also more 
than three times the diameter of the 
eye from the junction of the gill mem- 
branes. 
Pectorals, 1 3-5 in head. Ventrals 
1 %. Longest dorsal ray, 1%. Longest 
dorsal spine, 234- Longest anal ray, 
1 %. Longest anal spine 2, and as long 
as from snout to posterior border of or- 
bit. Caudal fin 134 in head. Each 
scale with an edge of dark puncta- 
tions, forming fine longitudinal streaks 
or lines. Vent behind end ot opercle, 
and between bases of ventrals. 
Diameter of caudal peduncle in 
head. 
Scales on body nearly equal, being, if 
anything, a trifle larger on the caudal 
peduncle. Scales on opercle slightly 
larger than on cheeks, the latter being 
scattered and imbedded. Angle of 
cheeks rounded and more than a right 
angle. 
The distance from snout to anterior 
ray of dorsal less than twice the base of 
dorsal. Eye 134 times in inter-orbital 
space, and more than once in snout. 
Color of living specimen a clear green- 
ish olive, lighter below; becoming yel- 
lowish or orange on abdomen. 
