SOUTH AMERICAN NEMATOGNATHI. 57 



toothed in front, roughened behind; distance of adipose 

 fin from the dorsal Sh in the length; the adipose fin 

 much longer than high; as long as the dorsal fin. 



Caudal fin 5 in the length. 



Anal scarcely longer than high. ■« 



Ventrals reaching almost to the anal, 2J in the head. 



Pectoral spine 1| in head, its outer edge granular 

 toothed, the inner with very fine teeth. 



No axillary pore; no vertical series of pores. 



Head brownish with purple reflections, the body 

 metallic blue above with greenish reflections, silvery 

 below, the sides and region about the ventrals thickly' 

 covered with brown dots; fins all dusky. 



Head 3^; depth 4f ; D. I, 7; A. 18. 



A single specimen .52 m. Panama. One of the 

 types. 



29. Tachisurus mesops. 



Bcujrus mesops^ Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. xiv 456, 1839, (Gniaua.) 

 Arius mesops Gitnther, Cat. Fish. Brit. Mus. v, 145, 1864 (copied). 

 Galeichthys mesops Jordan, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus. 1886, 559 (name 



only). 

 Tachisurus mesops Eigenni. & Eigenm. Proc. Cal. Acad. •2d. Ser. vol. 



i, 1888, 141 (name only). 

 Habitat: Guiana. 



30. Tachisurus proops 



Bagrus proopjs Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. xiv„ 457, 1839 (Antilles; 



Guiana; Surinam; Porto Rico); Kuer, SB. Ak. Wien, xxvi, 



1857, 386 (loc?) 

 Arius proops Gunther, Cat. Fish. Brit. Mus. v, 148, 1864 (copied). 

 Netuma proops Bleeker, Ichth. Arch. Ind. Prod, i, 67; Bleeker, 



Silures de Suriname, 62, pi. vii, i>l. xii, fig. 2, 1864 (Surinam). 

 Galeichthys proops Jordan, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus. 1886, 559 (name 



only). 

 Tachisurus proops Eigenm. & Eigenm. Proc. Cal. Acad. 2d. Ser. 



vol. 1, 1888, 141 (Pernambuco). 

 Habitat: Northern coast of South America to Pernambuco. 



Slender and elongate, broader than deep. Head de- 

 pressed, its width 1^ in its length, its depth 2, width at 

 mouth 2; anterior portion of the head flat above; top of 

 the head, humeral process, and dorsal plate, coarsely 



