Suttonia lineata — Gosline 
33 
when the opercle is cleaned. The opercle of 
Plesiops ends in a frayed membrane and that of 
Pseudochromis is rounded posteriorly. 
Hyoid Arch. There are seven branchiostegal 
rays in Epinephelus, Pseudo gramma (Fig. 6), 
Aporops, and Suttonia; six in Plesiops and Pseu- 
dochromis. The branchiostegal membranes are 
broadly attached to the isthmus in Pseudo- 
chromis, attached far forward to one another but 
more or less free from the isthmus in the other 
genera. In Plesiops alone the third branchios- 
tegal ray is considerably larger than those before 
and behind it. 
Gill Arches . In all four genera skeletonized 
there is a pseudobranch, and the cleft behind the 
fourth gill arch is considerably restricted. In all, 
there is one pair of dentigerous lower and three 
pairs of toothed upper pharyngeals. In Epine- 
phelus and Pseudochromis the gill rakers are 
fairly normal; the gill rakers of Pseudo gramma 
and Plesiops, however, are in the form of flat 
plates at the ends of the arch with spiny knobs 
toward the central portion. 
Pectoral Girdle. The pectoral girdle in all 
four genera is similar (Fig. 7) despite the fact 
that externally Pseudogramma appears to have 
a lobate pectoral base. In all, a long extension of 
the coracoid runs downward and forward to 
meet the cleithrum. There are two postcleithra. 
The forward tip of the pelvic girdles articulate 
with pads on the inner surfaces of the cleithra. 
One and a half actinosts join the coracoid and 
two and a half meet the scapula, though the re- 
lationship is more nearly one and three in 
Pseudochromis. The most notable difference 
would appear to be that there is a curious down- 
wardly projecting hook (or, viewed conversely, 
an embayment) in the outer surface of the 
cleithrum of Plesiops below. 
Pelvic Girdle. The pelvic girdle in all four 
genera consists primarily of struts between the 
pelvic fins and the cleithra (Fig. 7). Those of 
Pseudogramma are surprisingly strong and are 
longer than the pelvic fins themselves. 
Vertebral Column. The number of vertebrae 
for several species of Epinephelus given by 
Boulenger (1895: 115) is 24. The vertebrae in 
Pseudogramma (including the terminal half- 
FlG. 5. Right suspensorium and lower jaw of Pseudogramma, external view, an, Angular; ar, articular; de, 
dentary; ec, ectopterygoid; hy, hyomandibular; io, interopercle; ms, mesopterygoid; mt, metapterygoid; or, 
opercle; pi, palatine; pp, preopercle; qu, quadrate; so, subopercle; sy, symplectic. 
