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U.S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 202 



Vol. 3 



snout and lips black; teeth white with brownish edge; cheeks and area 

 around gill opening and pectoral fin plain brown but usually with 

 numerous close set tiny reddish brown dots (area around opercle not 

 darker than head or body in any of these specimens) ; pelvic membrane 

 blackish, one or two of paratypes with narrow submarginal blue line, 

 none with black pigment broken up into spots; dorsal fin spine light 

 brownish, lateral spines white, blackish at base; spiny dorsal membrane 



Table 129. — Counts recorded for the three subspecies of Pervagor melanocephalus 



clouded brownish, its edge black; soft dorsal and anal plain hyaline 

 or more usually with 5 to 9 lengthwise rows of small dots on membranes 

 forming fine lines; pectoral fin pale; caudal fin with rays yellowish on 

 basal half, membranes whitish, double lines forming cross band just 

 basal to middle of fin, then a light area of about the same width, 

 a broad blackish submarginal band present in distal half of caudal fin 

 in all specimens, distal margin pale with two irregular broken fine 

 lines in some specimens. 



Color in life. — Of largest paratype 82 mm. ground color of head 

 and body brown; eye yellow; dorsal and anal fins pale yellow, trans- 

 lucent; caudal fin with yellow margin enclosing black lines arranged 

 obliquely; submarginal black band, basal two-thirds orange. 



Color of post-larvae. — Six lots of post larvae were collected, three at 

 surface hght at night, varying in size from 39.3 to 42.2 mm. Lips 

 pale, top of snout dark greyish brown, cheeks, breast, and lower 

 anterior sides silvery, no dark spot around branchial cleft; rim of 

 dorsal spine groove dark brown; 3 to 5 faint dark reddish brown saddles 

 crossing back and extending downward to about middle of sides, first 

 just behind dorsal spine extending to rim of orbit, second about mid- 

 way between insertion of dorsal spine and origin of soft dorsal, third 

 under the anterior third of soft dorsal, fourth under the posterior third 

 of soft dorsal and fifth (if present) on caudal peduncle, third and fourth 

 most distinct and join similarly placed narrower bands across ventral 

 surface, interspaces light yellowish brown; 4 or 5 faint narrow length- 

 wise dark brown lines extending from base of caudal fin anteriorly to 

 origin of soft dorsal where they fade; pectoral, dorsal, and anal fins 

 pale; caudal pale hyaline except in two specimens which have 2 



