110 U.S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 202 Vol. 3 



Bikini Atoll: lagoon half mile off Bikini Island, hook and line, July 20 to Aug. 10, 

 S-46-458, Schultz and crew of USS Chilton, 1 specimen, 460 mm. 



Description.- — ^Dorsal fin rays III-ii,23 or 24; anal rays ii,21 to 

 23; pectoral rays i,13; branched caudal rays 5+5; gill rakers on first 

 arch 42 or 43 (2 counts, counting all rudiments) ; scale rows 33 or 34 ; 

 teeth in upper jaw 8, lower jaw 8. 



Depth of body 2.1 to 2.3 ; length of head 2.8 or 2.9 ; both in standard 

 length. Snout 1.3 to 1.4; diameter of eye 7.0 to 7.2; least depth of 

 caudal peduncle 4.1 to 4.6; length of pectoral fin 2.2 or 2.3; length of 

 longest dorsal ray 1.8 to 2.1; length of longest anal ray 1.8 to 2.1; 

 length of middle caudal rays 1.9; interorbital width 3.6 to 3.8; all in 

 length of head. Angle of snout profile with axis of body 35 to 39 

 degrees, slightly convex. 



Preocular groove shallow, short; orbital rim not prominent; inter- 

 orbital elevated, very convex; plates behind branchial opening and 

 above pectoral axil scarcely enlarged, only one larger than body 

 scales, the rest smaller; area around mouth behind lips naked, wide 

 groove extending posteriorly from rictus without scales; about 

 6 rows of scales on cheek narrow, elongated, imbedded, scarcely 

 separated from each other by bare area and not as large as those of 

 body; body scales on sides and belly also separated from each other 

 by narrow bare strip of skin ; 6 rows of short heavy antrorse spines on 

 caudal peduncle, upper and lower rows with 1 to 5 spines per row, 

 inner four rows with 7 to 11 spines per row; scales of rest of body 

 without median enlarged tubercle; soft dorsal and anal fins high, 

 elevated anteriorly; caudal fin truncate; teeth with smaller cusps 

 scarcely developed so that teeth appear to be almost conical. 



Color in alcohol. — Ground color of head and body pale greyish yellow 

 to golden yellow, golden color more evident on middle of sides ; upper 

 lip and naked area behind lips black, black color extending from 

 rictus posteriorly in and along sides of wide groove; lower lip and 

 naked area behind it pale yellow, diffuse wide black band extending 

 from orbit across postorbital part of head, including area around gill 

 opening and pectoral base, spiny dorsal membrane brownish grey 

 with black specks or blotches; soft dorsal and anal fins with narrow 

 basal black band, broad median portion of fin pale orange or yellowish, 

 broad marginal portion with rays black, membranes pale; pectoral 

 fin similarly colored ; caudal fin black basally and on upper and lower 

 margins, median two-thirds of fin yellow, distal third black. 



Genus PSEUDOBALISTES Bleeker 



Pseudobalistes Bleeker, Nederl. Tijdschr. Dierk., vol. 3, p. 11, 1866 (type species, 

 Balistes flavimarginatus Riippell) . 



