860 CONTRIBUTIONS TO NORTH AMERICAN ICHTHYOLOGY - IV. 



great inflation. Dorsal and aiial fins rather long, falcate, of 12 to 15 

 rays each; caudal lunate. A single nasal tube on each side with two 

 openings near its tip. Jaws each with median suture. Lower side of 

 tail with a fold. (Aa^?, hare; xe^a/r,, head, from the incisor teeth). 



132. L,. lH>vigatll$ (Liuu.) Gill. Tambor; Smooth Puffer. 



Olive green above, sides and below silvery white. Body elongate, 

 the tail slender. Back and sides smooth; belly prickly, the spinous 

 region oblong, extending from the throat backwards nearly to the vent 

 and on sides nearly as high as base of pectoral fins; spines compara- 

 tively large, three-rooted, well separated and with no smaller ones in- 

 termixed. Eye large, silver}', 2 in snout, 1 in the flat interorbital 

 space. Gill-opening midway between snout and front of dorsal. Dor- 

 sal and anal fins large and falcate, the last rays rapidly shprteced; 

 height of dorsal If in head; caudal fin lunate, the longest ray 1 in 

 head; fold of skin on sides of tail very distinct, ridge-like. Head 3. 

 D. 14; depth 4. A. 12. Tropical seas, north to Cape Cod. 



(Tctrodon lurigattts L. Syst. Nat. i, 411: Tetrodon laviyatua Giiuther, viii, '274.) 



41. TETRODON* Linnaeus. 

 (Tetrodon, Leisomus ami Cirrhisomus Swainson: Cheilichthys Miiller: Anchisomits Kaup.) 



(Tetraodon Linutens, Syst. Nat.: type Tetraodon testudineus L.) 



Body oblong, usually little elongate; skin variously prickly or smooth, 

 sometimes with cirri. A single nasal tube on each side, with two open- 

 ings near its tip. Dorsal and anal fins short, little falcate, of C to 8 rays 

 each; caudal truncate or rounded. Jaws each with median suture. 

 Species numerous, in warm seas, (rerpa^ four; o'oo^, tooth.) 



a. Tail without fold below. 

 l>. Skin almost smooth. 



1329. T. politllK 



I!rown, with very numerous small, round, dark spots above; usually 

 pale curved cross-bars present, in the form of concentric rin.^s, one on 

 middle of hack in front of dorsal, inclosing a dark area, another sur- 

 i-oiindin- this, the remainder appearing as bars, anteriorly running 

 downward and backward, posteriorly downward and forward. Skin 

 smooth; spines rudimentary or obsolete, on belly only, imbedded in 



*The earliest subdivision of the ^niis Titroilon seems to In ih:il ni;idc by Swainson 

 in 1 .-*:;:. I 'iiit one l/mna-an species ( li-xtmlim *) is ivt.-iinrd in the ^eniis l>\ Swainson. 

 The seet ion to which it belongs contains nnmerons species, and may well retain tho 

 original generic n.ime. Tin- \ aim- of the sulnli\ isions is <loiihtlul, but they may be 

 retained lor the pn sent at least. 



