NO. 1792. JAPANESE LUT I AN I DM— JORDAN AND THOMPSON. 



461 



Habitat. — Known from Formosa and southern Japan. 



Description (after Jordan and Evermann). — Of a specimen from 

 Formosa. 



Head 3; depth 2.9; eye 3.2; snout 3.5; maxillary 2.25; mandible 

 1.9; interorbital 4; preorbital 6.25; D. X, 11; A. Ill, 8; scales 

 10-50-15; gill rakers x+12. 



Body rather short, deep and compressed; dorsal and ventral out- 

 lines gently arched, occipital region slightly depressed; head large; 

 mouth large, somewhat obhque, the lower jaw slightly the longer; 

 maxillary broad, slipping for its entire length under broad preorbital; 

 eye large; nostrils very small; preopercle strongly serrate at angle, 

 scarcely notched, with fine long cirri; preorbital not as broad as eye; 

 two strong canine teeth in front of each jaw, besides smaller lateral 



Fig. 5.— Peistipomoides sparus. 



canines; teeth on vomer in small V-shaped patch; no teeth on tongue. 

 Gill rakers long. 



Longest dorsal spine 2.75 in head, ray 2.75; last ray of dorsal and 

 anal produced; pectoral length 1.25 in head; ventral 1.7; caudal 

 deeply forked. 



Scales small, nearly cycloid; cheek and opercle scaled, caudal fin 

 scaled at base. No scales at base of dorsal or anal fins; bands of 

 scales at the temples separated from those behind it; scales above 

 lateral line in series parallel to it, six rows of scales on cheek. 



Color, apparently bright red, now faded to silvery; cheeks bright 

 silvery. This species is doubtless rare in Japan. We have seen no 

 examples save this one from Formosa, now returned to the Imperial 

 Fisheries School in Tokyo. 



{sparus, a related genus, which this fish resembles.) 



