FISHES OF CHESAPEAKE BAY 
o o 
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b. Eye of moderate size, the diameter about equal to length of snout; color of back bluish green; 
peritoneum black sestivalis, p. 85 
bb. Eye large, its diameter greater than length of snout at all ages; color of back grayish green; 
peritoneum pale pseudoharengus, p. 89 
33. Pomolobus mediocris (Mitchill). Hickory shad; Hick; Hickory jack; Bone jack; Fresh- 
water tailor. 
Clupea mediocris Mitchill, Trans., Lit. and Philo. Soc., N. Y., I, 1814, p. 450; New York. 
Pomolobus mediocris Uhler and Lugger, 1876, ed. I, p. 159; ed. II, p. 136; Goode, in McDonald, 1879, p. 14. 
Clupea mediocris Bean, 1883, p. 366. 
Pomolobus mediocris Jordan and Evennann, 1896-1900, p. 425, PI. LXXI, tig. 188; Smith and Bean, 1899, p. 183; Fowler, 
1912, p. 51. 
Head 3.5 to 3.9; depth 3.1 to 3.7; D. 15 to 18; A. 20 or 21; scales 45 to 50. Body rather slender, 
-compressed, dorsal profile straight over the head, gently convex from nape to dorsal fin; ventral 
outline more strongly rounded than the dorsal, without a prominent angle at the base of mandible; 
the margin of the abdomen compressed and provided with bony scutes; head long, not very deep; 
snout moderate, 3.75 to 4.2 in head; eye 4.2 to 5; interorbital 5.46 to 7; mouth rather large, superior; 
maxillary broad, reaching a little beyond middle of eye, 2.05 to 2.42 in head; cheek about as deep 
as long; mandible projecting very prominently, the tip not included in the upper jaw and entering 
Fig. 42.— Pomolobus mediocris. Note strongly projecting man- Fig. 43— Pomolobus mediocris. Note that outline of upper 
dible which enters into dorsal profile margin of mandible bears no pronounced angle 
into the dorsal profile, its upper margin without a prominent angle near the middle of its length 
(similar in outline to that of Alosa sapidissima ) ; teeth very small, present on jaws, palatines, and 
tongue; gill rakers rather long and slender, 19 to 21 on the lower limb of the first arch; scales of 
moderate size, with emarginate membranous border, more or less deciduous; ventral scutes 20 or 
21 in advance of ventrals and 14 to 16 behind ventrals; dorsal fin small, the outer margin straight 
or slightly concave, its origin equidistant from tip of snout and vertical from base of last anal ray; 
caudal fin forked, the lobes symmetrical and of equal length; anal fin longer than the dorsal but 
much lower, its origin a little nearer the base of ventrals than base of caudal; ventral fins rather 
small, inserted about equidistant from base of pectorals and origin of anal; pectoral fins of moderate 
size, similar to the ventrals but larger, 1.25 to 1.7 in head. 
Color grayish green above, silvery on sides and below, more or less iridescent. A dark shoulder 
spot, followed by several obscure dark spots; faint dark spots at base of scales on upper part of 
sides, forming longitudinal dark lines. Nape green, opercle brassv, tip of snout dusky. Dorsal 
and caudal dusky; anal and ventrals plain translucent; pectorals slightly dusky. The dark lateral 
stripes are most conspicuous on specimens that have lost their scales, the black being on the skin 
underneath the scales and showing faintly through the somewhat transparent scales. The dark 
lines along the rows of scales are not evident in the small specimens (155 to 190 millimeters) 
examined. Peritoneum pale. 
