148 PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM. vol. xxvii. 



of the rays reat-h past the tips of the second and third; tips of last rays 

 reach base of caudal; tips of the longest reach half the diameter of the 

 eye past base of caudal. Anal spines graduated in length, the lirst 

 eipial to the diameter of the eye, the third twice as long. Longest 

 anal ra}^ li in head, and reaching- to base of caudal. CViudal rounded. 



Color: Under part of head, base of pectoral, and small area behind 

 pectoral white; sides of head silvery; lower part of ))ody light, proba- 

 bly silvery; back a uniform light brown becoming lighter l)elow and 

 shading to the light lower parts; top of head and snout marbled with 

 vermiculated light streaks; a broad light ]>and across nape, bordered 

 with white at ends of parietal ridges and in front of tirst dorsal spine; 

 membrane of spinous dorsal white, mottled with darker; a small black 

 spot on meml)rane })ehind first spine; an oblong jet-black spot on mid- 

 dle of spines from ninth to twelfth spine entireh^ surrounded with pure 

 opaque white; soft dorsal crossed by irregular brown and white streaks; 

 pectoral jet black, its upper and lower ray light; detached pectoral 

 ra}^ white; pectoral soiled white on inner surface; ventrals white, 

 slightly dusky toward ends of ra3's; anal white with a black band in 

 sharp contrast ])ecomino- wider behind and including within its borders 

 some large spots of the white ground color; caudal crossed b}- 6 or 7 

 narrow irregular wavy brown bands, with white intervals of equal 

 width. Peritoneum white. 



This species diti'ers irovo-Ajyistus venenaiis in having the scales smaller, 

 maxillary shorter, eye smaller, interorbital narrower, dorsal spines 

 higher, head rougher, preorl)ital spine longer, and the color different, 

 especiall}' the pattern on caudal. 



A single specimen, the type, collected at Tokyo liy Professor Otaki, 

 is 15 cm. in length, and is numbered 7303, ichthyological collections, 

 Leland Stanford Junior University Museum. 



{evolcms^ flying away.) 



40. APISTUS VENENANS Jordan and Starks, new species. 



Ajnstus alatus Schlegel, Fauna Japon. Poiss., 1843, p. 41), j)l. xxii, lig. 2; Nag- 

 asaki (not of Cuvier and Valenciennes, whose types came from Pondi- 

 cherry=Ajnstus carinatus Bloch and Schneider). — Steindachner and 

 DoDERLEiN, Fische Japans, IV, 1884, p. 200; Kagoshima, Knchi. 



Head 3f in length without caudal; depth 3i. Dorsal XV, 1>; anal 

 III, 8. Scales 60, counting series al)ove lateral line running downward 

 and forward. Eye 4 in head; maxillary 2i; interorbital U. 



Lower jaw projecting and iitting into a rostral notch. Posterior 

 margin of eye midway between tip of snout and end of opercular flap. 

 Maxillary reaching just past front of pupil. Teeth in very narrow 

 bands; narrower on palatines and vomer than on jaws; the bands on 

 premaxillaries narrower and pointed in front, and separated from each 

 other by a wide toothless area. Interorbital narrow and concave and 



