Jofdan and Evermann. — Fishes of North America. 1741 



together and laterally expanded, but short; the prosethmoid prominent 

 above, enlarged and narrowed forward. Vertebrse about 8 + 10. Head 

 compressed, with a projecting, attenuated snout; dorsal and anal short, 

 few-rayed. Nostrils obsolete, imperforate. One genus, with 15 species, 

 found in the tropical seas; none of them reaching a length of more than 

 5 inches. 



68i. CANTHIGASTER, Swainsou. 



Canthigaster, Swainson, Nat. Hist. Fishes, n, 194, 1839 (diagnosis only; no species men- 

 tioned; ros?)-a<HS intended). 



Psilonotus, Swainson, Nat. Hist. Fishes, ii, 328, 1839 (rostratus) ; substitute for Canthi- 

 gaster,- not Psilonotus, a genus of Hymenoptera of prior date. 



Prilonotus* (KiUP MS.) KiCHARDSON, Voyage Herald, 162, 1854 {rostratus). 



Troijidichtliys, Bleeker, Nat. Tyds. Nederl. Ind., iv, 1854 (mlentini). ' /, - 



Anosmius, Peters, Wiegmann's Arch. 1855, 274 (tceniatus). 



Rhynchotus (Bibron) Hollard, fitudes Gymnodontes, 320, 1857 {peroni). 



Characters of the genus included above. {axdvOa, spine; ya6vi)p, 

 belly; Swainson here as elsewhere takes nav^ct to mean spine, a iisage 

 without classical warrant.) 



«. No black ocellus below the dorsal. 



h. Upper parts everywhere behind head covered with round pale spots; fins all 



pale; dorsal rays 9. punctatissimus, 2159. 



Xth. Upper parts dark brown without whitish spots; caudal always marked with 



black; dorsal rays 6. rostratus, 2160. 



2159. CAXTHIGASTER PUXCTATISSlMUS (Giinther). 



U. 9. Snout produced, its upper profile .slightly concave; spines on 

 belly and front of back. Upper parts everywhere behind head covered 

 with round whitish spots, not larger than pupil, and separated from each 

 other only by a network of the brown ground color; fins all unmarked, 

 pale. Length 3 inches. Pacific coast of America, Gulf of California to 

 Panama; not common, {imnctatxsmnua, very much dotted.) 



Tetrodo7i punctatissimus, Gunther, Cat., vni, 302, 1870, Panama. (Coll. Capt. Dow.) 

 Tetrodon oxyrhynchiis, Lockington, Proc. Ac. Nat. Sci. Phila. 1881, 116, Gulf of California. 

 Psilonotus punctatissimus, Jordan & Gilbert, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus. 1882, 370. 

 Canthigaster punctatiseimus, Jordan & Edwards, I.e., 246. 



2160. f AXTHKJASTER ROSTRATUS (Bloch). 



D. 6. Snout moderately produced, rather more than twice the concave 

 interorbital space; caudal slightly lunate. Body smooth, except abdo- 

 men, which is covered with very small, 2-rooted spines. Upper parts 

 dark brown, without white spots; upper and lower margins of caudal fin 

 abruptly black, the middle of the fin pale, immaculate; an irregular 

 brownish band or series of dots from pectoral to upper margin of caudal, 

 continuous with the dark band on the latter; lower band of caudal con- 



* Prilonotus is " a name invented by Miiller, and is mentioned by him in his Fortsetzung 

 der Myxinoiden and in Archiv fur l^aturgeschichte fiir 1841." (Richardson.) 



