FISHES OF HAWAIIAN ISLANDS. 
91 
and fleshy; anal arising immediately behind vent, its height equal to one-half the length of snout; 
both dorsal and anal continuous with the very short caudal; tail slightly longer than head and body; 
anterior nostril located at a point one-third the distance between tip of snout and border of eye, the 
edge with a low, thickened rim and a posterior flap edged with tentacles; posterior nostril situated on 
dorsal side of snout midway between anterior nostril and eye, the opening oval, surrounded by a 
broad, thin membrane; teeth lanceolate-canines, the lateral notches not evident on some of the smaller 
ones; those of upper jaw in 2 rows, the inner ones larger, their length about equal to two-thirds the 
diameter of eye; a row of I or 5 long teeth bn vomer, followed by a short row of small teeth; anterior 
vomerine teeth and those of inner series of jaw depressible; teeth of lower jaw in 2 series, the inner 
row having 4 or 5 large, depressible ones; width of gill-opening equal to or slightly more than half the 
length of snout. 
Color in alcohol, brownish, with a few small, darker spots scattered over the body. 
A very large example, 52 inches long, apparently identical with the scantily described Enchelynassa 
bleekeri of Kaup, was obtained at Honolulu. Another, equally large, was taken at Samoa in 1902. 
Enchelynassa bleekeri Kaup, in Wiegmann’s Archiv 1855, 214, taf. 10, fig. 3; Kaup, Apodes, 72, fig. 55,1856, locality unknown. 
45. Enchelynassa vinolentus (Jordan & Evermann). Plate II . a 
Head 2.67 in trunk; head and trunk a little shorter than tail; eye 2 in snout, 1.5 in interorbital 
space; snout 6.5 in head; mouth about 2. 
Body compressed, rather deep; head compressed, pointed, more or less swollen on top; snout 
long, pointed, bent over at tip; eye small, much nearer tip of snout than corner of mouth; mandible 
long, projecting beyond tip of snout and bent up, the mouth not closing so that only the tips of the jaws 
meet; lips rather thin, not concealing the teeth; teeth biserial, of more or less irregular size, those in 
inner series much larger and also depressible like the few large vomerine fangs; anterior nostrils in 
rather large tubes, situated 0.67 of an eye diameter from tip of snout, and the posterior nostrils at some 
little distance above and anterior to front margin of eye, with their rims somewhat expanded and 
flattened down; interorbital space convex; gill-opening about 0.75 of an eye diameter; body more or 
less smooth and with thick, tough skin; head with a number of pores; origin of dorsal well before 
gill-opening, or about last third or fourth of space between corner of mouth and the latter; marginal 
fin around end of tail rather narrow. 
Color in alcohol, deep purplish brown, marked all over with very small indistinct darker spots so 
that it appears almost uniform. 
The collections contain a single specimen, type, No. 50615, U. S. Nat. Mus. (original No. 03726), 
29 inches long, obtained by Messrs. Goldsborough and Sindo at Kailua, Hawaii. The species may be 
identical with Enchelynassa bleekeri Kaup, but its larger teeth, distinct nasal flap, and higher dorsal and 
anal fins seem to indicate its distinctness. 
Gymnothorax vinolentus J or dan & Evermann, Bull. U. S. Fish Comm., XXII, 1902 (Apr. 11, 1903), 165, Kailua, Hawaii. 
? Murxna canina Quoy <k Gaimard, Voy. Uranie, 247, 1S24, Rawak and Waigiou Islands. 
Genus 56. GYMNOTHORAX Bloch & Schneider. The Morays. “Puhi.” 
This genus, as here understood, comprises the great bulk of the Mursenidx, including nearly all 
the species with sharp teeth, the body normally formed, only the anterior nostrils tubular, and the 
dorsal fin beginning on the head. Priodonophis, with serrated teeth, lias been recognized as a distinct 
genus by Bleeker, but the character in question disappears by degrees and seems not to be suitable for 
generic distinction. The morays of this genus are everywhere abundant in the tropical seas, where 
some of them reach a great size. They are the most active and voracious of the eels, often showing 
much pugnacity. Most of them live in shallow water about rocks or reefs. 
Gymnothorax Bloch, Ichthyologia, XII, 71, 1797 (retie ulat is). 
Lycodontis McClelland, Calcutta Journ. Nat. Hist., V, 1844, 174 (lilerata=tile). 
Thxrodontis McClelland, Calcutta Journ. Nat. Hist., V, 1844, 174 ( reticulata=tesselata ). 
? Sidera Kaup, Cat. Apodes, 70, 1856 (vomerine teeth molar) ( pfeifferi ). 
Polyuranodon Kaup, 1. c., 96, 1856 (kuhli=polyuranodon) . 
opiate labeled Gymnothorax vinolentus. 
