642 SUMMARY OF CURRENT RESEARCHES RELATING TO 



four ; while of the limbs, one had rudiments of a third toe, and one a 

 complete third toe. Of twelve posterior extremities, the tarsus con- 

 sisted six times of three elements, and six times of two ; once there 

 was a rudiment of a third toe. Both species thus appear very variable. 



Fishes of Chilian Coast.* — J. Pellegrin gives a list of fishes obtained 

 by the Crequi-Montfort expedition. He describes as of particular in- 

 terest the dental and pharyngeal apparatus of Hoplegnathus insignis. 

 The teeth have coalesced to form a beak resembling that of the Scaridai. 

 On the first branchial arch there are very long, pointed, ridged, and 

 finely-toothed spines. On the internal side of this arch, and on both 

 sides of the second, third, and fourth, there are short, rounded appen- 

 dages, covered with fine denticulations. The inferior pharyngeal bones 

 are very slender, quite separate, and covered with extremely sharp conical 

 teeth in four or five rows. There are analogous teeth upon the superior 

 bones. 



Deep- Water Fishes of Japan.f — D. S. Jordan and J. 0. Snyder 

 report on a collection of fishes made by Mr. Alan Owston in the deep 

 water of Japan. The collection includes some interesting forms : — 

 Pristmrus eastmani sp. n., PseudotriaJcis aerales sp. n., the huge 3Iitsu- 

 kurina owstoni, Trismegistus owstoni g. et sp. n. (a Liparid with very 

 peculiar prickles), and so on. 



Pelican Fish from the Pacific.f — B. A. Bean describes Gastro- 

 stomus pacificus sp. n., with a more robust body and higher fin-rays than 

 G. bairdii, the Atlantic form. It is believed to be the first pelican-fish 

 recorded from the Pacific, and was entangled on the sounding wire, near 

 the sinker, the depth at the point of capture being between 2000 and 

 3000 fathoms. It was obtained half-way between Midway islands and 

 Guam by U.S. naval ship ' Nero,' which on that voyage discovered the 

 greatest depth of water ever recorded, 5269 fathoms in 12° 43' 15" N. 

 lat. ; 145° 49' 00" W. long. 



Umbrids or Mud-Minnows. § — Theodore Gill gives an account of 

 this feeble but interesting family represented by a single genus, whose 

 three species are distributed in a notable manner. One species, Umbra 

 umbra or Tcrameri, occurs in Central and South-eastern Europe, — 

 Hungary and the neighbouring countries — and the two others are 

 inhabitants of the eastern slope of the American continent and the 

 Mississippi valley, while all the intervening countries are deprived of 

 them. They have interesting habits, e.g. the alleged segregation of the 

 males from the females ; and are very tenacious of life. With their 

 great adaptability and power of endurance, it is remarkable that the 

 range of the genus should now be so restricted. 



Toxic Action of Serum of Torpedo marmorata.|| — E. Gley finds 

 that the blood of this electric ray contains a substance which is highly 

 toxic for various Mammals — dog, rabbit, and guinea-pig. 



* Bull. Soc. Zool. France, xxix. (1904) pp. 117-21. 



t Smithsonian Misc. Collections, xlv. (1904) pp. 230-40 (G pis.). 



X Tom. cit., p. 254 (1 pi.). § Tom. cit., pp. 295-305 (5 figs.). 



U Comptes Rendus, cxxxviii. (1904) pp. 1547-9. 



