494 BULLETIN 189, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



rim; dorsal with a broadly convex margin, the longest rays only a 

 little longer than snout, its origin about an eye's diameter nearer 

 vertical from tip of opercular spine than base of caudal, distance from 

 snout to dorsal 1.6 in length; distance from origin of dorsal to base of 

 caudal 2.75 in length; caudal moderately convex, about as long as 

 postorbital part of head ; anal similar to dorsal, though a little smaller, 

 its origin under third ray of dorsal, and rather less than half as far 

 from vent as from base of caudal, its base 1.5 in head; ventral disk 

 rather large, not quite so long as head, 3.9 in length; pectoral short and 

 broad, the lower rays longer than the upper ones and little shorter than 

 the middle ones, lower three-fourths of margin nearly straight, 2.6 in 

 head, preceded by a dermal flap, with a free margin attached above 

 to base of seventh ray, also with a broad flap behind its base, attached 

 below to ventral disk. 



Color brownish above to olivaceous below; back with irregular, 

 more or less broken cross bars; a pale line between and under eyes; 

 an indefinite dark circle just below dorsal fin. 



The description is based on the only specimen in the Peruvian 

 collections in the U. S. National Museum. It was taken in Inde- 

 pendencia Bay by W. L. Schmitt, and is 62 mm. (52 mm. to base of 

 caudal) long. 



Range. — Coasts of Peru and Chile. 



Family BATRACHOIDIDAE: Toadfishes 



Head, and usually anterior part of body, depressed; caudal portion 

 compressed; head large; teeth usually strong; premaxillary protractile; 

 gills three, a slit behind the last one; gill openings restricted to the 

 sides, the membranes being broadly connected with the isthmus; 

 branchiostegals usually six; suborbital without bony stay; scales 

 small or wanting ; first dorsal with two to four low, stiff spines ; second 

 dorsal long and low; ventral rather large, jugular, with one spine and 

 two or three soft rays; pectoral broad at base. 



Two genera are known from Peru. 



KEY TO THE GENERA 



o. Anterior part of body, at least, with 4 rows (lateral lines) of pores; vomer with 

 a pair of canines on each side; opercular and dorsal spines all solid. 



Aphos (p. 494) 



aa. Lateral line single; vomer with a series of teeth, but no canines; opercular and 



dorsal spines hollow Thalassophryne (p. 497) 



Genus APHOS Hubbs and Schultz, 1939 



Body elongate; head depressed; lower jaw projecting; opercle with 

 a large solid spine; subopercle without a spine; vomer with a pair of 

 canines on each side; several rows of pores on head and body; no 



