FISHES-CYPRINODONTIDAE—FONDULUS PARVIPINNIS. 
303 
Syn.— Cyprinodmies, AGAss.in Mem. Soc. Sc. nat. Neuch. I, 1834, 3; &, Poiss. foss. V, n, 1839, 47 .—Mull, in Wiegm. Archiv. 
fUr Naturg. 1843,1, 320 ; &, 1845,1, 131. 
Oyprinodontidae, Owen, sect. comp. Anat. Vertebr. 1846,48.— Bd. Iconogr. Encycl. II, 1850, 203.— Storer, Hist. Fish. Mass, 
in Mem. Amer. Acad. New Ser. Y, 1855, 293. 
The fishes of this family are, generally speaking, of a diminutive size, inhabiting both the 
brackish and the fresh waters, being occasionally also met with in the salt waters at the margins 
of the bays and inlets of the seas. They are known under the common names of Minnows and 
Killifishes, of which they are numerous species, occurring sometimes in great numbers of the 
same kind ; they are generally used for baits. 
FUNDULUS, La cep. 
Gen. Char. —Body more or less elongated, sub-fusiform in profile. Upper surface of head flattened, covered with large scales. 
Mouth protractile, semi-circular. Premaxillar bones arched. Slender card-like teeth upon the jaws, the upper as well as the 
lower. Branchiostigal rays, five on either side. Scales large; no lateral line. 
Syn. — Fundulus, Lacep. Hist. nat. des. Poiss. Y. 1803, & ed. in 8vo, IV, 1819, 478.—Cuv. Rfegn. Anim. 2d ed., II, 1829; 
&, ed. illustr. Poiss. 228.— Valenc. in Hurrib. & Bonpl. Rec. d’Observ. de Zool. & d’Anat. comp. II, 1832.— 
DeKay N Y. Faun. IV, 1842, 216.— Storer, Synops. 1846, 179; &, Hist. Fish Mass, in Mem. Amer. Acad. 
New Ser. V. 1855, 293.— Valenc. in Cuv. & Val. Hist. nat. Poiss. XVIII, 1846, 178. 
The history of the genus Fundulus is interwoven with that of Hydrargyra , they having been 
misunderstood by the various writers on that subject until Valenciennes, in the “Histoire 
naturelle des Poissons,” restored both of them within their true limits. 
FUNDULUS PARVIPINNIS, Did. 
Spec Char. —Head constituting about the fourth of the total length. Eye sub-elliptical; its diameter entering four times in 
the length of the side of the head. Anterior margin of dorsal fin equidistant between the extremity of the snout and the 
posterior edge of the caudal. Ventrals very small; their origin being nearer the extremity of the lower jaw than the insertion 
of the caudal fin. Pectorals broad and short. Olivaceous brown above ; yellowish beneath. A black streak along the middle 
of the peduncle of the tail. Fins unicolor. 
Syn. — Fundulus parvipinnis, Grd. in Proc. Acad. Nat. Sc. Philad. VII, 1854, 154. 
The greatest length of the specimen observed is three inches and one-third ; the head being 
contained in it somewhat over four times. The body is compressed, the back slightly arched 
anteriorly to the dorsal fin. The greatest depth is a little less than the fifth of the length. 
The eyes are sub-elliptical; their horizontal diameter being contained four times in the length 
of the side of the head : once in advance of the anterior rim of the orbit. The anterior margin 
of the dorsal fin is equidistant between the tip of the snout and the posterior margin of the 
caudal, which is sub-convex. The origin of the anal is situated opposite the middle of the base 
of the dorsal. All the fins are small, especially the ventrals, which are proportionally broad 
when expanded, posteriorly rounded off or sub-convex, whilst their extremities are far from 
reaching the vent. The pectorals are very broad, fan-shaped, posteriorly rounded, and when 
directed backwards their extremities are nearer the origin of the ventrals than the tips are to 
the vent. The caudal fin itself is rather short. The anal is narrow, and as deep as the dorsal 
is high. 
D 2, 11 ; A 11; C 5, 1, 9, 8, 1, 4 ; V 5 ; P 16. 
The scales are rather large ; twelve longitudinal rows may be counted upon the line of the 
greatest depth of the body. They are longer than deep, posteriorly rounded off, and broader 
than anteriorly, which latter margin is sub-concave or crescent-shaped, the upper and inferior 
