NO.12G0. LABROID FISHES OF JAPAN— JORDAN AND SNYDER. 601 
the lower jaw scah^ or naked. Mouth quite small, terminal, the jaws 
equal; each jaw armed with one or two close-set series of compressed, 
immovable teeth, which are truncate or rovmded at tip, sometimes a 
few small teeth behind these. Gill rakers long-; preopercle more or 
less serrate; preorbital serrate. Scales large, strongly ctenoid, the 
lateral line running parallel with the back to near the end of the 
dorsal tin, at which point it ceases. Dorsal fin continuous, Avith 12 or 
18 low stout spines; membrane of spinous dorsal, usually not deeply 
incised nor lobed, the soft part more or less elevated, its last rays 
gradually shortened; lower limb of preopercle usually more or less 
scaly; preorbital narrow, without deep notch; anal fin similar to soft 
dorsal, with "2 spines, of which the second is much the larger; soft 
rays 12 to 16; dorsal spines with a sheath of large scales, the mem- 
branes of both dorsal and anal covered high up with small scales; 
caudal fin more or less forked, the lobes rounded; lower pharyngeals 
triangular; branchiostegals 5 or 6. Species numerous in the tropical 
seas; extreme!}^ variable in form and color, the brilliant coloration 
apparently dependent on surroundings. 
{Ttwfjia^ opercle; Kevrpov^ spine.) 
(I. Body rather elongate, the depth less than half the length to base of caudal; caudal 
fin deeply forked, with filamentous tips; preoi'bital and lower jaw naked. 
b. Dorsal rays XIII, 11; anal II, 11; scales 27; a dark spot above gill opening 
violascenx, 4. 
hh. Dorsal rays XIII, 14; anal II, 14; scales 25; color largely deep blue, .nelesiis, 5. 
aa. Body rather deep, about half length in adult; caudal fin slightly concave, the 
lobes rounded; preorbital and jaws naked; dorsal rays XIII, 15; anal II, 
15; scales 25; young with a large ocellus edged before with white, on the soft 
dorsal tripunctatus, 6. 
4. POMACENTRUS VIOLASCENS Bleeker. 
PriMotis violascens Bleeker, Journ. Ind. Arch., II, 1848, p. 637; Sumbawa. 
Pomacentrus violascens Bleeker, Natuurk. Tyd. Ned. Ind., VI, p. 318; XII, p. 
222. — GuNTHER, Cat. Fish., IV, 1862, p. 20; Sumbawa, Nias. — Bleeker, Holl. 
Maatsch. Vet., 1877, p. 46; Nias, Sumbawa, Flores, Buro, Amboyna, Ceram. 
Thiscyllus xunthurus B1.ET&KER, Amboyna, III, 1853, p. 117; Nias. 
Pomacentrus tseniwrus Karoli, Prodr. Pise. As. Or., 1882, p. 27; Hirado. (No 
description; probably not of Bleeker, whose species, from Amboyna, has the 
caudal lobes dark.) 
Pomacmitrus nithbuni Jordan and Snyder, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., 1900, p. 754; 
near Yokohama. 
Head 3i in length; depth 2i; depth of caudal peduncle 6|; eye 2f 
in head; snout 4; interorbital space 3; maxillary 3; dorsal XIII, 11; 
anal II, 11; scales in lateral line 27; between lateral line and insertion 
of dorsal 3; between lateral line and insertion of anal 9. 
Eye large, somewhat oblong; interorbital space convex; its width 
equal to vertical diameter of eye. Snout short, rounded. Jaws sub- 
equal; cleft of mouth oblique; maxillary extending posteriorly to edge 
