Jordan and Evermann. Fishes of North America. 1741 



together and laterally expanded, but short; the prosethmoid prominent 

 above, enlarged and narrowed forward. Vertebrae about 8 + 10. Head 

 compressed, with a projecting, attenuated snout ; dorsal and anal short, 

 few-rayed. Nostrils obsolete, imperforate. One genus, with 15 species, 

 found in the tropical seas; none of them reaching a length of more than 

 5 inches. 



681. CANTHIGASTER, Swainson. 



Canthig aster, SWAINSON, Nat. Hist. Fishes, IT, 194, 1839 (diagnosis only; no species men- 

 tioned; rostratiHi intended). 



Psilonotus, SWAINSON, Nat. Hist. Fishes, ir, 328, 1839 (rostratus) ; substitute for Canthi- 

 gaster,- not Psilonotus, a genus of Hymenoptera of prior date. 



Prilmiotus* (KAUP MS.) RICHARDSON, Voyage Herald, 162, 1854 (rostratus). 



Tropidichthys, BLEEKER, Nat. Tyds. Nederl. Iiid., iv, 1854 (valentini). 



Anosmius, PETERS, Wiegniann's Arch. 1855, 274 (tceniatus) . 



Jfhynchotus (BiBRON) HOLLARD, Etudes Gymnodontes, 320, 1857 (peroni). 



Characters of the genus included above. (d'xdvQa, spine; yatirrfp, 

 belly ; Swainson here as elsewhere takes narQa to mean spine, a usage 

 without classical warrant.) 



a. No black ocellus below the dorsal. 



b. Upper parts everywhere behind head covered with round pale spots; fins all 



pale ; dorsal rays 9. PUNCTATISSIMUS, 2159. 



bb. Upper para dark brown without whitish spots; caudal always marked with 



black : dorsal rays 6. ROSTRATUS, 2160. 



2159. ( ANTHKUSTER PTTXCTATIStflMFS (Gtinther). 



D. 9. Snout produced, its upper profile slightly concave; spines on 

 belly and front of back. Upper parts everywhere behind head covered 

 with round whitish spots, not larger than pupil, and separated from each 

 other only by a network of the brown ground color; fins all unmarked, 

 pale. Length 3 inches. Pacific coast of America, Gulf of California to 

 Panama; not common, (punctatissimus, very much dotted.) 



Tetrodon punctatissimus, GUNTHER, Cat., vm, 302, 1870, Panama. (Coll. Capt. Dow.) 

 Tetrodon oxyrhynchus, LOCKINGTON, Proc. Ac. Nat. Sci.Phila. 1881, 116, Gulf of California. 

 Psilonotus punctatissimus, JORDAN & GILBERT, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus. 1882, 370. 

 Canthigaster punctatis&imus, JORDAN & EDWARDS, i.e. ,246. 



2160. CAXTHIGASTER ROSTRATTJS (Bloch). 



D. 6. Snout moderately produced, rather more than twice the concave 

 interorbital space; caudal slightly lunate. Body smooth, except abdo- 

 men, which is covered with very small, 2-rooted spines. Upper parts 

 dark brown, without white spots; upper and lower margins of caudal fin 

 abruptly black, the middle of the fin pale, immaculate; an irregular 

 brownish band or series of dots from pectoral to upper margin of caudal, 

 continuous with the dark band on the latter; lower band of caudal con- 



* Prilonotus is " a name invented by Miiller, and is mentioned by him in his Fortsetzung 

 der Myxinoiden and in Archiv fur Naturgeschichte fur 1841." (Richardson.) 



