808 Bulletin ^7, Unued States National Museum. 



over the vent, its origin midway between posterior angle of opercle and 

 base of caudal. Pectoral about as long as the head, reaching ventrals, the 

 vcntrals not to vent. Body stouter than in related species. Scales firm, 

 crenate. Peritoneum dark; herbivorous. Clear hyaline green, a silvery 

 lateral band, \\ scales wide, narrower than eye, boidered above by a pur- 

 plish line. Back and sides thickly punctate. Iris and opercles with bright 

 yellow. Length a foot. Coast of California in sandy bays in schools, with 

 J//(en?i02;,si,y crt7(/b;-H/<;?(S('s, and equally abundant; also an excellent food- 

 fish, but smaller and therefore of less importance, (affinis, related.) 



Alherinopsix affinis, Aybes, Proc. Cal. Ac. Nat. Sci., 1860, 7:i, San Francisco. 

 Atherinops ciffiuis, .Jordan & Gilbert, Syuopsis, 409, 1883. 



1181. ATHERINOPS REGIS, Jenkins & Evermann. 



(Fez del Key.) 



Head 4^; depth 4i. D. VII-11 ; A. I, 22 ; scales 46-15 ; eye large, equal- 

 ing snout, 3| in head. Maxillary not reaching pupil, lower jaw shorter 

 than upper. Teeth in a single series, close-set, incisor-like, weak, each 

 with a short lateral branch on the main stem, not Y-shaped ; tips brown. 

 Gill rakers about 19 on lower limb of anterior arch, about 30 on lower 

 limbs of succeeding arches, not strong, equaling diameter of pupil. Origin 

 of spinous dorsal in front of vent, its distance from tip of snout being 

 but little more than half length of body, the origin of the first to the 

 origin of the second dorsal less than i length of body. The origin of 

 first dorsal is much nearer the angle of the opercle than to base of caudal. 

 The pectorals are longer than head by i the length of the head, reaching 

 to the middle of ventrals. Ventrals about reaching vent, nearly 2 in 

 head. Scales firm, large; pores developed on scales on various parts of 

 the body ; 4 rows on the cheeks. Peritoneum black. Color, in alcohol, 

 pale, darker above the lateral band, the scales in this region having fine 

 punctulations, a silvery band slightly more than one scale wide, § the 

 diameter of the eye, the upper third bordered by a dark line. This species 

 is allied to Aiherinops nffiuis, Ayres, from which it differs in the longer 

 pectorals, larger scales, and in the position of the spinous dorsal, which 

 in this species is much nearer the head. Gult of California ; a common 

 food-fish, {regis, del rey, of the king.) 



AOierlnops regis, Jenkins it Evermann, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., 1888, 138, Bay of Guaymas. 

 (Type, No. 39632. Coll. .Tenkins & Evermann.) 



Family CVII. MUGILID^.* 

 (The Mullets.) 



Body oblong, more or less compressed, covered with rather large cycloid 

 scales ; no lateral line, but the furrows often deepened on the middle of 

 each scale so as to form lateral streaks. Mouth small, the jaws with 



*For a detailed account of the American marine Mugilidte, see Jordan & Swain, Proc. U. S. 

 Nat. Mus., 1884, 261. 



