232 Memoir Sears Foundation for Marine Research 



Body slender, rather strongly compressed, its depth 5.2 in SL. Head 3.1, its 

 depth about equal to its postorbital length. Snout projecting about 67''/o of its length 

 beyond tip of mandible, 6.25 in head. Eye small but longer than snout, 3.7 in head. 

 Postorbital length 5.9. Maxillary rounded posteriorly, not quite reaching joint of 

 mandible, 1.9 in head. Mandible 2.0. Cheek a little longer than eye, its posterior 

 angle about 60°. Gill rakers slender, those at angle of first arch about as long as 

 eye (too close-set for accurate counting), about 23 on the upper limb and about 33 

 on lower limb. 



Dorsal fin small, damaged, apparently with a convex margin, the anterior rays 

 not reaching beyond tip of last ray if deflexed, the fin placed very far back, its 



Figure 53. Hildebrandichthys seliger, type specimen, 37 mm TL, from Maracaibo Basin, Venezuela, USNM 

 121779. Drawn by A. M. Awl. 



origin about twice as far from tip of snout as from caudal base. Anal originating about 

 an eye's diameter in advance of dorsal origin and about equidistant between joint of 

 mandible and caudal base, its base 4.4 in SL. Pelvic fin noticeably more than halfway 

 to origin of anal, inserted about equidistant between pectoral base and anal origin, 

 3.33 in head. Pectoral fin failing to reach base of pelvic by a little less than diameter 

 of eye, 8.4 in SL, 2.6 in head. Axillary scale of pectoral not evident, lost or un- 

 developed. 



Color. This specimen retains some of the juvenile color markings. In alcohol, 

 rather pale. Side of head and abdomen silvery. A rather faint narrow silvery lateral 

 band present. Dusky dots present on upper surface of head and snout, along base of 

 dorsal, and mostly in two rows behind the dorsal ; a series of rather large black dots 

 along base of anal, continued as a single median row behind anal fin (presumably 

 juvenile markings); dusky dots generally distributed over the caudal fin; other fins 

 pale or at most with suggestions of dusky markings. 



Range. Known only from the mouth of the Rio Cano de Sagua, Lake Maracaibo, 

 Venezuela. 



Reference: 



Hildebrandkhthys setiger Schultz, Proc. U. S. nat. Mus., gg, 1949: 49, fig. 7 (orig. descr.; type local. Carlo 

 de Sagua, Sinamaica, Venezuela; type USNM 12 1779). 



