458 Bulletin 47, United States National Museum. 



the vent and terminating a little behind the dorsal, its height nearly the 

 same as that of the dorsal; caudal moderately long, 7 in body, slightly 

 emarginate ; pectoral small; ventrals very short. Color reddish brown ; 

 head a beautiful azure-blue; fins sepia; iris black; pupil azure-blue. 

 Scales very simple in form; those of the body rounded in outline and 

 measure from 1.5. to 1.6 mm. in diameter. Five pyloric cceca, moderately 

 elongated. No trace of a swim bladder. Sixteen specimens of this spe- 

 cies were obtained by the French expedition from the coast of Morocco 

 to Soudan, from the Bane d'Arguin, and from the Canaries, at depths 

 varying from 433 to 1,058 fathoms. A specimen 8 inches in length was 

 obtained by the Albatross at station 2751, latitude 16 57' N., longitude 

 63 12' W., in 68 fathoms. (>a/cp6f, long; Ttrepov, fin.) 

 Alepocephalus macropterus, VAILLANT, Exp. Sci. Travailleur et Talisman, Poissons, 150, pi. xi, 



figs. 2a, 2f>, 2c, 1888, Coast of Morocco, Soudan, and Canaries. 

 Conocara macroptera, GOODE & BEAN, Oceanic Ichthyology, 39, fig. 43, 1895. 



229. PLATYTROCTES, Giinther. 



Plalytroctes, GUNTHER, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., n, 1878, 249, (apus). 



Body rather abbreviated, much compressed, and covered with small, 

 keeled scales. Mouth of moderate width ; the maxillary, premaxillary 

 and mandible each armed with a single series of small teeth; palate 

 smooth. Eye rather large. Dorsal and anal fins opposite each other 

 on tail, moderately long; adipose fin none; caudal forked; pectorals 

 small; ventrals none. Humeral arch terminating in middle of chest in a 

 long, projecting, acute spine. Gill opening wide; six branchiostegals ; 

 gills very narrow ; pseudobranchise present ; gill rakers lanceolate. 

 Pyloric appendages rudimentary. Deep sea. (?r/lari>r, flat ; TP&KTJJC, a 

 gnawer.) 



763. PLATYTROCTES APUS, Glinther. 



Head 3; depth 2; eye 3. D. 18; A. 17; P. 20 ; scales 20. Body much 

 compressed and deep, its greatest depth at about the middle of its length. 

 Head compressed, moderate, logitudinally concave above, the concavity 

 bordered on each side by a perforated muciferous canal, and broadest 

 behind, tapering to a point between the nostrils. Bones of head rather 

 thin, but less so than in Eathytroctes. Eye large, equal to snout, and situ- 

 ated close to upper profile. Infraorbital ring incomplete. Mouth rather 

 small, the lower jaw projecting; maxillary broad, short, extending to 

 vertical from margin of orbit. Dentition very feeble; teeth uniserial, 

 uniformly minute, occupying the whole extent of intermaxillary and 

 maxillary, but confined to the front part of mandible ; only a few rudi- 

 mentary teeth are visible on the side of mandible ; vomer with a minute 

 tooth on each side ; palatines toothless. Branchiostegals extremely slen- 

 der, curved. Gills 4, the inner one very short ; gill laminae short, especi- 

 ally on the convex portion of the arches ; gill rakers long, lanceolate, 

 closely set, 20 -f- 10 on the outer branchial arch. Vent much nearer root 

 of caudal than to gill opening ; dorsal fin commencing immediately above 

 it, the anal behind; these fins are very similar in shape-and of moderate 

 height ; caudal peduncle more than half as deep as long, its depth being 



