PKOCEEDING.S OF UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. 289 



no spinous teeth on iireorbital ; pieopercular spine simple, long, and 

 slender, without tooth at base. Spines on top and posterior part of 

 head about as in P. jxdmijyes, but rather sharper, the furrow connecting 

 orbits posteriorly not much marked. Opercular spine small. Eyes 

 large, separated by a narrow concave space, the supraocular ridge 

 prominent, serrate in front. Band,s of palatine teeth narrow. Gill- 

 rakers long and slender, as in Prionofus punctafus. 



Dorsal high, its longest spine 14 in head. Pectoral scarcely more 

 than J length of body, reaching to base of iifth or sixth dorsal ray. 



Coloration in life, dark olive above ; back and sides covered with 

 numerous round spots of different sizes, and not arranged in series ; 

 these si)ots bronze color in life, becoming brownish after death ; spinous 

 dorsal dusky, with lighter streaks ; a distinct black spot on upper half of 

 spinous dorsal, between the fourth and fifth spine, this spot being ocel- 

 lated below and behind ; a second black blotch on upper half of first spine 

 and membrane, also ocellated behind ; second dorsal and caudal spotted 

 and finely blotched with black; anal largely black, with a pinkish 

 border; pectorals blackish ; ventrals pale ; branchiostegals pinkish. 



This species, formerly erroneously identified by us with Prionotm 

 punctatus, differs from the latter in its much slenderer form, in color, in 

 the absence of spinous teeth on snout, and in the short pectorals. 



The original types were ol)taiued by us at Beaufort, Xorth Carolina, 

 in 1S77. Another specimen (15148) is in the National Museum, collected 



UEANOSCOPID.E. 



100. Astroscopus anoplus (C. & V.) Brev.—Dofj-Jish ; Electric Do{i-fish. P. G. 

 (3U(r51, 30899.) 



This species is rather common about Galveston, and is not rare about 

 Pensacola. Two young specimens were obtained at each place. The 

 fishermen at Galveston ascribe to it electric powers in life — a trait already 

 noticed by Dr. J. A. Ilenshall in the closely allied Astroscopus y-grwcum. 



Coloration of young specimens in life: dark olive above, becoming 

 abruptly white beneath, the sides with a darker shade. Back and top 

 of head, as far back as front of soft dorsal and as low as upper edge of 

 pectoral, covered with small, round, light-green spots, none of them as 

 large as pupil, those on top of head light brown. Posterior part of body 

 speckled with blackish dots. First dorsal black except at base; second 

 dorsal plain, with a dark blotch in front; anal and ventrals immaculate; 

 caudal with three black longitudinal stripes, the interspaces pale. Pec- 

 toral black at base, its edge pale. Lower jaw and median line of lower 

 side of head yellow; a large oblong black blotch on each side of median 

 line of lower part of head. Lips dusky. D. IV-I, 13; A. 13. Scales 

 scarcely appreciable, visible only posteriorly. 



The naked area behind the eyes is much smaller in this species than 

 in A. ygrcccnm, its .form being concavo-convex, its length barely twice 

 Proc. yat. ]\Ius. 82 19 Aug-. 15, 1S83'. 



