PROCEEDINGS OF UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. 251 



lutestinal canal loiij;-, but not much convoluted, 2| times length of 

 body. 



Dorsal moderate, in females as high as the length of its base, in males 

 much higher; origin of dorsal midway betjveen base of caudal and end 

 of snout ; base of fin 1^ to If in length of head ; longest ray (in <? 2' long) 

 reaching half way from base of fiu to base of caudal; the anterior rays 

 equaling length of head and extending beyond tips of posterior rays 

 ■where the lin is depressed; in females, the longest raj about 1^ in head. 

 Origin of anal under eighth or ninth ray of dorsal ; the fin very small, and 

 much higher than long; length of base about equaling snout; longest 

 ray half length of head (less in females). No external oviduct. Caudal 

 truncate or slightly emargiuate, 1;^ in head. Ventrals, in adult males, 

 reaching front of anal, 2^^ in head; in females, reaching vent. Pec- 

 torals long, reaching middle of ventrals, 1^ in head. 



Scales large, tuberculate in males, arranged in regular series; 

 humeral scale much enlarged, its height nearly half length of head; 

 26 or 27 oblique series of scales from opercle to base of tail; 13 scales 

 in an oblique series from vent to middle of back. 



Head, 3f to 3f in length; depth, 2 to 25; D. 11; A. 10. Scales, 

 2G-13. 



Color: (?, olivaceous; from dorsal forward above pectoral to head 

 deep lustrous steel-blue, the color very intense and conspicuous in life; 

 rest of npper parts with rather greenish luster, becoming dull slaty 

 blue; and on cheeks, opercles, sides anteriorly, and belly, deep salmon - 

 color; lower lip and preopercle, violet. Dorsal blackish, the anterior 

 margin of fin orange; caudal dusky olive, with a jet-black bar at tip, 

 and a narrow black cross-streak at base. Anal dusky at base, bordered 

 entirely around with bright orange. Ventrals dusky, bordered with 

 orange. Pectorals dusky-orange, darker below. Smaller specimens 

 show some orange shading on the sides, and sometimes also traces of 

 the cross-bands of the female. 



9 , very light olive ; lower half of sides with about 11, alternately wide 

 and narrow, vertical, dark bars, those anteriorly narrower and closer 

 together; usually 7 or 8 dark cross-bars on the back, alternating with 

 the wide bars below; these bars are of various degrees of distinctness, 

 sometimes almost obsolete ; a dusky area below eye; young with broad 

 greenish cross-shades wider than the interspaces. Belly pale or yellow- 

 ish; lower jaw largely blue; cheeks brassy. Dorsal dusky, with an 

 iniense black, faintly ocellated spot near tip of last rays. Caudal 

 faintly reddish, with a black bar towards base. Other fins pale orange, 

 with some dark points. 



Found very abundant at Galveston and still more so at Pensacola. 

 Specimens from the Gulf {'•^gibbosus^^) are larger and somewhat brighter 

 colored than those from the Atlantic farther north, but a careful com- 

 parison with specimens from Beaufort, N. C, and AVood's Holl, Mass., 

 failed to show any differences of even varietal value. It is possible that 



