194 PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM vol. 09 



made and sufficient material of the various forms described are lacking 

 for study, the following tentative key must be used with caution for 

 the area adjacent to the coast of Venezuela and northward. A species 

 difficult to place is Sphoeroides harperi Nichols (Bull. Amer. Mus. 

 Nat. Hist., vol. 33, art. 3, p. 81, 1914) from Cape Sable, Fla. This 

 species may be maculatus. 



Meek and Hildebrand ("The Marine Fishes of Panama", part 3, 

 p. 813, pi. 77, 1928) use the name Sphoeroides marmoratus (Ranzani) 

 for a species covered v/itli minute imbricated scales that lacks the line 

 of black spots set off below the dark coloration of upper sides. How- 

 ever, Tetraodon marmoratus Ranzani (Dissertationes Quat. NoviComm. 

 Acad. Sci. Inst. Bonon., vol. 4, p. 73, pi. 10, figs, la, lb, 1840) as 

 represented by the figures is definitely not the same species as the 

 one illustrated on plate 77 of Meek and Hildebrand. I see no reason 

 at present why T. marmoratus Ranzani cannot be considered a synonym 

 of Sphoeroides spengleri as currently recognized. Specimens of 

 spengleri from Brazil appear to be the same as those from Panama and 

 the West Indies. 



Sphoeroides marmoratus Meek and Hildebrand (not of Ranzani) I 

 refer to Sphoeroides eulepidotus (Metzelaar), basing my opinion on 

 several small series in the national collections. 



The color patterns of maculatus and nephelus and the imbricate 

 scales indicate that eulepidotus is very closely related and possibly not 

 distinct from nephelus. I do not find any specimens of the typical 

 color pattern of maculatus south of the Carolinas in the national col- 

 lections. 



KEY TO CERTAIN SPECIES OF SPHOEROIDES 



la. Lower sides with a line of dark bars or roundish spots a little below and 



well set off from darker ground color of upper sides and back, these bars 



or spots numbering 5 in front of the pectoral base and 7 or 8 behind it, 



totaling 12 or 13. 



2a. Dark spots in a line roundish to oval in shape and black spot at lower 



rear base of pectoral not quite reaching to middle of pectoral fin base 



and little or no darker than others in line; a black bar across caudal fin 



distally and another basally, separated by a pale bar; back variably 



light spotted and dark spotted; least distance between bases of nasal 



tubes about 5 to 7 times in the snout; postorbital length of head 1.5 to 



2 times in snout; dermal papillae often present on sides; body often 



with prickles in front of dorsal and anal fins; distal margins of dorsal 



and anal fins rounded; dermal cirri often occurring on the sides of young 



specimens Sphoeroides spengleri (Bloch) 



26. Line of dark bars vertically elongate and extending up into dark ground 

 color of .sides; black spot or bar in axil of pectoral much darker than 

 any of others in the line and usually reaching up to or above midpectoral 

 base; no blackish or pale bars across caudal fin; back usually dark 

 spotted; least distance between bases of nasal tubes about 3.5 to 5 

 times in snout; postorbital length of head 1.25 to 1% in snout; anterior 



