Genus: Morone, Temperate Bass, Temperate Basses

MORONE

TEMPERATE BASSES

Body oblong, slightly compressed; mouth large, top jawbone wide at rear and mostly exposed when mouth is closed; jaws with bands of small conical teeth, no canines; bands of small simple teeth on sides and front of roof of mouth, and in 2 parallel rows on base of tongue; membranes under gills join well forward; gill rakers 19-29; opercle with 2 flat points; preopercle rounded, finely serrated; dorsal fin notched to its base between spiny and soft parts, IX-X + I, 10-14; tail fin forked, heavily scaled on its base; anal fin III, 9-12, its origin well behind origin of soft dorsal fin; head and body covered with small, rough scales; lateral line continuous, with 50-72 pores.

A NW Atlantic genus with 4 species, 3 primarily in freshwater and 1 migrating between fresh and saltwater in our area.