STARGAZE R FISHES — BERRY AND ANDERSON 581 



acct. No. 188434. 29°23' N., 87°25' W., Oregon station 270, 220 fathoms, Feb. 

 17, 1951 (1), 220 mm. S.L., GWM acct. No. 188434. 29°20' N., 87°42' W., 

 Oregon station 205, 101 fathoms, Feb. 10, 1951 (1), 117 mm. S.L., CNHM 40050. 

 29°20' N., 87°42' W., Oregon station 205, 101 fathoms, Feb. 10, 1951 (1), 70 mm. 

 S.L., CNHM 40049. 29°20' N., 87°42' W., Oregon station 205, 101 fathoms, 

 Feb. 10, 1951 (1), 78.5 mm. S.L., GWM acct. No. 188434. 29°15.5' N., 87°53' W., 

 Oregon station 314, 175 fathoms, Apr. 27, 1951 (1), 200 mm. S.L., GWM acct. 

 No. 190888. 29° 12' N., 88°05' W., Oregon station 037, 195 fathoms, Sept. 18, 

 1952 (1), 175 mm. S.L., TU 0834. 



29° 13.5' N., 88° 12' W., Oregon station 2203, 125 fathoms, June 20, 1958 (5), 

 111-127 mm. S.L., BLBG. 29°03' N., 88°25' W., Oregon station 1107, 210-235 

 fathoms, June 15, 1954 (1), 175 mm. S.L., TU 12808. 28°57' N., 88°40.5' W., 

 Oregon station 481, 210 fathoms, Sept. 7, 1951 (2), 211-229 mm. S.L., GWM acct. 

 No. 190888. Between 29°05' N., 88°31' W., and 28°5G.5' N., 88°40' W., Oregon 

 stations 472 to 484, between 185 and 240 fathoms, Sept. G-7, 1951 (2), 100-243 

 mm. S.L., CNHM 40051. 29°00' N., 88°48' W., Oregon station 93, 122 fathoms, 

 Aug. 24, 1950 (1), 138 mm. S.L., GWM acct. No. 185983. 27°38' N., 95°35' W., 

 Oregon station 1509, 225 fathoms, May 7, 1950 (1), 122 mm. S.L., TU 12807. 

 27°15' N., 9G°24' W., Pelican station 112-1, 80 fathoms, Jan. 30, 1939 (1), 70.5 

 mm. S.L., GWM Pelican acct. No. 180572. 



Synonymy: We adhere to Myers' (1946, p. 42) decision in placing 

 Benthoscopus laticeps in the genus Gnathagnus Gill. We include 

 Execestides Jordan and Thompson in the synonymy of Gnathagnus. The 

 major recorded difference between G. laticeps and Execestides egregius 

 was that the former had scales, the latter was scaleless. Our speci- 

 mens of Gnathagnus, ranging from 243 mm. S.L. down to 57.5 mm. 

 S.L., showed a pronounced structural ontogeny, and the presence of 

 scales on all of these confirmed their identification as G. laticeps. 

 George S. Myers, Margaret Storey, and Stanley H. Weitzman of the 

 Stanford University Natural History Museum cooperated in furnish- 

 ing us with information on the small type specimen of E. egregius, 

 reported to lack scales. A portion of mucous scraped from the side 

 near the peduncle of the type was stained with alizarin and a small 

 scale was found to be present in the scrapings, presumptive evidence 

 that the type specimen has small, hidden scales and supporting our 

 placing G. laticeps in the synonymy of E. egregius in the genus 

 Gnathagnus. 



Diagnosis: No spinous dorsal fin. Dorsal soft rays 12 to 14. 

 Anal soft rays 16 or 17. Pectoral rays 20 to 24. Pelvic rays I, 5. 

 Pelvic girdle without exposed anteriorly directed spines. Top of 

 head covered by exposed cranial bones; a shallow anterior recess of 

 the frontal bones between the eyes. Posterior nostrils not in fringed 

 grooves. Lower jaw with the dentary bones forming a pair of promi- 

 nent converging bony ridges on the anterior part, deeply notched 

 between. Preoperculum with a flattened process, usually bluntly 

 pointed, extending posteriolaterally from across angle of the bone, 

 diminishing with growth; operculum striated and ridged and ending 



