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Fishery Bulletin 94(2), 1996 



forming a line stretching from the posterior caudal 

 peduncle (sometimes onto the caudal fin) to the pos- 

 terior edge of the operculum. After 20 mm SL, pig- 

 ment on the body intensified (mostly above the lat- 

 eral midline), causing the lateral midline pigment to 

 become much less evident (Fig. IE). By 35 mm SL, 

 the lateral midline pigment was virtually indistin- 

 guishable as it merged with the body pigment and 

 the five body bars (Fig. IF). 



The hypural region remained mostly unpigmented 

 until approximately 15 mm SL, when pigment formed 

 on the posterior edge of the hypural plates (Fig. ID). 

 At 20 mm SL, when body-bar 5 became noticeable, 

 the hypural region was highly pigmented (Fig. IE). 



Fin pigmentation 



The pelvic and pectoral fins were relatively unpig- 

 mented in the larval and pelagic juvenile stages. Pig- 

 ment was noted in the pelvic fins of only two fish. In 



these two fish, pigment occurred at the base of the 

 rays of the left pelvic fin. In larger individuals, a few 

 melanophores were noted on the pectoral fin, but 

 these were not in a consistent area of the fin and did 

 not constitute a regular pattern (Table 4). In addi- 

 tion, the axillary surface of the pectoral fin remained 

 unpigmented throughout development. 



Pigment on the dorsal fin began appearing at 17 

 mm SL with a few melanophores on the spinous fin. 

 Melanophores appeared first on the anterior portion 

 of the spinous dorsal fin and spread along the entire 

 fin length as fish size increased. By 25 mm SL, most 

 of the length of the spinous dorsal fin had some pig- 

 ment, and melanophores were just beginning to ap- 

 pear on the soft dorsal fin (Fig. IE). By 38 mm SL, 

 the spinous dorsal fin was completely pigmented and 

 the soft dorsal fin had a distinctive pattern. This pat- 

 tern consisted of two horizontal pigment bands: the 

 first was located just ventral to the tips of the soft 

 fin rays, and the second at the fin ray bases. In addi- 



