1314 Bulletin 4.7, United States National Museum. 



lower jaw slightly included. Teeth small, the outer and posterior little 

 enlarged. Preorbital narrow, its least breadth 7| in head; interorbital 

 space moderate, convex, 3 in head; preopercle moderately serrate. Gill 

 rakers slightly longer and more numerous than in most species of Hcemulon, 

 about 16 on lower part of arch, the longest about \ depth of preorbital. 

 Scales large, very uniform in size over the body, arranged above as well 

 as below lateral line, in longitudinal series, those above lateral line being 

 everywhere parallel with the lateral line; soft fins scaly, as usual. Dor- 

 sal spines usually 13, but sometimes 14, rather slender and low, the longest 

 2^) in head; soft dorsal low, the longest rays 3 in head ; caudal moderate, 

 the upper lobe If in head ; anal rather low, the longest rays not reacbing, 

 when depressed, to middle of last rays, their length about 3 in head; sec- 

 ond anal spine stronger and longer than third, 2 in head, its tip about 

 reaching base of last ray; ventrals If in head; pectorals 1. Frontal 

 foramina narrowly oval, wholly separate, some distance in front of the low 

 supraoccipital crest. Color dark brown ; each scale of back and sides with 

 a light pearly-gray spot on its middle, these coalescing into continuous 

 light stripes which are sharply denned, one for each row of scales ; head 

 plain ; fins plain grayish ; a large dusky area on base of caudal. Its pecu- 

 liar squamation, rendered more noticeable by the corresponding features 

 of coloration, gives it. an appearance quite distinct in this genus. The 

 snout is shorter than usual and the number of dorsal spines is increased. 

 In other respects it departs less from the usual type than does Lythrulon 

 flavlguttatum or even Bathystoma striatum. The cranium is of the usual 

 Hcemulon type. Pacific coast of tropical America, Guaymas to Panama ; 

 rather common ; here described from No. 29256, U. S. N. M., 8^ inches long, 

 from Panama. Length about a foot, (macula, spot; cauda, tail.) 



Orthostoechus maculicauda, GILL, Proc. Ac. Nat. Sci. Pliila. 1862, 255, Cape San Lucas 



(Coll. Xantus). 



Hcemulon mazatlanum, STEINDACHNER, Ichth. Notizen, vm, 12, pi. vi, 1869, Mazatlan. 

 Hcemulon maculicauda, STEINDACHNER, Ichth. Beitrage, in, 14, 1875; JORDAN <fc SWAIN. 



1. c., 315; EVERMANN & JENKINS, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus. 1891, 152; JORDAN & FESLER, 



I. c., 480. 

 Diabasis maculicauda, JORDAN & GILBERT, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus. 1882, 362, 372, 626. 



542. ANISOTREMUS, Gill. 



Anisotremus, GILL, Proc. Ac. Nat. Sci. Phila. 1861, 107 (virginicus). 

 Genytremus, GILL, Proc. Ac. Nat. Sci. Phila. 1861, 256 (bilineatus). 

 Paraconodon, BLEEKER, Archiv Neerl. xi, 272, 1876 (pacifici). 



Body ovate, short, deep, and compressed; mouth rather small, with 

 thick lips, the maxillary rather short; inside of mouth not red; teeth in 

 jaws only, all pointed, those of the outer series in upper jaw enlarged; 

 chin with a median groove, besides smaller pores. Dorsal spines strong; 

 soft rays of dorsal and anal scaly at base; anal spines strong; caudal 

 mostly lunate. Scales large. Lower pharyngeals broad, with coarse, 

 blunt teeth. This genus, like Hcemulon, to which it is closely related, 

 contains numerous species, all of them living on the shores of tropical 

 America. All the species undergo considerable change in form with age, 



