418 REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. 



58. Cottiis aleuticus sp. iiov. 



UrdiiitJra microstoma, Lockington, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mas. 1880, .58; not of Ha'ckel. 



Ill appearance resembling ('. pliUoinps ; the head small, its width but one-fourth 

 greater than its depth, the body low an<l but little comi)resscd, the depth at shoulders 

 but little greater than the width. Caudal ])eduncle moderate, not slender, its length 

 from base of last anal ray l|to It in head; measured from last dorsal ray but little 

 more than half as long. Depth of caudal peduncle 4] to A\ in head. 



Head small, 3| to 3A in length; depth .5 to 5^. Mouth small, variable, maxillary 

 reaching vertical from front or middle of pupil, 2* to 3 in head. Vomerine patch of 

 teeth small, the palatines toothless. Preorbital as wide as eye, produced anteriorly 

 into a convex lobe which conceals all but the widened tip of the maxillary. Both 

 pairs of nostrils opening in short but evident tubes, a character not known by us to 

 exist in any other species of the genus. p]ye 4^ to 4.^ in head. Interorbital .S])ace 

 narrow, the least width of the bone slightly less than half the vertical diameter of 

 orbit, in adults 160 mm. long, much narrower in younger si^ecimens. In this respect 

 our specimens differ conspicuously from the types of C. microstomus, in which the 

 interorbital width is said to ecjual vertical diameter of eye. As in C. philonips, we 

 have but a single preopercular spine, which is straight and directed obliquely upward. 

 Preopercular margin below tbe spine evenly rounded. Subopercular spine well 

 developed. 



Lateral line complete, following outline of back to opposite last dorsal ray, where 

 it abruptly declines to middle of caudal peduncle. Body naked or with a narrow 

 band of prickles extending from upper axil of pectorals along under side of lateral 

 line. 



Dorsals more or less joined at base in all our specimens, but varying in the height 

 of the connecting membrane, which usually joins w^ell up on first ray of soft dorsal, 

 sometimes at its extreme base. The spinous dorsal is long, with 9 spines in 13 speci- 

 mens examined, 10 spiues in .5 specimens. The first two spines are very closely 

 approximated, and spring from a single wide interspinal. The first spine is easily 

 overlooked, as has been done by us (Investigations in the Columbia River Basin, 

 1894, p. 54), and possibly also by Lockington in his description of C. micros- 

 tomus. Spinous dorsal low, the soft dorsal higher, the longest rays equaling length 

 of snout and half eye, the last rays when depressed not quite reaching base of 

 caudal. Anal fin much shorter than soft dorsal, its last ray under the fourth or fifth 

 before the last ray of dorsal. Caudal truncate, slightly rounded when spread, its 

 length 1| to If in head, its rays twice forked. Pectorals reaching to or nearly to 

 front of anal. Ventrals varying in length, not quite reaching vent in any of our 

 specimens. Pectoral rays all simple. Dorsal and anal rays all simple except the 

 last, which is usually divided to the base in the dorsal, and sometimes divided in 

 the anal. 



Dorsal ix or x, 18 or 19 ; anal 13 or 14 ; pectoral 13 to 15 ; ventral i, 4 ; caudal 8 or 9 

 (forked rays); 35 to 37 ])ores in lateral line. 



Head and body light brown, mottled or spotted above, the darker markings on 

 back often arranged as six crossbars, of which two are below spinous dorsal, three 

 below soft dorsal, and one on caudal peduncle. These are usually broken up into 

 spots or reticulations, and are often obscure, sometimes wanting. Usually a light 

 bar downward and backward from eye. Rays of dorsals, pectorals, and caudal 

 crossed with series of dark blotches. Ventrals and anal light, very obscurely barred 

 with darker. 



This species was very abundant in the small stream passing through the village 

 of Iliuliuk, Unalaska, living both in the upi)er strictly fresh-water portion of the 

 stream and in the lower more or less brackish part. A specimen transferred to the 

 s.alt-water aquarium on the Albatross seemed to suffer no inconvenience from the 

 change of water and lived for several days. This is j)robably the Uranidea micros- 

 toma of Lockington, based on specimens collected near St. Paul, Kadiak, and con- 



