I 8 2 Memoir Sears Foundation for Marine Research 



Body moderately deep, strongly compressed, its depth 4.5-5.0 in SL. Head 

 3.6—4.3, its depth usually equal to its length without snout. Snout 4.5-6.0 in head, 

 extending about half of its length beyond mandible. Eye 3.0—3.5. Postorbital 1.8-2.3 

 in head. Maxillary pointed, reaching to margin of opercle, 1.2-1.6 in head. Man- 

 dible 1.4— 1.75. Cheek scarcely longer than eye, its posterior angle about 60°. 



Dorsal fin with the longest rays failing to reach tip of last ray if deflexed, its origin 

 generally equidistant between base of caudal and about middle of eye. Anal with origin 

 under, or more frequently slightly anterior to, middle of dorsal base, its base 4.0-4.8 

 in SL. Pelvic reaching scarcely halfway to anal. Inserted about equidistant between 

 origin of anal and base of pectoral. Pectoral rather variable in length, usually failing 



Figure 33. Anchoa parva, paratype, 59 mm TL, from Fox Bay, Colon, Panama, USNM 79554. Drawn by 

 Louella E. Cable. 



to reach pelvic by diameter of pupil, 1.5— 1.7 in head. Axillary scale of pectoral 

 generally reaching to beginning of distal third of fin, 2.3—3.0 in head. 



Color. In alcohol, very pale (presumably preserved originally in formalin). Silvery 

 lateral band scarcely as wide as pupil (indistinct or missing in some specimens). Back 

 with dusky punctulations, at least posterior to dorsal fin and extending onto base of upper 

 rays of caudal; larger dark dots usually present at base of anal and continued as a single 

 row onto median line of caudal peduncle. 



Size. It is apparently small, as the largest specimen seen is only 60 mm (2.4 in.)TL. 



Range and Habitat. Known from the West Indies and the Atlantic coast of Panama 

 and Venezuela. Records of A. mitchilli for the West Indies, in part at least, are refer- 

 able to this species. This fish inhabits salt and brackish water, and fresh water at least 

 to a limited extent. It was very numerous in all three flights of Gatun Locks, Canal 

 Zone, in 1935. The water in the lowermost flight was quite salty, that in the middle one 

 brackish, and that in the uppermost flight, fresh. It has been reported also as occur- 

 ring in fresh water in Venezuela. 



Synonyms and References: 



Anchovia parva Meek and Hildebrand, Field Mus. Publ., Zool., JJ (i), 1923 : 202, pi. 10, fig. 2 (orig. descr.; 

 type local. Porto Bello, Panama; type USNM 81767; also recorded from Colon); Hildebrand, Zoologica, 



