370 Bulletin 47, United States National Museum. 



its lower edge and anal fin black, the back abruptly white and unspot- 

 ted. Length 22 inches. Puget Sound, near Seattle. One example 

 known, found swimming at the surface ; differing in some slight respects 

 from all Atlantic specimens examined, but very likely not a distinct spe- 

 cies, (avocetta, the avocet.) 



Nemichthys avocetta, JORDAN & GILBERT, Proc. U. 8. Nat. Mus., 1880,409, Harbor of Port Gam- 

 ble, Puget Sound, near Seattle. (Type, No. 27299. Coll. University of Washington.) 

 JORDAN & GILBERT, Synopsis, 367, 1883 ; JORDAN & DAVIS, I.e., 657. 



Family LI. MYRID.E. 

 (THE WORM EELS.) 



End of tail surrounded by the confluent vertical fins ; the posterior 

 nostril is in, or very near, the upper lip, and the tongue is more or less 

 fully adnate to the floor of the mouth. The species are usually of small size 

 and plain colors, more or less worm-like in form, and inhabit sandy coasts 

 in tropical seas. The genera have but few species each. They are inter- 

 mediate in character between the Opliiclitliyidce and the Murcenesooidce. The 

 osteology has not yet been carefully studied, but they will probably be 

 found to be most nearly related to the latter family, if indeed the two 

 should not be, as in Bleeker's arrangement, reunited with the Leptocepha- 

 lidce. (Murcenidce, Myrina, Giinther, Cat., vm, 49-53, 1870.) 



a. Body elongate, subterete ; pectorals present, sometimes minute; anterior nostril tubular; 



dorsal fin beginning behind head ; teeth small. 



b. Dorsal fin beginning behind vent ; no teeth on vomer ; teeth mostly uniserial ; body 

 slender, terete. AHLIA, 172. 



bb. Dorsal fin beginning before the vent ; vomer with teeth. 



c. Dorsal beginning at a point about midway between gill opening and vent ; pector- 

 als very small ; teeth subequal ; body slender, terete ; the tail much longer 

 than rest of body. . MYROPHIS, 173. 



aa. Body short, much compressed ; pectorals almost invisible ; mouth narrow ; vomerino teeth 

 none; snout obtuse, depressed; vertical fins well developed, the dorsal beginning behind 

 the gill opening. CHILORHINUS, 174. 



172. AHLIA, Jordan & Davis. 



Ahlia, JORDAN & DAVIS, Apodal Fishes, 639, 1892, (egmontis). 



This genus differs from MyropMs in the posterior insertion of the dorsal 

 and in the absence of vomerine teeth. (Named for Jonas Nicolas Ahl, 

 of Upsala, whose thesis " De Murssna et Ophichtho," " modestly offered" 

 for the consideration of President Thunberg in 1789, furnishes the begin- 

 ning of our systematic arrangement of the eels.) 



607. AHLIA EGMOMIS (Jordan). 



Head small, slender, moderately pointed; anterior nostril in a short 

 tube; posterior large, labial directly behind it; cleft of mouth rather 

 short, extending to beyond the rather large eye, which is more than half 

 length of snout; cleft of rnouth 3 in head; teeth on both jaws sub- 

 equal, pointed, slightly compressed, arranged in single series, those 

 of both jaws directed somewhat backward; the lower teeth larger and 

 more oblique than the upper; about 4 small fixed canines in front of 



