JOEDAN ON FISHES FEOM THE RIO GRANDE. 399 



1857— Calliunis murhius Girard (1857), Proc, Ac. Nat. Sc. Phil. p. — . 



Calliurus murinus Girard (l858), Pac. R. R. Surv. 18. 

 1864 — Bryttus viineopas Cope, Proc. Ac. Nat. Sc. Phil. 84. 



Lepomis mineojyas Cope (1868), Journ. Ac. Nat. Sc. Phil. 224. 



Chcenohryttus mineoiyas Cope (1870), Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. 452. ' 



Several young specimens of this widely diffused species. 



Family LABRID^. (?) 



A very young specimen of some genus unknown to me, apparently 

 Labroid. There are about fifteen spines in the single dorsal fin, and a 

 less number of soft rays. In the anal fiu are three stout spines, the 

 second decidedly longest. The lateral line runs very high, concurrent 

 with the back. The teeth are large and conical. The general aspect is 

 sparoid. The specimen is so small that I have not attempted further to 

 ascertain its relations. 



Famity GOBIID^. (?) 



Genus SEMA Jordan {gen. nov.). 



3. — Sema signifer Jordan (sp. 7iov.). 



A small fish in this collection has puzzled me very much. Its affini- 

 ties are apparently GoMoid, but it seems to bear little resemblance to 

 any of the current genera of that family, nor am I able, in any of the 

 books accessible to me, to find any account of any fish to which it bears 

 any special resemblance. It is possible that it has been described 

 already in some work with which I am not acquainted, or that its affini- 

 ties are remote from those species with which I have compared it. After 

 consideration, however, I hsive thought best to make the species known, 

 even though my knowledge of its structure is incomplete, for the char- 

 acters of the species are so marked that whoever finds a second speci- 

 men will have no difficulty in identifying it from the present descrip- 

 tion. I shall not attempt at present to separate the generic from the 

 specific characters. The name suggested for the genus is from <r^,a«, a 

 banner, in allusion to the high fins. 



Body oblong, moderately elevated, greatly compressed, the depth 

 3| in length, the caudal peduncle rather deep, the greatest depth 

 of body being opposite the vent, which is midway between the snout 

 and the base of the caudal. The compression of the body in the type- 

 specimen is excessive, but this may be in part due to its soft con- 

 dition. Head large, 4 in length to the base of the caudal, compressed, 

 nearly circular in outline, the snout extremely gibbous, the interorbital 

 space narrow and almost carinated. Mouth very small, terminal ob- 

 lique, the maxillary not reaching to the front of the eye;, jaws equal 

 when the mouth is closed; teeth, if present, not evident; eye large, 

 longer than snout, about 3 in head ; opercular bones rather narrow, 

 with entire edges, the preoperculum forming a broad arc, more nearly 



