Body elongpte, more or less lanceolate in profile, color on 
Family Cynoglossidae 
1476 
left sido. Byes on left side, small, very close together, not sepa¬ 
rated by bony ridge. Mouth small, tvdsted tov/ard blind side. Teeth 
little developed, in villiform bands. Gill openings narrovr. Gill m«a- 
brenes adnate to shoulder girdle above, joined together and free from 
Isthmus bclov. Vertebrae 47 to 52. Scales ctenoid. Lateral sometimes 
absent, sometimes duplicated. Vortical fins more or less confluent. 
Pectoral absent mth age, Ventrals small, often absent from blind side. 
A large family, differing from the Soleidae chiefly in having 
the eyes and color on the left side, all the vertical fins confluent, no 
pectoral developed and only the left ventral present. The species are 
numerous and tropical or subtropical shallow sandy seas. 
