468 BEVISIOX OF HETEROMI—aOODE AND BEAN. vol. xvii. 



tallied 3i times in tlie distance of tlie vent from the tip of the snout, or 

 about four-fifths the length of the head, wliicli is contained Oi times 

 in the total. The snout is compressed, pointed, snake-like, produced 

 beyond the mouth a distance less than the diameter of the eye, and 

 contained three times in the length of the head. The mouth is small; 

 its cleft scarcely reaches to the anterior nostril. Each jaw is armed with 

 a series of minute teet hand a similar series on vomer and palate. The eye 

 is moderate in size, placed not far from the dorsal profile, distant about 

 2^ diameters from the end of the snout, more than three times from 

 the end of the opercle. Gill opening wide. The body and head cov- 

 ered by minute, imbricated scales. A line of mucous pores extends 

 from the anterior end of the lateral line forward under the eye and 

 thence to the end of the maxilla. 



The dorsal spines are short, distant from one another, the first being 

 over the end of the opercle, the fifth slightly behind the vertical through 

 the origin of the j)ectoral, the twelfth slightly in advance of the origin 

 of the pectoral, the fifteenth almost over the origin of the anal, and the 

 last (twenty-eighth) a little behind the middle of the length of the tail. 

 In another individual the fourth spine is immediately over the pecto- 

 ral insertion, the thirteenth over the ventral origin, and the whole num- 

 ber of spines is 30, but there is behind the thirtieth a minute spine 

 almost united by membrane. The anal begins immediately behind the 

 vent, and after the fifth spine the height of the fin remains uniform 

 until the length of the rays gradually decreases near the tip of the tail. 

 The pectoral is inserted at a distance from the gill opening nearly 

 twice its own lengtli. The ventrals have a broad base, are not conflu- 

 ent and reach to the vent or slightly beyond it. 



D. XXVIII-XXXI ; A. XLir-LIII. 



The types are ISTo. 35601, U.S.jST.M., and were obtained by the 

 steamer Albatross at station 2216, latitude 39° 47' I^., longitude 70° 30' 

 30" W., in a depth of 963 fathoms. They measure 16i and 16 inches, 

 respectively. Another specimen, 17 inches long, was obtained by the 

 same steamer at station 2553, latitude 39° 48' N., longitude 70° 36' W., 

 in a depth of 551 fathoms. 



Closely allied to 71/. rostrata is Xotacanthus challenfjeri (Vaillant) 

 {Notacanthus rissoanus, Giinther, Challenger Keport, xxii, 250, pi. lxi, 

 Fig. B: not Filippi and Verany), renamed by Yaillant in the report of 

 the TravaUleur and Talisman, page 387. This is distinguished by the 

 larger inimber of its dorsal rays, the less anterior position of the ori- 

 gin of the dorsal, the lesser height of the body in comparison with the 

 distance from the vent to the snout, comparatively longer snout and 

 larger eye, and the absence of tlie suborbital row of mucous pores. 



Dr. Giinther states that although the species is a matter of some cer- 

 tainty, the diagnosis of N. rissoanus "applies sufficiently well to 

 his specimen;" further remarking that "since a number of Mediterra- 

 nean fishes are identical with Jaxianese, and at least one other species 



