972 Bulletin 47, United States National Museum. 



444. ICOSTEUS, Lookington. 



Icosteus, LOCKINGTON, Proc. IT. S. Nat. Mus., in, 1880, 63, (senigmaticus). 

 Schedophilopsis, STEINDACHNER, Ichth. Beitnige, xi, 4, 1881, (spinomts). 



Body oblong, much compressed throughout, the head thicker than any 

 part of the body. Dorsal outline rising rapidly to the origin of the dorsal 

 fin, thence more regularly curved ; the region at the base of the dorsal 

 and anal strongly compressed ; caudal peduncle slender, widened at the 

 base of the fin. Mouth large, horizontal ; maxillary narrow, reaching to 

 beyond middle of eye. Teeth in jaws in one row, slender, sharp, closely 

 and regularly set, those in the lower jaw largest ; no teeth on vomer, pal- 

 atines, or pharyngeals. Gill rakers flexible, few ; gill membranes separate, 

 free from the isthmus. Bxanchiostegals 6 ; pseudobranchisB well developed. 

 Lateral line conspicuous, continuous, decurved, groups of small spines 

 present along its entire length ; no scales anywhere on body or fins. Fins 

 rough, with small spinules ; a series along eack ray, dividing as the ray 

 branches ; dorsal fin commencing above the axil of the pectoral, composed 

 of 50 to 60 rays, which are all soft and flexible, some of the anterior 

 unbranched ; the fin low in front, increasing in height behind ; none of the 

 rays more than once forked; anal shorter thaa. dorsal, similar to it, of 35 

 to 40 rays; some of the anterior apparently undivided ; caudal fin elongate, 

 fan-shaped, the middle rays produced; accessory rays numerous, procur- 

 rent ; pectorals with a fleshy base, fan-shaped, the middle rays longest ; 

 ventrals thoracic, inserted just behind the pectorals, narrow, consisting 

 of 1 short subspinous ray and 4 long soft rays. Air bladder large. Ver- 

 tebrae numerous, the vertebral column extremely flexible and soft. Cranial 

 bones tolerably firm ; bones of the face and opercles very flexible. Deep- 

 sea fishes, from the Pacific. (fiw, to yield, submit; OGTEOV, bone the 

 "entire body being characterized by a want of firmness, as it can be 

 doubled up as readily as a piece of soft, thick rag.") 



1371. ICOSTEUS JENIGMATICUS, Lockington. 



Head 4 ; depth 3- D. 52 to 55 ; A. 37 to 40 ; V. I, 4 ; scales 110 to 120 (groups 

 of spines). Longest ray of dorsal nearly reaching base of middle caudal 

 rays. Eye 6 in head, scarcely half the length of the snout or the width of 

 the interorbital space ; diameter of caudal peduncle about 5| in greatest 

 depth. Pellucid yellowish or brownish, with purplish spots and blotches 

 of irregular form ; the spots largest above and most numerous along the 

 lateral line ; fleshy bases of caudal and pectorals spotted ; throat and 

 gill membranes with dark punctulations ; fins dusky, obscurely blotched. 

 Length about 12 inches. Pacific coast of United States ; some 10 speci- 

 mens known from deep water off California, Oregon, and Washington ; 

 the example before us from Monterey. (alvryiMTindf, puzzling.) 



Icosteus senigmaticus, LOCKINGTON, Proc. TT. S. Nat. Mus., in, 1880, 63, off San Francisco; (Coll. 

 W. G. W. Harford); JORDAN & GILBERT, Synopsis, 620, 1883. 



Schedophilapsis spinosus, STEINDACHNER, Ichth. Eeitr., xi, 4, 1881, with figure, off San Fran- 

 cisco. 



Schedophilw enigmaticus, GATHER, Deep Sea Fishes, Challenger, 46, plate 44, 1887. 



