2158 Bulletin 4.7, United States National Museum. 



toward tip, with a conspicuous, white, longitudinal streak on upper lobe; 

 anal blackish, with white base and margin; pectoral dark brown, irregu-. 

 larly barred and blotched with greenish and light brown; free rays of 

 pectorals and inner face of ventrals dusky, tinged with orange. South 

 Atlantic coast of United States, Beaufort to St. Augustine ; a very well- 

 marked species, rather common within the region from which it is known. 

 Length 5 to 6 inches, (scitulus, slender.) 



Prionotus punctatus, JORDAN & GILBERT, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus. 1878, 373; GOODE, Proc. 

 U. S.Nat. Mus. 1879, 111; GOODE & BEAN, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus. 1879, 338; JORDAN & 

 GILBERT, Synopsis, 734, 1883 ; not Trigla punctata, BLOCH. 



Prionotus scitulus, JORDAN & GILBERT, Proc. TJ. S. Nat. Mus. 1882, 288, Beaufort (Coll. Jor- 

 dan, Bray ton & Gilbert) ; JORDAN & GILBERT, Proc. TJ. S. Nat. Mus. 1882, 614 ; JORDAN, 

 Cat. Fish. N. A., 114, 1885 ; JORDAN & HUGHES, Proc. TJ. S. Nat. Mus. 1886, 333. 



2486. PRIONOTUS ROSETJS, Jordan & Evermann. 



Head 3J in length (4 with caudal) ; depth 6 (7i) ; eye moderate, 5| in 

 head. D. X-12; A. 12; scales (transverse series) 65 to 70; pores in lateral 

 line 60 to 65. Allied to Prionotus scitulus. Body quite slender, little com- 

 pressed, narrowed above, width of nape between occipital spines being 

 about of head ; head quite short and rather high ; eyes prominent, so 

 that the anterior profile forms a sharp angle at front of eye, and is some- 

 what concave; snout rather narrow, 2^ in head, its tip somewhat emargi- 

 nate; edges of snout finely serrulate and without spine; surface of bones 

 of head comparatively smooth, the small granulations arranged in distinct, 

 fine, radiating striae. Mouth small, the maxillary 3 in head, the man- 

 dible not quite reaching front of orbit; band of palatine teeth narrow. 

 Apparently a slight cirrus above eye, on one side, in typical example, 

 possibly a result of mutilation. Interorbital space narrow, deeply con- 

 cave, its least width 7J in head; orbital rim considerably elevated, both 

 in front and behind, its edge granular serrate ; a shallow groove across 

 top of head behind orbital rim, which does not end in a distinct spine; 

 occipital ridges weak, the inner pair without spines, the outer with short 

 ones which reach somewhat beyond front of dorsal; temporal region with 

 an elevated roughish ridge, but without distinct spine; preopercle with a 

 single moderate spine, which has no smaller one at its base, either in front 

 or below; opercular spines small and sharp; humeral spine moderate; no 

 trace of spines on suborbital or preorbital, the head being provided with 

 but 5 pairs of spines, including the humeral spine ; membranaceous flap of 

 opercle scaly. Gill rakers short and thickish, about 8 developed, these 

 little longer than the interspaces, and not length of pupil and nearly | 

 as broad as high. Scales small, those on breast much reduced in size, 

 about 12 between occiput and dorsal. Spinous dorsal high, the first spine 

 serrulate in front, shorter than the second, which is If in head. (Second 

 dorsal and anal mutilated.) Caudal slightly and unequally lunate, the 

 lower lobe the longer, 1 in head; pectoral reaching nearly to last rays of 

 dorsal, a little more than length of body; ventrals as long as head. 

 Coloration in spirits, grayish, unspotted, more dusky above; dorsal dusky, 



