STROMATEIDAE 



119 



16. x. 31. 44 14' S, 63 28' W. Commercial otter trawl, 87-82 m.: 4 specimens, 

 13. xii. 31. 45 05' S, 65 00' W. Commercial otter trawl, 82-88 m.: 1 specimen, 



St. WS 763. 

 200-350 mm. 



St. WS 788. 

 195 mm. 



St. WS 847. 9. ii. 32. 50° 15' 45" S, 67 57' W. Commercial otter trawl, 51-56 m.: 5 specimens, 



140-175 mm. 



Depth of body z\ to 3 in the length, length of head 4 to si- Snout longer than eye, 

 diameter of which is 4 to d\ in length of head; interorbital width z\ to 3. Maxillary 

 not reaching eye. 12 to 14 gill-rakers on lower part of anterior arch. Dorsal III-VII 

 40-47; anal III (-V) 37-44. Pectoral a little shorter than, as long as, or a little longer 

 than head, its length 3 § to 5 \ in that of fish (without caudal). Lobes of caudal about 

 as long as head. Bluish above, silvery below; numerous round dark spots on the upper 

 half of the body ; distal parts of fins more or less blackish. 



Hab. Both coasts of South America, from Uruguay to Chile and Peru; Falkland 

 Islands ; Juan Fernandez. 



In addition to the above, there are 12 specimens in the British Museum collection 

 from near the Falklands, 1 from Tierra del Fuego, 2 from off the coast of Uruguay 

 (Marini), and 5 from Bahia de Coronel, Chile (Cavendish Bentinck). 



Fig. 65. Stromateus macula tus. 



V 1 



x 3 . 



This species presents some variation in the depth of the body, length of the head, 

 length of the pectoral fin, and in the number of spines in the dorsal fin, and it is possible 

 that the examination of a large series of specimens would reveal the presence of two 

 or more races or subspecies in South America. In 4 specimens (245-270 mm.) from 

 Chile the head seems to be a little larger (4 to 4* in length of fish) and the pectoral fin 

 rather longer (3! to 4 in length of fish) than in the specimens from the Patagoman- 

 Falklands region. There appears to be some doubt as to whether the species extends 

 as far north as Peru on the Pacific coast, but Valenciennes states that it is common in 

 the markets at Lima during May, June and July. 



