376 Labyrinthici and Holconoti 



Zalembius rosaceus, is handsomest of all, rose-red with a black 

 lateral spot. Cymatogaster aggregatus, the surf-shiner, is a 

 little fish, excessively common along the California coast, and 

 from its abundance it has been selected by Dr. Eigenmann 

 as the basis of his studies of these fishes. In this species the 

 male shows golden and black markings, which are wanting in 

 the silvery female, and the anterior rays of the anal are thickened 

 or otherwise modified. 



No fossil embiotocoids are recorded. 



The viviparity of the Embiotocidae was first made known 

 by Dr. A. C. Jackson in 1863 in a letter to Professor Agassiz. 

 From this letter we make the following extracts: 



"A few days, perhaps a week, after the four trials, and on 

 the 7th of June, I rose early in the morning for the purpose of 

 taking a mess of fish for breakfast, pulled to the usual place, 

 baited with crabs, and commenced fishing, the wind blowing 

 too strong for profitable angling; nevertheless on the first and 

 second casts I fastened the two fishes, male and female, that 

 I write about, and such were their liveliness and strength that 

 they endangered my slight trout rod. I, however, succeeded 

 in bagging both, though in half an hour's subsequent work I 

 got not even a nibole from either this or any other species of 

 fish. I determined to change the bait, to put upon my hook 

 a portion of the fish already caught, and cut for that purpose 

 into the larger of the two fish caught. I intended to take a piece 

 from the thin part of the belly, when what was my surprise 

 to see coming from the opening thus made a small live fish. 

 This I at first supposed to be prey which this fish had 

 swallowed, but on further opening the fish I was vastly aston- 

 ished to find next to the back of the fish and slightly attached 

 to it a long very light violet bag, so clear and so transparent that I 

 could already distinguish through it the shape, color, and forma- 

 tion of a multitude of small fish (all facsimiles of each other], 

 with which it was well filled. I took it on board (we were 

 occupying a small vessel which we had purchased for survey- 

 ing purposes) . When I opened the bag, I took therefrom eighteen 

 more of the young fish, precisely like in size, shape, and color 

 the first I had accidentally extracted. The mother was very 

 large round her center and of a very dark-brown color, ap- 



