FISHES OF CHESAPEAKE BAY 
109 
KEY TO THE SPECIES 
a. Anal fin with 24 to 27 rays, the origin of the fin under middle of dorsal base; silvery lateral band 
more or less diffuse; length about 3 inches mitchilli, p. 109 
aa. Anal fin with 20 or 21 rays, the origin of the fin under the last rays of the dorsal; silvery lateral 
band very bright and well defined; length about 4J4 inches epsetus, p. 110 
40. Anchoviella mitchilli (Cuvier and Valenciennes). Anchovy. 
Engraulis mitchilli Cuvier anti Valenciennes, Hist. Nat. Poiss., XXI, 1848, p. 50, New York; Carolina and Lake Pon- 
chartrain, La. 
Engraulis vittatus Uhler and Lugger, 1876, ed. I, p. 161; ed. II, p. 137. 
Stolephorus mitchilli Bean, 1891, p. 93; Jordan and Evermann, 1896-1900, p. 446; Smith and Bean, 1899, p. 184; Evermann 
and Hildebrand, 1910, p. 159. 
Anchovia mitchilli Fowler, 1912, p. 52. 
Anchoviella mitchilli Jordan and Seale, 1926, p. 405. 
Head 3.9 to 4.45; depth 4.1 to 5.1; D. 13 to 15; A. 24 to 27; scales 37 to 40. Body strongly 
compressed; ventral outline much more strongly convex than the dorsal; the margin of abdomen 
compressed, forming a rather sharp edge; head moderate; snout conical, projecting notably in 
advance of lower jaw, 4.6 to 7 in head; eye 2.6 to 4.2; interorbital 4.1 to 5.9; mouth large, slightly 
oblique; maxillary long and sharply pointed posteriorly, reaching nearly or quite to margin of 
opercle, 1.1 to 1.3S in head; teeth pointed, present on both jaws; gill membranes largely separate 
and free from the isthmus; gill rakers rather long and slender, about 25 on the lower limb of first 
arch; scales thin, cycloid, deciduous, extending on the base of the fins; dorsal fin small, its origin 
notably nearer base of caudal than tip of snout, distance from tip of snout to dorsal 1.6 to 1.77 in 
body; caudal fin well forked; anal fin long and low, its origin near vertical from middle of base of 
dorsal; ventral fins small, inserted nearer origin of anal than base of pectorals; pectoral fins inserted 
low, 1.7 to 3.2 in head. 
Color largely translucent, silvery; sides with a silvery lateral band, narrower than eye; back 
along base of anal and lower margin of caudal peduncle with dusky punctulations; cheeks and 
opercles silvery; fins pale or yellowish and usually with dark dots. 
Many specimens of various sizes were preserved. The anchovies are readily recognized by 
their generally soft, delicate, more or less translucent appearance, large mouth, the prominently 
projecting, conical snout and the usually brilliant, silvery, lateral band. The present species 
differs from A. epsetus (the only other anchovy known from Chesapeake Bay) in the smaller size, 
narrower and less brilliant silvery lateral band, slightly longer anal, and in the relative position of 
the dorsal and anal fins. In A. mitchilli the origin of the anal is about under the middle of the base 
of the dorsal, whereas in A. epsetus the origin of the anal is only a little in advance of the base of 
the last ray of the dorsal. 
A considerable variation in the depth of the body occurs among individuals of the same size, 
and a similar variation is especially great among individuals of various ages. In general the body 
becomes deeper with age. The larvse are extremely slender, as the depth of specimens of about 16 
millimeters in length is contained about 12 times in the body, 9 times in specimens 20 millimeters 
long, and 5.5 times in specimens 25 millimeters long. The range of variation in the depth of adult 
fish is shown in the foregoing description. The young, furthermore, differ from the adults in having 
a terminal mouth, a short rounded maxillary (which does not reach the margin of the opercle), 
