1612 Bulletbi 47, Uiiited States National Museum. 



equaling distance from end of snout to middle of eye; the fin rapidly 

 descends to the fourth spine, which is \ as long as the second, then grad- 

 ually rises to the niuth and highest, which is, however, shorter than the 

 following soft rays; longest soft ray 1| in head; anal spines similar to 

 those of dorsal fin, the longest about ^ head; caudal evenly convex, its 

 longest raj" \\ in head ; ventrals short, about I length of head, an elon- 

 gate scale between them at base ; pectorals reaching beyond the ventrals, 

 but not to vent, If in head. Membranes of vertical fins, with elongate 

 scales on basal portion; lateral line following outline of back 1 scale 

 beyond end of dorsal fin, thence interrupted aud continued on 4 scales of 

 middle of caudal peduncle. Color in life, very intense grass green, about 

 uniform over the body; head more yellowish, slightly paler below; oper- 

 clesmesially a little darker; iris red, with a green ring; dorsal, anal, and 

 caudal grass green, mottled with light orange; tips of lower spines green, 

 of short ones orange; ventrals deep green, the membranes largely orange; 

 pectorals light yellowish. Length 2| inches. West Indies north to Key 

 West,* rare. Here described from the type of Doratonotiis thalassinus, 

 obtained Avith a seine in eelgrass at Key West. One of the most beau- 

 tiful of American fishes. {ii£ya<i, large; Aett/?, scale.) 



Doratonotus tnegalepis, Gunther, Cat., iv, 125, 1862, St. Kitts ; Jordan, Eeview Labroid 



Fishes 655, 1890. 

 Doratonotus thalasniims, Jordan & Gilbert, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus. 1884, 28, Key West. 



(Type, No. 34969, U. S. N. M. Coll. Jordan.) 



642. XYRULA, .Jordan. 



Xyrula, Jordan, Review of Labroid Fishes, 656, 1890 (jcssice). 



Scales very large, about 20 in the lateral line, which is placed on the 

 first row of large scales below the dorsal sheath ; head not trenchant above, 

 otherwise as in XijricMhys. A single species from rather deep water. (A 

 diminutive, suggested by Xyrichthys.') 



2023. XYRULA JESSl.E (Jordan). 



Head 3f ; depth 3^^. D. IX, 12 ; A. (probably) III, 12 ; scales about ^20-7. 

 Body oblong, rather more elongate and rather less compressed than in 

 species of Xyrichthys. Head rather less deep aud less trenchant anteriorly 

 and superiorly than in X.psittacus, its anterior outline boldly convex 

 rather than parabolic. Depth of preorbital from eye to angle of mouth 

 2i in head (2i\, in X.psittacus). Cleft of mouth 4^ in head; anterior in- 

 cisors strong, f as in X.psittacus. Eye moderate, 4^ in head. No trace of 



* Of this exquisite little fish only 5 specimens are known : (1) The type of D. mei^alepis^ 

 a specimen in poor condition from St. Kitts ; (2) the type of D. thalassinus, a specimen in 

 fine condition from Key West, now in the U. S. National Mnseuni; (3) a third specimen 

 sent by Professor Poey from Havana to the museum at Cambridge; and (4) 2 speci- 

 mens taken by Dr. James A. Henshall at Garden Key. These last specimens have the 

 snout less slender than in the original types, but this difl'erence m.ay be due to their 

 ffrt?at6r <i"'6. 



We have little doubt of the identity of D. thalassinus with D. megalepis, the slight dif- 

 ferences in the descriptions being apparently due to the poor condition of Dr. Giiuther's 

 specimeua. 



