466 PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM. vol. 39. 



broad and flat, straight in profile; snout rounded, blunt, arched 

 somewhat from tip to above nostrils; preorbitals very narrow pos- 

 teriorly under center of very large eye, broader anteriorly, its margin 

 sinuate; lower jaw longer than upper; maxillary ending under mid- 

 dle of eye, its distal breadth J diameter of eye, mouth cleft somewhat 

 oblique. Teeth in the inner band in both jaws minute, in the outer 

 row slightly enlarged; teeth larger and more widely set in upper jaw; 

 a moderate canine on either side at tip of premaxiUaries ; villiform 

 teeth on vomer, in a /N -shaped band ; teeth on palatines in narrow 

 bands; tongue without teeth. Gill -rakers equal to length of gill 

 filaments, with several rudiments in each limb anteriorly. Preoper- 

 cular margins finely serrated, angle rounded, vertical limb only 

 slightly oblique. Opercle ending in two broad, flat, indistinct pro- 

 jections. 



Dorsal spines moderately stout, second and third longest, 2 in head, 

 remainder rapidly decreasing in height to last, which is 3 in second, 

 leaving dorsal fin deeply notched ; dorsal rays about equal, 3 in head, 

 save last which is slightly elongate, 2| in head; anal similar to soft 

 dorsal, its last ray produced, its first soft rays when depressed reach- 

 ing little beyond base of last ray; anal spines slender and regularly 

 graduated, third about 4 in head. Caudal very deeply forked, upper 

 lobe longer, almost filamentous, its length 4 times that of middle rays, 

 or 1| in head. Pectorals falciform, reaching almost to anal, Ig^in 

 head. 



Scales moderate in size; rows on body aU parallel to lateral line. 

 Opercle with 8 or 9 rows of scales ; subopercle 2 ; interopercle 4 ; on 

 cheek 7 ; maxillary scaled on exposed surface. Temporal region with 

 graduated band of scales, four rows of five each. Remainder of head 

 naked save for few imbedded scales on lower jaw. Dorsals, ventrals, 

 and anal naked; a few scales on base of pectoral; caudal scaled on 

 membranes nearly to tip. 



The young have the caudal lobes nearly equal, but later the upper 

 lobe becomes much the longer. 



Color in life brilliant rose red, sides from level of eye abruptly 

 silver, with rosy shades; snout, jaws, eye, and inside of mouth red; 

 fins all rose-color, dorsal and caudal bright; ventrals and anal pale, 

 former washed with red on center; axil pink; pectoral pale rosy. 

 Color in alcohol uniform pale yellowish, tips of caudal somewhat 

 dark. 



This species attains a length of 2 or 3 feet. 



From comparison of specimens we can find no difference whatever 

 between Etelis oculatus Cuvier and Valenciennes, and Etelis evurus 

 Jordan and Evermann. The upper caudal lobe is the same in the 

 two, as is the size of the scales and of the eye. Careful measurements 

 in hundredths of body length show no differences in any detail more 



