Fishes of Brookhaven^ L. I. 295 



clouded over with brown ; this latter, however, does not con- 

 sist of a plain shading of that color, but of a very vast num- 

 ber of small, blackish spots, not dispersed uniformly, but gath- 

 ered in clouds and waves, and sometimes in tolerably well- ^ 

 defined vertical bands. Lower portion of the sides somewhat 

 lighter, abdomen silvery. Colors of the head like those of the 

 body, the top and upper part of the sides being greenish, 

 clouded with brown, while the lower portions of the opercu- 

 lum and preoperculum and the throat are lighter. In one 

 specimen in my possession, the spots on the sides are nearly 

 confluent, so that the whole upper part of the fish appears 

 almost black. 



Eyes near the summit of the head, one tenth of an inch in 

 diameter, distance between them a little less than their diame- 

 ter. Mouth rather small, inclining upward, teeth numerous in 

 both jaws. Lateral line arises above the operculum, ascends 

 sliglitly, then descends until past the origin of the dorsal fin, 

 whence it proceeds in nearly a straight course to the tail. 

 Sides entirely destitute of the plates which characterize most 

 species of the genus. 



The dorsal fin arises eight tenths of an inch from the point 

 of the upper jaw, is half an inch in length and one tenth of 

 an inch in height. Anterior to the fin are four spines, three 

 of which are free. The first is one sixth of an inch in height, 

 the second a very little shorter than the first, the third about 

 one eighth of an inch high, the fourth, which is connected 

 with the dorsal fin, of the same height with the second. 



Each ventral fin is represented by a single serrated spine, 

 one fifth of an inch in length. In some of the younger indi- 

 viduals this spine is bright red, but 1 have not found it so 

 colored in any case where the fish was more than an inch long. 

 The pectorals arise about one tenth of an inch from the oper- 

 culum, are three twentieths of an inch in length, one fifth of an 

 inch in height, rounded. Anal three twentieths of an inch in 

 height, half an inch in length, terminating on the same plane 

 with the dorsal fin. Immediately preceding the origin of the 

 anal is a spine, a little less in height than the height of the fin. 

 Caudal fin square at the extremity, one fourth of an inch high. 



