290 
BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 
front above, 4 on front of mandible, all conic; eye small, anterior margin behind middle of length 
of head; margin of preopercle undulate; interorbital width broad, convex; nostrils small, posterior 
nearly over front margin of eye; dorsal spines pungent, much lower than soft rays, the longest of 
which is 3.75 in head; second anal spine longest, 3.6 in snout; longest anal ray 3.75 in head; caudal 
obliquely truncate, the lowest rays the longest; pectoral 2 in head; ventrals small, 3.2; scales large, 
cycloid; lateral line descending abruptly below posterior dorsal rays, tubes branched. 
Color in alcohol, anterior half of body below white, shading into deep brown above pectoral; top 
of head dusky; each scale on trunk with black median spot; blackish streak in front of eye, 2 broken 
blackish streaks from behind eye; dorsal, anal, and caudal blackish brown, former 2 fins narrowly 
white, caudal broadly white; anal with median row of rounded pale spots; pectoral and ventrals pale 
brownish, former with blackish spot at base above. Described from an example (No. 04276) taken at 
Honolulu. 
The species is rather common in the markets of Honolulu and Hilo, and is represented in our 
collections by 27 specimens — 21 from Honolulu, 3 from Kailua, and 3 from Hilo. It is smaller than 
G. tricolor, the length of our specimens ranging from 5 to 9.2 inches. 
Gomphosus varius LacSpMe, Hist. Nat. Poiss., 111,104, pi. 5, fig. 2, 1801, Tahiti; Gunther, Cat., IV, 193, 1862 (Aneityum, Tahiti); 
Ishikawa, Prel. Cat., 28, 1897 (Miyakoshima, Riukiu Islands); Steindachner, Denks. Ak. Wiss. Wien, LXX, 1900, 
507 (Honolulu); Fowler, Proe. Ac. Nat. Sci. Phila. 1900, 510 (Sandwich Islands); Jenkins, Bull. U. S. Fish Comm., 
XXII, 1902 (Sept. 23, 1903), 464 (Honolulu); Snyder, op. cit. (Jan. 19, 1904), 529 (Honolulu). 
Gomphosus pectoralis Quoy & Gaima.rd, Voyage de l’Uranie, Zool., 282, 1824, Maui, Hawaii; Day, Fish. Ind., 406, pi. 86, fig. 
6, 1877 (Andamans); Bennett, Fish. Ceylon, 3, pi. in, 1830 (Ceylon; anal with a yellowish cross-band). 
Gomphosus fuscus Cuvier & Valenciennes, Hist. Nat. Poiss., XIV, 25, 1839, Maui; Brevoort, Exped. Japan, 272, 1856 (Lew 
Chew). 
Gomphosus melanotus Bleeker, in Nat. Tijd. Neder. Ind., VIII, 1855, 457, ICokos, Atlas, I, 87, pi. XXI, fig. 3, 1862, Cocos; 
Java; Gunther, Cat., IV, 193, 1862 (East Indies). 
228. Gomphosus tricolor Quoy & Gaimard. “ Hinalea iivri.” Plate XXXVI. 
Head 2.5 in length; depth 3.8; eye 11 in head; snout 1.7; mouth 4.6; interorbital 6; D. viii, 13; 
A. ii, 11; scales 4-27-9. 
Body elongate, compressed, deepest about base of pectoral ; head long, upper profile straight; 
snout very long, jaws equal, produced into a long beak, its depth equal to eye; lips thick, fleshy; teeth 
forming cutting edge in sides of jaws, 2 curved canines in front of upper jaw, 4 canines at front of 
mandible; eye small, its anterior margin much nearer gill-opening than tip of snout; margin of pre- 
opercle undulate; interorbital width broad, convex; nostrils small, the posterior nearly over front rim 
of orbit; dorsal spines pungent, the longest much shorter than longest ray, which is 4.8 in head; anal 
spines pungent, second longest, 4.5 in snout; first anal ray 4.65 in head; caudal emarginate, lobes 
pointed; pectoral 2.1 in head, reaching above origin of anal; ventrals short, 1.7 in pectoral, sharply 
pointed; caudal peduncle deep, its depth 4 in head; scales large, cycloid; lateral line descending 
abruptly below posterior dorsal rays, the tubes branched. 
Color in life (No. 03256), indigo-blue with a greenish shade becoming distinctly green on back and 
belly; edge of each scale dull violet, the violet shades continuous on belly, but restricted on back to a 
brownish-red spot on each side, the form and shade of violet markings varying considerably; head 
green above, deep blue on cheeks and opercle, light blue on jaws, indigo-blue at throat, otherwise 
varying shades of greenish and -dark purple; light-red streaks radiating from eye; a bright yellowish- 
green bar behind gill-opening covering basal fourth of pectoral fin; a jet-black spot in this on base of 
first rays of pectoral; dorsal reddish brown at base, then bright blue, the upper part golden green; 
anal similar; caudal light bluish green, its scaly base dull violet; ventrals dull blue, other rays black; 
pectoral golden green at base, otherwise pale violet washed with blackish above; iris green with a 
scarlet ring. Another example was dark blue in life, with a golden-green patch behind pectoral ; scales 
of body each with a vertical bar of dull purplish red. 
Color in alcohol, blackish shaded with deep blue-green; lips, dorsal, anal, median caudal rays, 
and blotch above base of pectoral pale blue-green; pectoral blue-green basally; black spot at base of 
upper caudal rays, outer portion of fin black. 
Described from (No. 04192) an example from Hilo. Our collections contain 47 excellent speci- 
mens, varying in length from 5.75 to 12.5 inches — 39 from Honolulu, the others from Hilo. Of these, 
