FISHES OF HAWAIIAN ISLANDS. 
183 
fishes; no finlets; ventral fins very long; pectorals short and broad; gillrakers moderate. Species of 
moderate or large size, often gracefully colored; most of them valued as food-fishes. 
Seriola Cuvier, RtJgne Animal, Ed. 2, II, 205, 1829 ( dumeriU ). 
Micropteryx Agassiz, Pise. Brasil., 104, taf. LIX, 1829 ( cosmopolite, ); substitute for Seriola, used in botany; not Micropierix 
Hubner, 1810, a genus of insects. 
Zonichthys Swainson, Nat. Hist. Fishes, etc., II, 248, 1839 ( fasciatus ). 
Jlalatractus Gill, Proc. Ac. Nat. Sci. Phila. 1862, 442 (dumeriU); substitute for Seriola, used in botany. 
Lepidomegas Thominot, Bull. Sci. Philom. Paris (7), IV, 173, 1880 (■ muelleri ). 
a. No scales on opercle; anterior dorsal rays somewhat elevated, the longest about 2.5 in head; gillrakers on lower arch 
few, about 13 purpuraseens, p. 183 
aa. Upper part of opercle densely scaled; anterior dorsal rays scarcely elevated, 3.7 in head; gillrakers more numerous, 
about 22 on lower arch sparna, p. 184 
136. Seriola purpuraseens Schlegel. “Pi'iakah&la;” “Kahcila.” Fig. 69. 
Head 3.75 in length; depth 4; eye 6.5 in head; snout 2.9; interorbital 3; maxillary 2.4, reaching 
middle of pupil; mandible 2; gape 2.6; D. vi-i, 30; A. i, 19; scales about 175. 
Body long and slender, the back scarcely elevated; head large, not much compressed; mouth 
large, jaws equal and covered with broad bands of strong, villiform teeth; vomer, palatines, roof of 
Fig. 69. — Seriola purpuraseens Schlegel; after Gunther. 
mouth and tongue with similar teeth ; eye moderate, high up, in middle of head; interorbital space 
strongly convex; maxillary very broad at tip, its width equaling eye, the supplemental bone very 
broad; body from origin of anal fin tapering slowly to the short caudal peduncle, whose least depth is 
equal to eye and whose width is somewhat greater; origin of spinous dorsal over middle of pectoral; 
spines small and weak, longest somewhat greater than eye, the last obscure; anterior dorsal rays 
somewhat produced, their length 2.4 in the head and somewhat exceeding that of longest anal rays; 
caudal widely forked; pectoral short, its length equaling distance from tip of snout to middle of pupil, 
its origin somewhat anterior to base of ventrals; ventrals somewhat longer than piectoral, their length 
equal to snout and eye; scales very small, cycloid; lateral line well developed, nearly straight, curved 
slightly upward over tip of pectoral, broadly and shallowly decurved under first third. 
Color in life, upper part of body, head, and tail light brown, with scales at certain angles showing 
bluish; lower parts lighter to whitish; a lemon-yellow band from upper articulation of maxillary 
through lower two-thirds of eye and along whole length of body as wide as pupil, becoming narrower 
and losing itself on caudal peduncle; iris edged with yellow; edge of caudal fin edged with lemon- 
yellow; pectoral and anal suffused with yellow; soft dorsal light brown with show of yellow on 
posterior portions, more marked on outer ends of rays; spinous dorsal lemon-yellow on ground of 
light brown; ventrals white on lower surface, somewhat dusky on upper surface. A specimen 4 inches 
long from Hilo had in life a golden stripe from head to tail. 
