386 Bulletin ^7, United States National Museum. 



634. OPHICHTHUS PARILIS* (Richanlsou). 



Dentition as in 0. gomtsii. Eye small, about 2^ in sn^ut ; gill open- 

 ings not very wide, approaching nearer together than usual in this 

 genus ; anterior nostril Avith an elongate tapering tube; head 2 in trunk; 

 cleft of mouth 2f in head ; eye 2^ in snout ; pectoral 2i in head ; dorsal fin 

 rather low, commencing above posterior third of pectoral; tail twice as 

 long as rest of body. Coloration uniform. (Giinther.) Cuba to Brazil; 

 not common. {paj'iUs, like.) 



Opkisitrns 2mrili>', Richardson, Voyagp Erebus & Terror, lO.'i, 1844, West Indies. 



Ophiclitht/s }mucii>onis, Poey, Bepertorio, li, 255, pi. 3, fig. 5, 1808, Cuba; GOnther, Cat., viii, 



60, 1S70. 

 Ophichlhys parilis, Gcnther, Cat., viii, 59, 1870. 

 Ophichthtis parilis, Jordan <fe Davis, /. c, 634. 



184. MYSTRIOPHIS, Kaup. 



Mysiriophis, Kaup, Apodes, 10, 1856, {roslellaius). 



Orotalopsis, Kaup, Abhandl. Naturwiss. A'erein Hamburg, iv, 1'.^, 1800, (puncli/er). 

 Echiopsis, Kaup, Abhandl. Natur. Vereiu Hamburg, iv, 13, 1860, {inlerlinctus). 

 Macrodonophis, Poey, Repertorio, 11, 251, 1867, (mordax). 



This genus contains three or four species of black-spotted eels, dis- 

 tinguished from Ophiclithus by the presence of strong canines in the large 

 mouth. The vomerine teeth, as in Opliiclitlius, are small and fixed. The 

 sjiecies difi'er considerably from each other and all are nearly related to 

 such si^ecies of Ophichthtis as iriserialis and harannensis. The value to bo 

 assigned to Mystriophis is therefore doubtful. Our species belongs to the 

 subgenus Echiopsis, (t;t'tf viper; oi/'c;, appearance), in which the jaAA's are 

 narrowed forwards, not expanded at tip. {/ivarpioj', a spoon, from the 

 form of the snout in M. rostellatus ; o0(f, snake.) 



Subgenus ECHIOPSIS, Kaup. 

 635. MYSTRIOPHIS IXTERTIXCTUS (Richardson). 



Jaws narrow and not expanded at tip. Vomerine teeth small, fixed; in 

 one to three series. Teeth in jaws biserial ; long canines in front of jaws; 

 outer teeth of upper jaAv une(]ual, some of them canine ; vomerine teeth 

 in two series, these sometimes partly coalescing (sometimes, var. punc- 

 tifer, partly divided into three); lowr jaw scarcely included; pectoral 

 fin about 5 in head ; tail a little longer than rest of body ; dorsal com- 

 mencing behind tip of pectoral, distance equal to about length of 

 same ; isthmus equal to | the gill openings, which are large, close 

 together, and subinferior, anterior m position ; head 2^ to 2^ in 

 trunk ; eye small, 1^ to 2 in snout ; gape 2^ in head ; snout 3 in cleft 

 of mouth, 7 in head. Dark brown above, paler below, side with two 

 rows of large round or ovate black spots, the upper row close to the 

 dorsal fin, the lower row below the lateral line; besides these some 

 smaller spots, also black; head a little darker than the body, the spots 

 smaller and numerous, some larger ones below eye ; dorsal and anal with 



* Possibly two species are included by us under parilis. In parilis the insertion of the dorsal 

 is before ttie end of the pectoral ; in the type of xmuciporiis the dorsal is said to be inserted 

 behind tip of pectoral ; no other differences appear. 



