204 
BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 
We have examined the following examples: 
Field 
No. 
Length. 
Locality. 
Disposition of specimens. 
03564 
Inches. 
1.4 
.8 
1.2 
1.2 
.9 
1.1 
.9 
Waikiki 
Honolulu 
do 
do 
do 
do 
do 
Type, No. 50674, W. S. N. M 
Cotype, No. 7483, L. S. Jr Univ. Mus. 
Cotype, No. 2732 U S. F. C. 
Cotype, No. 1708, Bishop Mus. 
Cotype, No. , M C Z. 
Cotype, No. 3970, Field Col. Mus. 
Cotype, No. 24230, Ac. Nat Sci. Phila. 
51. " Gnatholepis knig\hti Jordan & Evermann, new species. 
Head 3.5 in length; depth 4.25; eye 3..8 in head; snout 3.6; width of mouth 2.5; interorbital 
2.25 in eye; D. vi-12; A. 12; P. 16; V. 5.5; scales 32,-9. 
Body elongate, compressed, not depressed in front, greatest depth at the middle of belly; head 
elongate, its depth 1.25 in its length, its width 1.5; snout oblique, blunt, broad; upper profile of the 
head obtuse, with a prominence over eye in front; mouth rather broad, the maxillary not reaching 
posteriorly to below front rim of orbit; lips rather thin; teeth small, sharp, in narrow bands in 
jaws with an outer enlarged series; no teeth on vomer or palatines; interorbital space very narrow, 
Wei; nostrils small, close together in front of eye, anterior with flap of very short, fleshy cirri; 
eye high, small, a little anterior; gill-opening restricted to side, nearly vertical, its length 2.25 in 
head; scales large, finely ctenoid, and becoming much larger on posterior side of trunk; scales 
small on belly in front of ventrals, cycloid; scales moderately large, cycloid on the upper part and 
side of head, head otherwise naked; dorsal fins well separated, spines flexible and with extremities 
of most free and filamentous; first 1.6 in head, fifth 1.7, last 2.7; soft dorsal long, last rays longest, 
first 1.7, last 1.25; anal similar to the dorsal, but lower, first ray 2.8, last 1.25; caudal rounded, the 
median rays very long, a little longer than head; pectoral with upper median rays longest, all 
rather fine, about equal to length of caudal; ventrals rather large, frenum uniting in front, rather 
broad, length equal to pectoral; caudal peduncle compressed, length 1.2 in head, depth 2.25. 
Color in life, pale flesh-color, upper parts with dark brownish spots and blotches; a series of about 
8 brownish blotches along middle of. side; a small dark spot on base of pectoral; opercle dusky; fins 
all pale, spinous dorsal with brown edge; iris bluish white. 
Color in alcohol, pale brown, side with numerous small dark brown spots and 7 large dark brown 
blotches; a dark brown streak below eye, and another across opercle; spinous dorsal Very pale brown 
with about 3 blackish brown cross-lines, very distinct on first spines, running somewhat obliquely, 
and becoming indistinct posteriorly; soft dorsal with the spines pale or whitish brown and membranes 
between blackish brown; anal more or less dark gray brown; caudal very pale brown or whitish, 
spotted in cross-series with brown; pectoral pale brown; ventrals dark brown, paler along edges. 
Color when fresh, of example from Hilo, olive-green, rather pale, and with 7 blackish crossbands; 
caudal spot small and inconspicuous; black bar below eye, narrow and very distinct; back crossbarred 
with many spots of dusky olive; side with longitudinal streaks of dark brown spots along rows of 
scales, these irregular and variable, mixed, especially behind, with spots of pale sky-blue; dorsal, 
anal, and caudal dotted finely with dark olive; pectoral pale olive; ventrals blackish; anal plain 
blackish, paler at base. In most examples examined the head was finely dotted with bright pale blue 
on cheeks and opercles. 
This small but interesting species is generally common in brackish water about Hilo and Honolulu. 
Our collections contain a total of 123 specimens; 15 of these have been tagged and their measurements 
are given in the table; 101 other specimens from Hilo range in length from 1.1 to 2.5 inches, the 
average length being 1.81 inches. From Waianae we. have 5 specimens, 1.3 to 1.8 inches in length, the 
average being 1.62 inches. From the pond at the Moana Hotel at Waikiki, we have 2 examples, each 
0.8 of an inch long. The average length of our 123 specimens is 1.81 inches. 
The species is named for Master Knight Starr Jordan, who first noticed it in the pond at the Moana 
Hotel at Waikiki Beach near Honolulu. 
a The genus Gnatholepis Bleeker seems to be equivalent to Ilazeus of Jordan & Snyder. 
