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BULLETIN OF THE BUREAU OF FISHERIES 
head and body with brown, somewhat stellate spots, many of which have silvery 
centers. The distribution of the stellate spots varies; they may be confined to the 
head and anterior part of the body or they may be uniformly scattered over the head 
and entire body. The body is sometimes diffusely peppered with minute bluish 
silvery dots (some of which may have been stellate in life). One specimen is quite 
dark, the head and body being suffused with black, and the fins, except the pectorals, 
are jet black. 
In two very small specimens, 16 and 17 millimeters long, the appearance, 
form, and coloration are very similiar to those of larger examples. The tip of the 
ventral does not reach beyond the base of the first soft ray of anal. The specimens, 
however, are not in very good condition and the tips of the fins may have been frayed. 
The counts of the dorsal and anal are the same as in the majority of larger specimens. 
Four specimens were obtained in the shells of living conchs as follows : Forty-three 
millimeters long, December 8, 1922; 50 millimeters, January 1, 1923; 43 millimeters, 
February 1, 1923; 42 millimeters, April 27, 1923. Three were found in sponges, 
as follows: Two specimens, 37 and 40 millimeters, June 7, 1918; 36 millimeters, 
August 29, 1919. The two young specimens of 16 and 17 millimeters were obtained 
by means of a seine on the beach of Boca Chica, November 4, 1922. 
On account of Cope’s erroneous description, we were at first inclined to regard 
this as an undescribed species. The Apogonichthys strombi described by Plate 
seems to be the same species, this author apparently also having been misled by 
Cope’s description of his A. stellatus. Fowler, in figuring this species, has corrected 
the statement in the original description as to the number of spines in the first dorsal. 
Another character by which Plate separates strombi from stellatus is the lack of 
small silvery spots on the center of the scales of the former. The specimens at 
hand show that this is a variable character. The small silvery spots, when present, 
usually form the center of small brown stellate spots. Three individuals show 
the silvery spots very distinctly when examined with the naked eye. One specimen 
in particular appears to the naked eye almost a replica of Fowler’s figure. When 
examined with a lens it becomes evident that two or more silvery spots of various 
sizes may be present on a scale. One specimen does not show any silvery spots when 
examined with the naked eye, but such small spots may be seen under a lens. Two 
specimens that were originally preserved in formalin do not show any traces of 
silvery spots when examined with a lens, showing that the presence of such spots 
on preserved specimens depends also on the preservative used. 
The posterior margin of the caudal is shown by Fowler as well as by Plate 
to be slightly emarginate. In our specimens it seems to be convex, but the caudal 
fins of all our specimens are shrunken, which makes it hard to determine this character 
with certainty. 
This fish is very interesting biologically on account of its curious association 
with the conch. The conch is quite common around Key Vv'est. It is in good 
demand as an article of food and is also frequently used for bait in line fishing. The 
exact relationship between the conch and little fish remains to be learned. Plate 
found the stomachs of his specimens to be filled with Crustacea of various kinds. 
Some of our specimens were collected also in sponges. This would seem to indicate 
that the fish is a sort of facultative inquiline. What benefit, if any, the conch 
derives from this association is not clear. The two very young specimens that 
were obtained by means of a drag seine along the shore are of interest in connection 
with the question of the spawning habit of this fish. 
