NEW FISHES 229 



interorbital two and one half ; maxillary one and two thirds ; mandible 

 one and one half ; D. 3 ; A. 3 ; C. 9 ; P. 18. 



Head large and cuboidal, broad and flat above with vertical sides, 

 terminated squarely anteriorly by the vertically placed mandible ; mouth 

 large, the cleft exceeding one half the head in length. Upper jaw 

 margined by the premaxillary, which is armed with a single series of 

 irregular teeth somewhat smaller than the mandibular teeth ; length 

 of the maxillary one and two thirds the length of head. Mandible 

 toothed its whole length with a single series of large, irregular, sharp, 

 canine teeth which are slightly compressed at their bases, length of 

 longest teeth about equaling diameter of pupil ; mandible with a 

 prominent projection at its posterior end. Eye comparatively large, 

 diameter contained three times in interorbital width. Head armed 

 above by a pair of short, stout, horn-shaped spines situated above and 

 behind the eye ; branchiostegal rays five. 



Body short, more or less compressed and tapering slightly to the 

 thick peduncle ; dorsal fin short, consisting of three rays, situated a 

 little in advance of base of caudal fin, rays filamentous at tip, reaching 

 past base of caudal, length one and two thirds in head. Anal fin 

 similar to dorsal in shape and composed of same number of rays, 

 first ray situated slightly behind last dorsal ray, somewhat longer 

 than dorsal, longest rays reaching past middle of caudal fin. Caudal 

 long with filamentous rays, truncate or slightly rounded. Pectorals 

 short, turned forward, rounded, contained three times in length of 

 head. 



The specimen was taken from the stomach of a green-turtle, and 

 the skin is all gone from the body. The flesh is whitish, the exposed 

 bones brownish and the iris bluish-silvery. There is no indication of 

 a spinous dorsal, not even of the basal elements of one. 



MEASUREMENTS OF THE TYPE OF Alhctor chelom<Z. 



Proc. Wash. Acad. Sci., January, 1904. 



