GENUS ENTOMACRODUS — SPRINGER 



59 



overlying the bases of some spines (extensions of the body bands 

 onto the fin). Each soft dorsal fin ray bears two or three dusky spots, 

 so arranged that they form diagonal bands, separated by pale inter- 

 spaces, across the fin. The anal fin is evenly dusky, grading darker 

 distally and paler proximally, with the anterior surface or the tips 

 of the rays distinctly palest. One large mature male had evenly 

 dusky dorsal fins and the anal fin dusky, grading darker distally with 

 the darkest areas the anterior surface of the tips of the rays. Few 

 males were available but it seems the darker anal fin may be a male 

 character. The caudal fin is more or less evenly dusky, frequently 

 with one or two vertical rows of slightly darker dusky spots. The 

 pectoral fin is evenly dusky, grading to much darker ventrally. The 

 fleshy pectoral base is irregularly to uniformly dusky. The pelvic 

 fins are pale dusky. 



Geographic variation. — There are indications of a cline in aver- 

 age number of soft dorsal and anal rays (table 20). The averages 

 are lowest from the island of Hawaii and gradually increase as one 

 progresses northwesterly through the island chain to Midway. 



Nomenclature. — Bennett (1828) described Blennius marmoratus 

 from a single specimen which now appears to be lost. If B. marmora- 

 tus actually came from the Hawaiian Islands, the type description 



TABLE 23. 



-Frequency distribution of number of predorsal commissural pores of specimens 

 of Entoniacrodus marmomtus arranged by SL classes (in mm) 



3^5 



7 8 9 10 11 



Number of pores 

 12 13 U 15 16 



17 18 19 20 21 22 23 



15-19.9 



20 



25 



30 



35 



40 



45 



50 



55 



60 



65 



70 



75 



80 



85 



90 



95 



100 



105 



110 



115 



120 



-2---1--- 



21-- 



-1311---- 

 1-1--11-1 

 -123---1- 

 21--1-11- 

 -13---1-- 

 ..3...... 



