170J: ^ Bulletin 47 , United States National Museum. 



iug spines short and very thick; lateral line reduced to a trace at the 

 shoulder. From the more closely allied genus Balistai^us, to which most 

 of the East Indian Balistoids belong, Pachynathus differs chiefly in the 

 presence of the preocular groove. Species rather few; all of the Pacific 

 Ocean; 1 ranging to our coasts. (TTtr^t;?, thick; yvdfioi, jaw, hence cor- 

 rectly written Pachygnatliiis, a name preoccupied.) 



2119. PACHYNATHUS CAPISTRATUS (Shaw). 

 (Pkz Puerco.) 



Head 2? ; depth 2. D. Ill, 30 or 31; A. 27 or 28; scales 54 to 64. Body 

 rather oblong, a groove before the eye. Each scale, for about 9 rows on 

 the tail and posterior part of sides, with a small, smooth, inconspicuous 

 tubercle ; about 34 scales in several parallel horizontal streaks in front of 

 pectoral, a transverse series from soft dorsal to vent ; a few bony scutes 

 behind the gill opening, 1 of these considerably enlarged. Lateral line 

 obsolete, reduced to a slender groove on a few scales behind eye. Dorsal 

 and anal tins rather low, with outlines rounded or slightly angular in front, 

 the first rays not produced ; caudal double truncate, the angles scarcely 

 produced. First dorsal spine strung, somewhat roughened. Ventral flap 

 small, somewhat movable, supported by a few short, thick spines. Uniform 

 blackish brown; a yellowish ring from middle of upper lip around the 

 lower jaw; a straight yellow stripe from this ring toward the pectoral, 

 not reaching the gill opening ; this sometimes absent or indistinct. Two 

 types of coloration seen by us. Some specimens, probably females,* 

 are dull olive with darker clouds; no yellow on posterior parts which are 

 scarcely paler behind; fins all plain olive blackish; streak behind mouth 

 light bluish,very faint, soon fading after death ; lower lip blue, then golden, 

 then a blue ring, then yellow, then bluish ; upper lip livid, bluish above. 

 Other specimens, which are probably males, are dark olive clouded with 

 darker; posterior half of body deep yellow below median line; tins black- 

 ish; first dorsal bright olive yellow on membranes; green on caiidal mem- 

 branes, the rays black; anal reddish; streak behind moiith bright red in 

 one, whitish in another; upper lip livid bine, then orange, then golden, 

 then livid, blue, or purplish, then orange, then crimson, then dark. Still 

 other specimens have whitish marks instead of red. Pacific Ocean ; widely 

 distributed through the East Indies and on the coast of China; also abun- 

 dant on the Pacific coast of tropical America from Magdalena Bay to the 

 Galapagos. The specimens here described from the "\'enados and Crestt)u 

 islands at Mazatlan, and from La Paz and Chatham Island. Our (male) 

 specimens agree perfectly with Bleeker's figure drawn from East Indian 

 examples, (cajiia&atus, bridled.) 



LeBaliste hride, Lacep^de, Hist. Nat. Poiss., i, 335, 1798; on adrawingby Cojimebson; 



without locality. 

 Batistes capistratus, Shaw, Gen'l Zool., v, 417, 1804; after LACEPiiDE. 

 Batistes amhoinensis, Gray, Hardwicke, lUust. Indian Zool., 1834, Amboina. 



* The sexual organs in specimens taken at Mazatlan in January are too little developed 

 to enable us to recognize the distinctions. 



