330 FISHES OF NORTH CAROLINA. 



continuous, spines 9; anal similar to soft dorsal, with 3 spines; caudal slightly 

 rounded; pectorals and ventrals small, the latter attached under base of former. 

 One species certainly and another possibly are known from the North Carolina 

 coast; these may be thus distinguished: 



i. Depth of body .25 length; a black spot on opercle; a dark band extending from snout 

 through eye to base of caudal, with a narrower band below; spinous dorsal plain or with 



small black spot between fifth and seventh spines bivittatus. 



ii. Depth of body rather more than .25 length; no black spot on opercle; a dark band extending 

 from snout through eye to body, and thence nearly to tip of caudal, without another band 

 below; a prominent black spot on spinous dorsal between fifth and seventh spines. 



miculipinna. 



(Iridio, from iris, the rainbow.) 



284. IRIDIO BIVITTATUS (Bloch). 

 Slippery Dick. 



Labrus bivittatus Bloch, Ichthyologie, pi. 284, fig. 1, 1792; Martinique 



Chwrojulis grandisquamis Gill, Proceedings Academy Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, 1863, 206; Beaufort. 



Gill, Catalogue of Fishes of East Coast of North America, 1873, 23; North Carolina. Yarrow, 1877, 



207; Beaufort. 

 Pusa grandis-iuamis, Jordan & Gilbert, 1879, 374; Beaufort. 

 Plaiyglossus biviitatiis, Jordan, 1886, 28; Beaufort. 

 Iridio bivittatus, Jordan & Evermann, 1898, 1695. pi. ccxxxix, figs. 600, 601; north to Charleston and Beaufort, 



N. C. 



^-O^i^ 





Fig. 148. Slippery Dick. Iridio bivittatus. 



Diagnosis. — Form slender, the depth .25 total length; head small, its length slightly 

 greater than body depth; maxillary extending half-way from end of snout to pupil; snout .3 

 length of head; eye small, .16 to .20 length of head; scales in lateral series 27 or 28, in transverse 

 series 2 + 8 or 9; dorsal rays ix,ll; anal rays iii,ll or 12; caudal fin very slightly convex poste- 

 riorly; pectorals and ventrals short. Color: pale greenish above, purplish on sides; a dark brown 

 lateral stripe from snout, through eye, to base of caudal fin and a similar fainter band from pec- 

 toral base backward, these two becoming fainter with age and sometimes fading completely; 

 many of the body scales with a dark blue spot; head variously marked with bands or stripes of 

 red, green, blue, and violet; a daric spot on opercle; dorsal and anal fins marked, from base 

 outward, with blue, red, yellow, red, and pale; caudal red, with oblique yellow and blue lines; 

 pectorals plain; ventrals red; in young a small jet-black spot on back at base of last dorsal ray. 

 (bivittatus, two-banded.) 



The range of this abundant species extends from Brazil to North Carolina. 

 Its length is only 6 inches, but it is well known on the shores of Florida and the 

 West Indies, and is caught often by youthful anglers. A specimen 6 inches long 



