NO. 191.-,. FIFinESi OF OKINAWA— ^yyoER. 491 



concealing tip of lower jaw when viewed from the side. Gill-cleft 

 wider than eye, narrower than length of snout, below middle of head, 

 and oblique in position. Teeth blunt; in 2 series on jaws, vomer and 

 palatines. Dorsal fin originating on occiput halfway between tip of 

 snout and gill-opening, increasing in height to near middle of body 

 where it measures 1 in the snout, 5 in the head. Caudal originating 

 immediately behind anal o])cning and extending to near tip of taO 

 where it disappears at a point below end of dorsal, the portion of tail 

 without fins being equal in length to the snout. Base of pectoral 

 ecpial in length to gill-opening; rays of fin branched, the middle ones 

 longest. 



Color in spirits: Body tinted with brown above, lighter below; 

 body and tad with 3 series of rounded or elongate dark brown spots; 

 the upper series lying along the dorsal fin, many of the spots being 

 cut by the base of it, those of each side alternating m position; median 

 series 25 in number, extending along side of body and tail, alternatmg 

 in position with those of upper and lower series; ventral series small 

 and somewhat irregular on the trunk, larger and more regular on the 

 tail, where they are arranged along the base of anal alternating in 

 position with those of the opposite side; tip of tail light; doreal fin 

 with dark spots each of which corresponds in position with one on the 

 body at base of fin, there being about twice as many spots on the fin 

 as on either side of body at its base; pectorals and anal immaculate; 

 head with a large oval spot above gill-opening, a much smaller one 

 above and behind eye, and another halfway between these; small 

 spots below eye and on chin and throat; tip of snout immaculate. 



This species closely resembles M. tigrinis of the Central American 

 coast. It is colored much like this form, and the body has the same 

 nearly cylindrical shape, but it is a great deal more slender, specimens 

 of il/. tigrinis of equal length being almost twice as deep and ha\-ing 

 veiy much larger heads. The snout is more obtuse in 21. rupestris. 



M. magnificus of Hawaii has a shorter and deeper body wliich is 

 compressed rather than cylindrical, a longer snout, and from 20 to 22 

 spots in the lateral row. Three specimens of this species were lately 

 collected b}^ the writer in the tide pools near Honolulu, the fn*st to be 

 seen since the species was discovered in 1835. These specimens, 

 which were carefully preserved, agree with the original descri})tion 

 exce])t in the following particulars. The body is decidedly coni- 

 ])rcssed, rather than cylindrical; tlie ver)'' small pectoral fill has 11 

 instead of 20 rays, the tips having no doubt been counted thus enu- 

 merating the branches; the teeth are not acute, but on the contrary 

 have rounded pomts. The color which has changed very little from 

 that of life is almost exactly as oiiginally described, the dorsal 

 however being spotted much like that of M. rupestris. 



