Dr. W. O. Ayres on the Sebastoid Fishes of California. 333 
has been proposed for one of the well-marked species, it seems better 
to apply that to the entire group than to introduce a new term. I 
suggest, therefore, the following arrangement :— 
Gen. Sesastes.—With the characters of Sebastes as given by 
Cuvier, except that the top of the head is always marked by spinous 
ridges, the orbits being commonly crested, so as to leave a depression 
between them. 
Gen. Sesastopes.— With the characters of the typical Sebastes, 
except that the top of the head is always smooth, the spinous ridges 
being so little developed as to be barely discernible, the orbits not 
elevated. 
In what manner the species of other waters should be distributed 
under this division I do not purpose at present to specify. The 
means of reference to original authorities are here, unfor tunately, so 
small as to make the attempt useless. The Californian species, 
however, hitherto discovered may be arranged and designated thus:— 
1, SEBASTES NIGROCINCTUS, Ayres, Proc. Cal. Acad. Nat. Sci. 
ii. p. 25, and p. 217, fig. 67. 
Sebastichthys nigrocinctus, Gill, Proc. Phil. Acad. Nat. Sci. 1862, 
p- 278. 
This is more strongly marked in the generic features than any 
other of our species. The spines of the top of the head are very 
prominent ; the nasal spines strong, while nearly continuous from 
them are a pair of slender interorbital ridges ; the supraorbital crest 
sometimes a single ridge, and sometimes a series of spines or tuber- 
cles ; posterior to these a row of blunt tubercles, extending across 
the top of the head, varying in number from two to five or six; 
posterior to these the occipital ridges, very high, and commonly not 
terminating in a spine. The posterior suborbital termimates in a 
distinct spme. The preopercular spines are less prominent than in 
most of the species, consisting of two, or at most three, on the pos- 
terior border, with one or two rounded but not spinous projections 
