Girard on Fishes of California. 533 



Art. XXVIII. — A List of the Fishes collected in Califor- 

 nia, by Mr. E. Samuels, with Descriptions of the new 

 Species. By Charles Girard, M. D. 



I. COTTIDiE. 



1. COTTOPSIS PARVUS, Girard, in Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philad. VII. 



1854, 144. 



Locality. Petaluma, Sonoma Co. 



2. OLIGOCOTTUS MACULOSUS, Girard, in Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. 



Philad. VIII. 1856, 133. 



PI. XXIV, fig. 7. 



Description. The head is but very slightly broader than 

 deep; its upper surface is depressed and smooth, the inter- 

 ocular space grooved, the snout very declivous and conse- 

 quently short, narrow, and rounded upon its periphery. 

 The upper jaw protrudes slightly beyond the lower one ; 

 the mouth is small, being but moderately cleft ; the poste- 

 rior extremity of the maxillary extending to a vertical line 

 intersecting the pupil. The eye is subcircular, and its diam- 

 eter contained four times in the length of the side of the 

 head, exactly once in advance of its anterior rim. The 

 head itself forms a little less than the fourth of the entire 

 length. A rather stout bicuspid process arises from the 

 convexity of the preopercle with its acute spines directed 

 obliquely upwards, no other spines being apparent upon 

 the opercular apparatus. In speaking of the upper surface 

 of the head, we omitted mentioning two prominent and 

 acute nasal spines ; the nostrils being as usual placed one 

 behind and the other beneath each spine. The branchial 

 apertures are continuous under the throat and the branchi- 

 ostegal rays six in number. 



The body is very much compressed, subfusiform, and 

 deeper than broad even anteriorly. The first dorsal is lower 



