Jordan aiid Everma7in.— Fishes of North America. 1261 



erable reaemblance to .V. apodus, jocu, and (/riseus, but is distinct from all 



these, {argentum, silver; renter, belly.) 



Mesoprion argentiventris, Peters, Berlin. Monatsber., 704, 1869, Mazatlan. 



Lutjamis argentiventris, Jordan & Swain, I. c, 434; Evermann & Jenkins, Proc. U S 



Nat. Mus. 1891, 146; Jordan & Fesler, i. c, 444. 

 Lutianus argentiventris, Jordan, Fishes Sinaloa, 455. 



1637. NEOM.EMS LUTJAXOIDES (Poey). 

 This species is known only from Poey's description. Its describer has 

 suggested the possibility of its being a hybrid between Ocyurus chrysurns 

 and Neomunis apodus. The following is Poey's original descri])tion : 



The fish, if uot undoubtedly belonging to the genus Ocyurus of Professor Gill of which 

 the Mesojmon chrysurus is the type, conies nearer to it than to any other genus, by the bifur- 

 cation of its caudal deeper than in Lutjanus jocu, caxis, caballcrote, etc. The pointed 

 snout and the long canines would bring it among these last. From its colors the tishermen 

 are led to consider it a hybrid between the M. chrysurui and the iV. caxis. They often thus 

 dispose of a new fish, as in the case of the Ocyurus ambiguus and aurovittatus. But as 

 such hybrids are rare among flsh, and especially so among these genera, it is, I believe, 

 right to consider the present species as a good one. The total length 290 millimeters or 

 11.45 inches. The height of the body, equal to the length of the head, is contained 3f 

 times in the total length. The eye is rather high up, and half way from snout. to tip of 

 opercle. The nostrils are on the middle of the snout, rather wide apart, the posterior one 

 oblong. The mouth is small, for the ends of the maxillaries are under the posterior nos- 

 tril. The preopercle is only slightly notched, finely denticulated ; the opercle without a 

 spinous point. The teeth are in one row, the canines rather long, and behind them there 

 are asperities; the palatine arch has teeth and the tongue is rough. The lateral line 

 has about 55 scales, 6 rows above and 15 below it; there are scales on the opercles and 

 temples, the rest of the head naked. The scapular bones show outside. There are very 

 small scales on the interstitial base of the soft rays of the vertical fin. D. 10, 14; 

 A. 3, 8. The posterior borders of the dorsal and anal are rounded. The caudal lobes are 

 elongated, but less so than in the M. chrysurus. The pectoral is pointed, contained 4J 

 times in the total length. The three first spiny rays of the dorsal gradually increase in 

 length, the last, or tenth one, not longer than the preceding ones. The soft rays of the 

 dorsal and anal are all branched and flattened. The color is a brownish-green, the abdo- 

 men paler, 6 brown bands fall vertically from back over the sides ; a broad and inter- 

 rupted stripe of a greenish color extends from the upper part of the opercle to the base of 

 the caudal, resembling Ocyurus chrysurus and aurovittaus. I Lave seen this fish but 

 once, and I sent the specimen to the United States, either to Professor Agassiz or to Mr. 

 Brevoort. It bears my No. 163. 



Cuba; one specimen known. (Lutjanus; £/'(5o?, likeness.) 

 Ocyurus lutjanoides,'Po&Y, Ann. Lye. Nat. Hist. N. Y., ix, 1871, 319, Cuba. 

 Lutjanus lutjanoides, Poey, Enumeratio, 30, 1875; Jordan & Swain, ;. c, 458; Jordan & 



Fesler, I. c, 445. 



1638. \E0M.1;NIS BUCCANELLA (Cuvier & Valenciennes). 

 (Sesi de lo Alto; Oreille Noire ; Bodcanelle; Black-fin Snapper.) 

 Head 2A ; depth 2|. D. X, 14 ; A. Ill, 8 ; scales 8-63-15, 50 pores. Body 

 rather slender, subelliptical, the back moderately elevated ; profile almost 

 straight from snout to nape, thence convex; snout rather long and pointed, 

 3i in head; eye large, 3^ in head. Interorbital space slightly convex, 

 of in head, the occipital ridge low; preorbital rather narrow, 7^ in head; 

 mouth rather small, the jaws subequal ; maxillary reaching almost to front 



