H aw aiian F is h e s 75 



This rare fish is known from six specimens taken in the Hawaiian 

 Islands at depths ranging from 298 to 351 fathoms. These specimens 

 measured from three and one-half to seven inches in length. 



THE LIZARD FISH FAMILY 



42 Family Synodontidae 



The lizard fishes are a family of small, slender, cylindrical fishes with 

 a scaly head, soft rays, and a small adipose fin. Some of the members 

 of the family have phosphorescent spots or photophores on the sides of 

 their bodies. The family gets its common name of lizard fishes from the 

 fact that the members of the family have large mouths and lizard-like heads. 

 The members of the family usually live on sandy bottoms near shore, 

 although a few members are bathypelagic and live in deep water. A few 

 species in the family are widely distributed. 



Of more than forty known species, five have been recorded from the 

 Hawaiian Islands. 



Kawelea* or Welea 



42-1 Trachinocephalus my ops (Schneider) 



Drawn from Jordan & Evermann 



This lizard fish is of a grayish or brownish color above and paler in 

 color below with silvery reflections. The sides of the body are marked 

 with yellow or brownish stripes, the upper portions of which are somewhat 

 wavy. The top of the head is described as vermiculate, the opercle contains 

 a black blotch at its upper angle, and a dark band extends from the eye 

 across the lower jaw. The body seems to be marked with about twelve 

 irregular cross bars of a dirty yellow color. The fish measures about nine 

 inches in length. 



