NO. 1544. JAPANESE LIZARD-FISHES— JORDAN AND IIERRE. 515 



Habitat. — Warm parts of Atlantic and Pacific, on nearly all coasts. 



Head 3.5 in length; depth 5; head broad, its width a little less 

 than half its length; depth of head 1.6 in its length; snout eciiials 

 interorbital space, 1.5 in eye; eye 3 in maxillary; maxillar}^ 1.85 in 

 head; pectoral 2.25 in head; ventral 1; base of anal 3.67 in body; 

 length of depressed dorsal 3.75; D. 13; A. 16; P. 12; V. S; scales 

 4-55-5. 



Body elongate, compressed, deepest just back of head, tapering 

 gradually backward, with a long tail; head large, compressed later- 

 ally, deep, the snout blunt and very short; eye small, high, well for- 

 ward, the adipose eyelid rudimentary; mouth large, oblique; mandi- 

 ble large, slightly projecting, the profile forming a convex curve to 

 below pectoral; lips thin, teeth in upper jaw exposed; teeth in jaws 

 more or less unequal, in double series; no vomerine teeth; palatines 

 with a single series; tongue free in front, with a triangular patch of 

 depressible teeth and with a single median series extending backward 

 over the basibranchials; nostrils close together, the anterior with a 

 ciliated flap; interorbital space deeply concave; gill openings larg'e, 

 membranes tree from isthnms; no gill-rakers, the inner surface of the 

 branchial arches covered with tooth-like asperities; gill filaments 

 short; no pseudobranchiaj; peritoneum silvery. 



Scales large, cycloid, 6 rows on cheek; also sevc^ral on edge of oper- 

 cle and preopercle; occiput scaly, rest of head bare, with minute 

 rugosities; a broad scaly flap between ventrals; a scaly flap at outer 

 axil of ventral; lateral line slightly decurved at first and then straight 

 to base of caudal. 



Origin of dorsal nearer tip of snout than origin o± adipose fin by 

 width of interorbital space; origin of anal behind tip of depressed 

 dorsal; anal base long, longer than that of dorsal; caudal deeply 

 forked; pectoral small, not reaching origin of dorsal; ventrals long, 

 reaching beyond base of dorsal, inserted a little before tips of pec- 

 torals. 



Color in alcohol, pale ^^ellow with irregular longitudinal gray stripes 

 (bluish in life), edged with brownish; silvery yellow below; an 

 oblique black scapular spot; top of head and anterior portion of back 

 mottled with irregular dark streaks and blotches. Fins uniform light 

 yellow, the caudal tipped with blackish. 



This fish is not uncommon in the waters of southern Japan. We 

 have examined five specimens from Nagasaki, two from Tokyo, and 

 one from Wakanoura. It is widelj^ distributed through the warmer 

 parts of both oceans. 



A comparison of our Japanese specimens, with others from the 

 Hawaiian Islands, Jamaica, and Brazil, reveals no specific differences. 



(/uvcoi/^j nearsighted). 



