NO. 3582 GENUS ENTOMACRODUS — SPRINGER 43 



E. aneitensis had none. The large number of fine small spots on the 

 sides of E. aneitensis may be of specific significance, but there is so 

 much variation in color from population to population and specimen 

 to specimen that I prefer not to accept color pattern variation as a 

 basis for recognizing E. aneitensis. Some specimens from localities 

 other than Aneiteum are heavily spotted though not in quite the same 

 manner as specimens from Aneiteum. The spots are relatively larger 

 and the perimeters of the spots less sharply delimited. The character 

 of the fringing of the nuchal cirrus in E. decussatus is dependent on 

 the size of the specimen concerned. The larger specimens tend to 

 have the nuchal cirrus margins with small branches. 



Salarias atkinsoni was described from a single specimen without 

 comparison with other species. The holotype represents the normal 

 juvenile of E. decussatus. 



Relationships. — Entomacrodus decussatus is most closely related 

 to E. vermiculatus and secondarily related to E. stellijer (for discussion, 

 see relationships under the latter two species). 



Remarks. — Entomacrodus decussatus has been collected with or 

 from the same general locality as E. steUifer, E. thalassinus, E. sealei, 

 E. caudojasciatus , E. striatus, E. cymatohiotus , E. epalzeocheilus and 

 E. niuajoouensis. It differs from all these species in the nature of 

 its color pattern and from all but E. steUifer in having a larger eye 

 (table 3) and typically 35 vertebrae. In addition, it differs obviously: 

 from E. steUifer, in having pinnately compound supraorbital cirri and 

 typically more giU-rakers; from E. thalassinus, in having a crenulate 

 upper lip and more gill-rakers, psuedobranchial filaments, and soft 

 dorsal rays; from E. sealei and E. caudojasciatus, in having the central 

 portion of the ventral margin of the upper lip with crenulae and in 

 having more pseudobranchial filaments and soft dorsal and anal rays; 

 from E. striatus, in having more predorsal commissural pores and 

 pseudobranchial filaments at comparable sizes, and in frequently 

 having some preopercular pores paired or in multiples; from E. 

 cymatohiotus, in having more soft dorsal and anal rays, gill-rakers, 

 pseudobranchial filaments, and in frequently having some paired 

 pores in the preopercular series; from E. epalzeocheilus, in having the 

 nuchal cirri basically simple (or when branched, the branches always 

 much smaller than the main cirrus rather than subequal), and in 

 having the lateral margins or the supraorbital cirrus with branches; 

 and from E. niuajoouensis, in having the lateral margin of the supra- 

 orbital cirrus with branches. 



Distribution (fig. 5). — Entomacrodu.s decussatus is known only 

 from islands in the Pacific Ocean and that ocean's associated gulfs 

 and seas. 



