66 GOBIES OF THE PHILIPPINES 



The wedge-shaped body strongly compressed laterally, with 

 a thin, broad caudal peduncle ; from the region before the dorsal 

 fin the dorsal profile descends steeply toward snout, so that the 

 anterior part of head is very much depressed; the depth con- 

 tained from 3.6 to 4.6 times in length, the shape of head and 

 body varying considerably with age; the length of head from 

 2.9 to a little more than 3 times in length, its breadth greater 

 than that of body and equal to or greater than the distance from 

 posterior margin of eye to that of opercle; the eye contained 

 5 to 5i times in head and twice in the broad, flat intercrbital 

 space; the snout short, blunt, and broadly rounded, its length 

 3.3 to 4 times, in head or 1.2 to 1.5 times eye; in large specimens 

 the head is longer and wider and the interorbital may be nearly 

 3 times the eye; the lower jaw strongly projecting, and mouth 

 oblique and large; the maxillary does not reach to eye in small 

 specimens but in large ones extends beyond front border of eye ; 

 the small teeth in broad bands of uniform size except those of 

 outer row in upper jaw, which are much larger and rather 

 widely spaced; on posterior edge of preopercle are two pores 

 which are sometimes large and conspicuous but ordinarily are 

 small and obscure; the groove from eye back over opercle con- 

 spicuous ; the entire body covered with scales except tip of snout, 

 lips, and chin; those on the sides and behind ventrajs ctenoid, 

 the rest cycloid ; those on nape as large as, or even larger than, 

 those on trunk; pectorals broad, rounded, and equal to or greater 

 than depth of body; the ventrals long and slender, extending 

 beyond pectorals to anus; the vertical fins comparatively low as 

 a rule, but the soft dorsal and anal may be elongated and pointed 

 posteriorly, the last rays reaching at least to base of caudal when 

 depressed; the last named broadly rounded, usually a little 

 shorter than head and rarely exceeding it in length; the anal 

 papilla broad and thick, with rounded or notched tip. 



The color of a living specimen, 80 millimeters long, was as 

 follows : The general effect was dark green and gold, dark green 

 above and darkest on top of head ; the belly was whitish ; the chin 

 and branchiostegals were dark muddy green; there were two 

 irregular rows of large golden spots connected by crossbars along 

 the sides and extending on the caudal fin as elongate dashes ; two 

 dark green stripes passed from lower margin of eye to edge 

 of opercle and an indistinct but broader one went from pre- 



