■:.^ . 218 



Description ' > ^, t "^ ' / "' t 



I , 



This is apparently a paedomorphic ageneiosid, inasmuch as adults reach 

 sexual maturity at a very small size and retain a large swimbladder, and have lower 

 meristic counts than other species. All specimens examined range from 39,7 to 47.5 

 mm SL. Body elongate, markedly compressed and gently tapering to tail. Head 

 flattened but not especially broad, widest at posterior margins of opercula. Eye 

 large, snout short, dentaries extending to just below rear margin of eye. Gape 

 relatively small, lower jaw subequal to upper; mouth nearly linear in ventral profile, 

 only slightly recurved at comers of premaxillae. A single pair of maxillary barbels, 

 small and filamentous except in nuptial males, each lying concealed in a groove at 

 rictus of upper lip. Maxillary barbels in prereproductive males reaching past rictus 

 and ossified over most of length, bearing four to five incipient odontodes in one 

 paratype and one non-type, but otherwise unomamented in remaining specimens. 

 Mental barbels absent, mandibular barbels absent or reduced to minute fleshy 

 vestiges in adults. Anterior nares near tip of snout, just lateral to tips of ; 'f 

 mesethmoid flanges. Premaxillary and dentary tooth patches thin, only slightly 

 recurved at posterolateral comers; teeth minute, conical, in few rows. One 

 specimen (ANSP 137688) with 7 long, lanceolate gill rakers in outer row of first 

 epibranchial and 12 rakers in outer row of ceratobranchial. Lateral-line dendritic 

 along body, with short ventral and dorsal rami, bifurcated at caudal peduncle and 

 with a branch extending onto base of each caudal lobe. Proportional measurements 

 of the type specimens are listed in Table 10. 



Dorsal fin small, spine stout, edentulate on anterior margin and with about 

 17-20 weak retrorse denticulations along posterior margin in females (and 

 presumably in non-breeding males); posterior margin edentulate, entire anterior 

 margin with weak-to-moderately developed antrorse odontodes in prereproductive 



