Occasional Papers cf the Museum of Zoology 3 



The body is fusiform, somewhat compressed and elongate. 

 The greatest depth through a point just in front of the dorsal 

 comprises in the type 23% of the total length; in other adult 

 specimens about 23-27%. The width is about 55% of the 

 depth; in other specimens 50-55%. The anterior dorsal profile 

 of the body usually rises gradually from the occiput to the 

 insertion of the dorsal, but it is sometimes somewhat steeper 

 over its anterior half, particularly in the largest specimens. Be- 

 hind the dorsal the line continues in a very faint curve to the 

 caudal peduncle. The ventral profile is rather strongly and 

 uniformly curved from the tip of the snout to the caudal pe- 

 duncle. The head, which is relatively short and deep, is con- 

 tained 4.4 [(3.8) 4.1—4.4 (4.6)]- times in the total length. 

 In side view it is broadly triangular. Its dorsal profile is us- 

 ually more or less faintly convex and forms a smooth arc 

 continuous with that of the first half of the predorsal body 

 contour. The premaxillaries are usually more or less pig- 

 mented and are directed forward, ordinarily making an angle 

 of 45°-6o° with the horizontal axis of the head. The snout, 

 seen from the side, is broad and rounded. The maxillary is non- 

 pigmented and extends beyond the anterior edge of the pupil but 

 seldom to its center. The eye is moderate in size, contained 4.6 

 [(3.8) 4.2 — 4.5 (5.2)] times in the head-length. The mandible 

 is well developed and is usually longer than the upper jaw, 

 though sometimes shorter. The scales in the lateral line num- 

 ber 75 [(71) 74 — 85 (96)]. The gill-rakers on the first 

 branchial arch number 14+25 [(11) 13 — 15 (17) + (20) 22 

 — 28 (30) = (33) 36 — 43 (46)]. The dorsal edge of the pec- 

 toral is usually nearly straight. The paired fins are relatively 



^These and succeeding figures in brackets are based on an examination 

 of 289 paratypes ranging in length from 200 to 386 mm. ; the usual as 

 well as the extreme range in variation is given, the latter in parentheses. 



