Transactions of the Literary and Philosophical Society of New-York Volume 1

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated.1815 Excerpt: ... No. V. The Fishes Of New-York, described and arranged. By Samdel L. Mitchill, M. D. Professor of Natural History in the University of New-York, one of the Corresponding Secretaries of the Literary and Philosophical Society, SCc. Read before the Society 8th of December, 1814. In the present arrangement I have distributed the fishes into five orders; to wit, Apodal, when they are destitute of ventral fins; JuguLar, when these are situated on the neck; Thoracic, when they grow on the breast; Abdominal, when they arise from the belly. These four orders comprehend the fishes that have bones. The cartilaginous fishes, which have been divided by several very able zoologists into two orders, the chondropterygious, or those which have leathery fins, and the branchiostegious, or such as have concealed gills, are here included in a single order of Cartilaginous; making the fifth division of the class. The fishes of New-York, as far as they have come to my knowledge, may be exhibited in the following table: Section I. Bony Fishes. AnguiHa, eel, Mursena, APODAL. t 2 species, with their varieties. 1 Echeneis, remora, Coryphene, or sailor's dolphin, Cottus, bullhead, Scorpoena, Zeus, dory, Pleoronectes, Sounder, Spams, sheep's head, Labrus, porgy, weakfish, tan tog, and others, 10 Scioena, drums, 3 Perca, rockfish, sea basse, 2 Bodian, white, black, and yellow perch, &c. 7 Scomber, mackarel, Gasterosteus, stickle back, Trigla, gurnard, 2 2 species. I, 3 -' 3 7 with their varieties 1 52 species. The species thus are: Bony fishes, 116 Cartilaginous, 31 147 Amounting to one hundred and forty-seven species of fishes embraced in my memoir. To these I add some memorable varieties, which present themselves to the eye of every observer, and ought to be noticed by the natura...