552 PROCEEDINGS OF UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. 



blunt, nearly perpendicular from front of mouth to the nostrils, thence 

 nearly straight to beginning of dorsal fin. Mouth moderate, the max- 

 illary ending opposite the pupil, its length 3 in head ; the upper jaw 

 overlaps the lower; the lips are edged with fine scallops, which are 

 most conspicuous in front; the upper jaw is without canines, the small 

 movable teeth extending along the sides ; teeth of the lower jaw not ex- 

 tending far along the sides; a large, sharp, strongly-curved tooth on each 

 side of the lower jaw, which is placed, not on a line with the fine comb- 

 like teeth, but inward and backward from the margin a distance equal 

 to one-half the diameter of the eye. The eye equals the length of the 

 snout, 3 in head ; iuterorbital space flat, a little wider than half the or- 

 bital diameter. 



A short, unbranching tentacle above each eye, one-third as long as 

 the eye is wide ; nasal opening forming a short tube with a multifid 

 tentacle on its upper inner margin, the longest filament equaling the 

 orbital tentacle in length ; very short multifid nuchal tentacles, the 

 height of the filaments equaling their base, which extends perpendicu- 

 larly, and therefore does not form a median crest. Gill-openings form- 

 ing a broad fold across the isthmus. 



Dorsal fin rather high, continuous, with only an obsolete notch be- 

 tween the spinous and soft portions ; spines very flexible, nearly uniform 

 in height, the highest one If in head, and equal to the highest soft ray, 

 the articulate portion of the fin about even to the sixteenth ray, whence 

 the fin decreases to the last ray, which is two-thirds the height of the first. 

 Anal fin lower than the dorsal, its highest ray 2 in head. Caudal 

 very nearly as long as the pectoral fin, which equals the head; ventrals 

 1^ in head. 



Lateral line little arched above the pectoral, continuing parallel with 

 the dorsal outline to opposite the fifth articulate ray (or a little anterior 

 to the middle of the dorsal fin), the line terminating abruptly, where^ 

 midway between dorsal and ventral surfaces, a series of more obscure 

 pores originates, which extends in an almost straight line to the base of 

 the caudal fin. 



Color, in spirits, olivaceous, marked with darker. Seven squarish dark 

 spots along middle of sides, above which and more or less separated 

 from the lower ones are as many other irregular dark spots extending 

 upon the base of the dorsal fin, the two series of spots together forming 

 broken vertical bands ; ground color of the dorsal dark gray ; the anal 

 dusted with black i)oints, which give the fin a uniform gray appearance ; 

 no paler or yellowish edging to dorsal or anal ; caudal, pectoral, and 

 ventral fins smutty with minute dark dots, and the skin everywhere 

 finely punctate with blackish ; top of head evenly dark gray ; a blue- 

 black ocellated spot, edged with gray behind the orbit, and continuous 

 with the edging a narrow band of gray outlines the suborbital ring to 

 the corner of the mouth. 



Three specimens, the largest 2 J inches in length, were collected by 



