THE FISHES OF NEW JERSEY. 385 



I Ya, ; least depth of caudal peduncle 5 % ; first dorsal ray i Yz ; 

 lower caudal lobe i ^ ; ventral i ^ . Head flattened above and 

 below. Snout short, broadly obtuse and protruding. Eye large, 

 high, and circular. Interorbital space broadly concave. Nostrils 

 close together in front of eye, directed forwards. First two 

 dorsal spines slightly connected by membrane at base. Of second 

 spinous dorsal first spine longest. Margin of soft dorsal notched, 

 and fin beginning well before anal. Caudal with upper lobe a 

 little longer. Pectoral not quite reaching base of caudal. Ventral 

 inserted before dorsal. Color olivaceous-brown above and 

 marked with darker shades, below pale. Dorsals pale brownish, 

 with as many as 5 broad blotches on each. Pectoral blackish, 

 mottled with darker. Other fins pale. Length nearly 18 inches. 

 Holly Beach. 



It occurs off our coast at times and is said to be abundant. 



Dactylopteriis volitans Abbott, Geol. N. J., 1868, p. 817. 



Cephalacanthus volitans Bean, Bull. U. S. F. Com., VII, 1887, 

 p. 136. — Fowler, Science, XVII, April loth, 1903, p. 595. 



Sub-Order GOBIODEI. 



The Gobies. 



These are small carnivorous bottom fishes, mostly in warm 

 waters. A single family in our waters. 



Family GOBIID^. 



The Gobies. 



Body elongate or oblong. Eyes usually moderate, sometimes 

 concealed, and skin of head continuous with their covering. Den- 

 tition various, teeth generally small, sometimes developed into 

 great canines. Premaxillaries protractile. Suborbital without 

 bony stay. Opercle unarmed. Preopercle unarmed or with a 

 short spine. Gill-membranes more or less united to isthmus, 

 gill-openings thus restricted to sides. Gills 4, a slit behind fourth. 

 Pseudobranchiae present or absent. Usually no air-vessel. No 



25 MU 



