458 Bulletiji 4y, United States National Museum. 



the vent and terminating a little behind the dorsal, its height nearly the 

 same as that of the dorsal; caudal moderately long, 7 in body, slightly 

 emarginate ; pectoral small; ventrals very short. Color reddish brown ; 

 head a beautiful azure-blue; fins sepia; iris black; pupil azure-blue. 

 Scales very simple in form; those of the body rounded in outline and 

 measure from 1.5 to 1.6 mm. in diameter. Five pyloric cceca, moderately 

 elongated. No trace of a swim bladder. Sixteen specimens of this spe- 

 cies were obtained by the French expedition from the coast of Morocco 

 to Soudan, from the Banc d'Arguin, and from the Canaries, at depths 

 varying from 433 to 1,058 fathoms. A specimen 8 inches in length was 

 obtained by the Albatross at station 2751, latitude 16° 57' N., longitude 

 63° 12' W., in 68 fathoms. (/laKpbg, long; Trrepuv, Hn.) 

 Alepocepliahis wacroplerus, Vaillant, Exp. Sci. Travailleiir et Talispian, Poissons, 150, pi. xi, 



figs, 'la, 2?), 2c, 1888, Coast of Morocco, Soudan, and Canaries. 

 Conocara macroptera, Goode & Bean, Oceanic Ichthyology, 39, fig. 43, 1895. 



229. PLATYTROCTES, Gunther. 



Plalytrocies, Gunther, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., 11, 1878, 249, {apux). 



Body rather abbreviated, much compressed, and covered with small, 

 keeled scales. Mouth of moderate width ; the maxillary, premaxillary 

 and mandible each armed with a single series of small teeth ; palate 

 smooth. Eye rather large. Dorsal and anal fins opposite each other 

 on tail, moderately long; adipose fin none; caudal forked; pectorals 

 small; ventrals none. Humeral arch terminating in middle of chest in a 

 long, projecting, acute spine. Gill opening wide; six branchiostegals; 

 gills very narrow ; pseudobranchite present ; gill rakers lanceolate. 

 Pyloric appendages rudimentary. Deep sea. (TrTiaTvc, flat ; Tf)(jKT)jg, a 

 gnawer.) 



753. PLATYTROCTES APUS, Gunther. 



Head Si ; depth 2f ; eye 3. D. 18 ; A. 17 ; P. 20 ; scales 20. Body much 

 compressed and deep, its greatest depth at about the middle of its length. 

 Head compressed, moderate, logitudinally concave above, the concavity 

 bordered on each side by a perforated muciferdus canal, and broadest 

 behind, tapering to a point between the nostrils. Bones of head rather 

 thin, but less so than in Bathytroctes. Eye large, equal to snout, and situ- 

 ated close to iipper profile. Infraorbital ring incomplete. Mouth rather 

 small, the lower jaw projecting; maxillary broad, short, extending to 

 vertical from margin of orbit. Dentition very feeble; teeth uniserial, 

 uniformly minute, occupying the whole extent of intermaxillary and 

 maxillary, but confined to the front part of mandible ; only a few rudi- 

 mentary teeth are visible on the side of mandible; vomer with a minute 

 tooth on each side ; palatines toothless. Branchiostegals extremely slen- 

 der, curved. Gills 4, the inner one very short; gill lamina) short, especi- 

 ally on the convex portion of the arches ; gill rakers long, lanceolate, 

 closely set, 20 4 10 on the outer branchial arch. Vent much nearer root 

 of caudal than to gill opening ; dorsal fin commencing immediately above 

 it, the anal behind; these fins are very similar in shape and of moderate 

 height ; caudal peduncle more than half as deep as long, its depth being 



