2236 Bulletin 4.7, United States National Museum. 



2565. AWAOUS TAIASICA (Lichtenstein) . 



(GtJAVINA HOYEKA; ABOMA DE RlO.) 



Head3i; depth 5i; eye small, less than interorbital width (in adult), 

 3 in snout (twice in young), and about 7 in head. D. VI-11 ; A. 11 ; scales 

 60 to 70, crowded anteriorly, about 30 before dorsal fin, 21 between second 

 dorsal and anal. Body compressed posteriorly, rather depressed anteri- 

 orly; head broader than deep. Distance from eye to mouth 3 in head, 

 the preorbital being much enlarged; mouth large, horizontal, maxillary 

 extending to below anterior part of orbit in adult male, shorter in young; 

 lower jaw included. Teeth of the upper jaw in 2 series, those in anterior 

 series much enlarged and recurved; teeth of lower jaw in a narrow baud, 

 the outer series scarcely enlarged. Inner edge of the shoulder girdle with 

 2 or 3 rather long papillae. Body covered with ctenoid scales, much 

 reduced in size anteriorly; nape closely scaled, breast scaly, head naked. 

 Dorsal fins less than depth of body, the spines scarcely filamentous, not 

 as long as the soft rays ; caudal rounded, shorter than the head ; ventrals 

 very broad and short, 1 \ to If in head, the rays very much branched. Skull 

 rounded behind, with a very short crest in its middle ; lateral crests high 

 and thin, converging into 1 opposite the insertion of suprascapula, 

 inner crests not meeting behind eye, the outer ones extending around 

 orbit. A low, blunt ridge between the posterior corners of orbit, becom- 

 ing much higher forward, continued as the ethmoid and ending abruptly 

 some distance 'in advance of orbit. Teeth in upper jaw in a few series, 

 those of outer series many times larger than the others, which are minute; 

 those of lower jaw all alike small, in a band. Olivaceous, with a series of 

 irregular, roundish blotches along middle of side, and narrow dark streaks 

 radiating from eye ; a blackish streak running across upper margin of 

 opercle and extending obliquely across base of upper pectoral ray ; belly 

 white ; dorsal and caudal more or less distin ctly barred with wavy blackish 

 lines. Length a foot or more. Extremely variable in form and coloration, 

 as is the case with most widely distributed fresh-water fishes. Fresh 

 waters of the West Indies and both coasts of Mexico, south to Brazil; com- 

 mon in Cuba, in Sinaloa, and about La Paz in Lower California, thence 

 southward to Panama, (taiasica, Brazilian name of some other goby.) 



Amore guacu, MARCGKAVE, Hist. Brasil., 166, 1648, Brazil. 



Gobius taiasica, LICHTENSTEIN, Berl. Abhandl., 273, 1822, Brazil ; not Tajasica MARCGRAVE. 



Gobius banana, CUVIER & VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat. Poiss., XH, 103, 1837, San Domingo ; 



GUNTHER, Cat, in, 59, 1861. 



Gobius martinicus, CUVIER & VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat. Poiss., XII, 105, 1837, Martinique. 

 Chonophorus bucculentus, POET, Memorias, n, 275, 1861, Cuba. 

 Ehinogobius contractors, * POEY, Memorias, n, 424, 1861, Cuba ; POEY, Enumeratio, 125, 1875 



*The following are the characters assigned to Awaous contractus (Poey): Head 4; 

 depth 5J; D. VI-11; A. 11; eye 7 in head; maxillary ceasing an eye's diameter before 

 eye. Head smaller than in A. taiasica. Greenish brown; the cheeks with brown lines; 

 body with brown points ; dorsals brownish, with brown longitudinal bands more numer- 

 ous on the second; caudal with 7 brown bands, made of lanceolate spots on the rays; 

 pectorals speckled; ventrals and anal rose color. Cuba (Poey) ; probably not different 

 from A taiasica; said to differ in the small mouth, which probably varies with age and 



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