468 PKOCEEDINGS OF UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. 



Habitat — Barbadoes; St. Martin's; New Providence; St. Croix; Cuba. 



Head, 3 (3^i); depth, 3 (33). D. X, 11 ; A. Ill, 8. Scales, (7) 7-GO- 

 15; 52 pores. 



Body oblong-elliptical, moderately compressed; the back n<>t greatly 

 elevated; profile convex anteriorly, almost straight above eye; the nape 

 again convex, its keel low and i^laced well back. Snout rather blunt, 

 3f in head. Eye large, 3|- in head. Interorbital space broad and flat, 

 4 in head. Preorbital narrow, 7^ in head ; mouth small, oblique; lower 

 jaw slightly projecting. Maxillary about reaching middle of eye, 2^ in 

 head. Upper jaw with a narrow band of villiform teeth, outside of 

 which is a row of larger teeth, the canines in front little differentiated. 

 Lower jaw with a single series of rather large teeth, scaicely hirge 

 enough to be called canines ; inside of this series is a comparatively wide 

 band of villiform teeth in front of jaw only; a few larger teeth among 

 the villiform teeth. Tongue without teeth. Vomer with a rather narrow 

 /\-shaped patch of teeth, without backward ju'olongation on median line. 

 Gill-rakers numerous, the longest about two-fifths diameter of eye, 15 

 on lower part of arch, Preopercle with posterior margin almost straight 

 and vertical, without emargination, very finely serrate above; the 

 teeth coarser on angle and lower limb. 



Scales rather small, regularly arranged; the rows running parallel 

 with the lateral line both above and below it; 7 rows of scales on the 

 cheek, the scales of upper row not greatly enlarged, two rows on in- 

 teroi)ercle, and 8 on opercle. Temporal region with about 4 rows of 

 large scales; top of head, snout, and jaws naked. Base of soft dorsal 

 and anal scaleless. 



Dorsal little emarginate ; the spines rather slender ; the outline of 

 the fin moderately convex ; third spine longest, 2f in head; 10th spine, 

 3 in head ; margin of soft dorsal nearly straight, the first s^^ft ray, 3 in 

 head; last ray exserted, 2 in head. Caudal well forked, the upper 

 lobe slightly longer than lower, 2f length of middle rays, which are 3 

 in head; margin of anal similar to spinous dorsal, the last ray filament- 

 ous, 2^ in head ; anal spines rather slender, the third slightly longer 

 than second, 3| in head. Veutrals, 1^ in head. Pectorals long and 

 pointed, reaching to first soft ray of anal, l^o ^^ head. 



Color in life, rosy-red with silvery luster, quite silvery below; faint 

 pearly markings on scales of upper parts, these forming a <lecidcd 

 stripe along- base of dorsal. Head all rosy, darker above; iris silvery; 

 mouth white within ; sides with pearly spots, fiiiut and diffuse, irregu- 

 larly scattered, each about as lar^^c as a scale. Base of dorsal yellow- 

 ish olive, its edge scarlet, the fin otherwise rosy. Caudal rosy, becom- 

 ing scarlet behind. Pectorals, veutrals, and aual slightly rosy. In 

 spirits the V)r;ght colors all fade, leaving irregular pearly markings on 

 a silvery ground. 



This species is rather common in the markets of Havana, where it is 

 kuowu as Voraz, by which thc^ specific mime vorax has been suggested. 



