114. BLENNIID^. 753 



inhabiting the tropical seas. This group or fiimily is most nearly re- 

 lated to the UranoscopidcVj biit some of the si)ecies show Blennioid 

 traits. 

 (LejHoscojmdm Gill, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Pbila. 18G2, 503-506.) 



a. Ventral rays I, 3 : pectoral rays simple. {Bactnloscopina'.) 

 b. Pseudobranchia} none; head cuboid; dorsal commencing at the nape. 



Dactyloscopus, 400. 



400.— DACTILOSCOPUS Gill. 



(Gill, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila. 1859, 132: type Dactyloscopus tridigitafus Gill.) 



Body moderately elongate, covered with rather large, cycloid scales; 

 head cuboid, oblong and nearly flat above; eyes small; interorbital 

 space broad; mouth nearly vertical; lower jaw not dilated beneath nor 

 emarginate in front, without barbels; no intralabial filament; teeth 

 villiform, on jaws only; pseudobranchife obsolete. Dorsal commencing 

 at the nape, with 10-12 spines; ventral rays I, 3. {daxruXog, finger; 

 <Txo-o<;, short for Uranoscopus.) 



1151. D. tridi§ritatus Gill. 



Whitish; head with coarse wavy darker lines; fins immaculate. 

 Body slender, much compressed posteriorly ; opercular fringe of 15 

 separate filaments. Distance from snout to dorsal 5 in total length of 

 body. Head 5 (in total); depth 7. D. XII, 28; A. II, 32; P. 13; V. I, 

 3 ; scales 11 -f 4 + 30 = 45. West Indies, north to Key West. ( Gill.) 



(GUI, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila. 1859, 132, 18G1, 2C4, and 1862, 505; Giiuther, iii,279.) 



Family CXIV.— BLENNIID^.* 



* {The Blennies.) 



Body oblong or variously elongate, usually compressed; naked, or 

 covered with usually cycloid scales; teeth usually well developed; sub- 

 orbital ring not articulated with the preopercle; dorsal fin long, contin- 

 uous, or divided into two or three fins, the anterior portion and some- 

 times the whole fin composed of spines, which are stiff or flexible; anal 

 fin long, usually with one or two small spines; ventrals jugular, few- 

 rayed, or wanting; caudal fin present, rounded; tail dipbycercal; air- 

 bladder usually wanting; pseudobranchite present; gills 4, a slit behind 

 the fourth; vertebrae numerous. Genera about 50 ; species nearly 300. 

 As here understood, a large and varied family, chiefly of small carniv- 

 orous fishes, inhabiting rock-pools and sea bottoms near the shor 

 Some of them are found in the fresh- water lakes of Italy. Mar 



* Including families 112 Blennidw and ll'S Andirhicliadidw oi the key on » 

 and 81. 



Bull. Kat. Mus. No. IC 48 



