FISHES OF THE PHOENIX AXD SMIOAN ISLANDS S3 



standard length ; eye 3 in snout ; preorbital 1.8 in eye ; postorbital part 

 of head 1^/4 in snout ; fleshy interorbital 1.8 in maxillaries and 2.7 in 

 snout ; pectoral 1.1 in postorbital part of head ; pelvics inserted a trifle 

 in front of origin of dorsal and i/4 to Va length of pectoral fin behind that 

 fin ; origin of anal about under origin of soft dorsal ; color in alcohol black- 

 ish above silvery below, black extending down to include lateral line, then 

 abruptly paler; both dorsals and caudal flu plain dusky; pelvics pale; 

 anal pale but rays a little pigmented ; inner side of base of pectoral black- 

 ish, fin pale dusky basally, and fading into hyaline distally ; tip of chin 

 with a pointed projecting fleshy tip; scales 16 -f 134 + 16; about GO 

 scales between origins of dorsal fins; dorsal rays V — 10; anal 10. (In 

 life this specimen had a lemon-yellow lateral stripe in middle of distanv-^e 

 below lateral line above lateral line iridescent yellow, with a black band 

 along middle of back.) Sphyraena helleri Jenkins 



Genus SPHYRAENA Rose 



Sphyraena Rose, Petri Artedi Angermannia — Sueci synonymia nominum 

 piscium . . ., ed. 2, p. 112, 1793. (Type, Esox spliyraena Linnaeus.) 



SPHYRAENA SNODGRASSI Jenkins 



Sphyraena Siiodgrassi Jenkins, Bull. U. S. Fish Comm., vol. 19 (1899), p. 388, 

 fig. 2, 1901. 



That my two specimens are the same as S. snodgmssi seems certain ; 

 careful comparison is needed to prove that this species is the same as 

 the one in the Atlantic, as indicated by Weber and de Beaufort and 

 by Fowler. To aid in such a comparison, I have given a description in 

 the preceding key. 



115200, off Canton Island, April 25, 1939, Capt. J. N. Lewis, U.S.N.. 1 specimen. 

 115199, off Rose Atoll, June 13, 1939, Lt. T. D. Shriver, U.S.N., 1 specimen. 

 52454, Apia, Samoa, Jordan and Kellog, 1 specimen. 



SPHYRAENA OBTUSATA Cuvier 



Sphyraena ohtusafa Ctjvieik, in Cuvier and Valenciennes, Histoire Naturelle des 

 Poissons, vol. 3, p. 350, 1829. 



52479, Apia, Samoa, Jordan and Kellog, 1 specimen. 



SPHYRAENA HELLERI Jenkins 



Sphyraena helleri Jenkins, Bull. U. S. Fish. Comm. vol. 19 (1899), p. 387. fig 1, 

 1901. 



115198, off Rose Atoll, June 19, 1939, Lt. T. D. Shriver, U.S.N., 1 specimen. 



Family POLYNEMIDAE 



KEY TO THE SPECIES OF POLYNEMIDAE FROM THE PHOENIX AND SAMOAN 



ISLANDS 



la. Six free pectoral filaments; scales about 7+G8-fl2; dorsal VIII-I, 13; anal 

 II, 11 ; gill rakers about 12+l-fl6; pectoral 6+14. 



Polydactylus sexfilis (Valenciennes) 

 16. Five free pectoral filaments; scales about or 7+GO to 05+12; dorsal VIII- 

 I, 13; anal II, 11; gill rakers 11 + 1+15; pectoral 5+15. 



Polydactylus plebeius (Bonnaterre) 



