844 Bulletin 47, United States National Museum. 



black behind. Mouth, gill cavity, and peritoneum jet black. Fins all 

 blackish. One specimen 5 inches long, from station 3075, in 859 fathoms. 

 (Gilbert.) (crista, crest; -ceps, head.) 



Melampha'cs cristiceps, GILBERT, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., 1890 (1891), 60, Albatross station 3075, 

 coast of Oregon and "Washington, in 859 fathoms. 



380. BERYX, Cuvier. 



(ALFONSINES.) 



Beryx, CUVIER, Regne Anim., Ed. 2, vol. n, 151, 1829, 'decadactylm}. 



Body deep, compressed, covered with rather large, ctenoid scales, which 

 are regularly arranged. Abdomen trenchant, but without enlarged 

 scutes. Head large, with thin bones and high ridges with deep mucifer- 

 ous cavities. Snout short, the mouth oblique, the chin prominent ; eye 

 large; both jaws, vomer, and palatines with villiform teeth. Opercles 

 serrated, the opercle usually with spine ; preopercle unarmed. Caudal 

 forked ; anal spines 4, the soft rays 26 to 30; dorsal continuous, with 4 to 

 6 spines ; ventrals with about 10 soft rays. Air bladder simple. Pyloric 

 cffica numerous. Color red. Deep-sea fishes, beautifully colored. (3'epvZ, 

 Beryx, a Greek name of some fish, taken by Gesner from Varinus.) 



a. Scales in lateral line 64 or 65; D. IV, 16 to 19. DECADACTYLUS, 1227. 



aa. Scales in lateral line 71 to 76; D. IV, 13 to 15. SPLBNDENS, 1228. 



1227. BERTX DECADACTYLUS, Cuvier & Valenciennes. 

 (ALFONSIN A CASTA LAKGA.) 



Head 2 ; depth 2i. D. IV, 16-19 ; A. IV, 28-29; V. 1, 10 ; P. 14. Body 

 oblong, considerably compressed, its height greatest at the origin of the 

 dorsal ; maxillary bone reaches almost to middle of orbit. Eye very large, 

 about 2i times in head, its upper limb impinging upon upper profile of 

 head ; distance of insertion of pectoral from snout equal to length of 

 base of anal ; insertion of anal nearly in vertical from tenth to twelfth 

 dorsal ray, its middle slightly behind last ray of dorsal; ventral inserted 

 under axil of pectoral. Scales sharply ctenoid, with a strong middle 

 keel; the number in the lateral line 64 or 65. Red, with bright streaks. 

 Deep seas, recorded from Portugal, Madeira, Japan, and Cuba. Poey 

 mentions it as " Pez hermoso y rarisimo." (6'ena. ten; ddnTv^os, finger.) 

 (Eu.) 



Beryx decadactylus, CUVIER & VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat. Poiss., in, 222, 1829, Madeira or Por- 

 tugal ; POEY, Synopsis, 297; GOODE & BEAN, Oceanic Ichth., 175, 1895. 



1228. BERYX SPLENDENS, Lowe. 

 (ALFONSIN A CASTA CUMPRIDA.) 



Body compressed, elongate, its height equal to the length of the head, 

 and contained 3 times in the total. Pectoral and dorsal fins, which are 

 equal in length, of the entire length of the fish ; the ventral . Dorsal 

 and anal fins are higher than in B. flecadactylus] insertion of the anal is 



