442 
BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 
364. Ostracion sebse Bleeker. “ M6a.” Fig. 195. 
Head 3.75 in length; depth 3; eye 2.6 in head; snout 1.2; interorbital 1.2; D. 9; A. 9; P. 10; U. 10. 
Body 4-sided; back slightly rounded; interorbital flat; profile before eyes strongly convex, from 
there to tip of snout straight or slightly concave in small examples, forming a reentrant angle in larger 
individuals; side of body concave; ventral surface slightly convex, its sides uniformly curved, less so 
posteriorly, the width at middle one-fourth greater than head, its length 2.6 times head; width of 
dorsal surface 1.2 times head; depth of side 1.25 in head; preorbital 1.6 in head; carapace entirely 
without spines; 2 plates posterior to dorsal fin and 1 behind anal fin; anterior opening of carapace 
moderate, its greatest width 1.8 in interorbital; greatest width of posterior opening 1.6 in interorbital; 
caudal peduncle, measured along middle of side, equal to snout; pectoral short, broad, its length 
equaling interorbital width; dorsal shorter, the distal edge somewhat oblique, length of rays 1.2 in 
interorbital; anal fin shorter, the rays 1.3 in interorbital; caudal long, rounded, its length equaling 
greatest interorbital width or length of head. 
Color in life, dark blue or black on back, belly dark blue; a lighter patch below' eye; an irregular 
golden band, nearly as broad as eye, across top of head between the eyes; back covered with many 
small round white spots, uniform in size and uniformly distributed; side with golden spots; caudal 
peduncle black, with one or more rows of golden spots on each side and white dots on dorsal surface; 
axil blue; fins dusky, posterior half of caudal lighter; iris white, with orange spots. Different 
specimens show considerable variation in color, some being decidedly dark blue, others black. 
In alcohol the general color becomes dirty brownish, the spots bluish white; the basal portion of 
caudal black, the distal part yellowish white; anal and pectoral pale yellowish white, each crossed by 
1 or 2 darker bars; base of pectoral dark brown; the orange stripe across interorbital pale dusky. 
The Bureau has recently received from Mr. Berndt 5 specimens of this species, 3.3 to 4.7 inches 
long. These differ in no way from specimens' collected by Doctor Jordan in Samoa. Tw'o examples 
have the ventral surface without spots, while 2 others have the same area spotted like the back. In 
1 specimen the spots extend inward along the edges of the ventral surface of the carapace. Some 
have the caudal peduncle with spots only, while others have elongate white bands of irregular shape, 
no two being alike in this respect. The largest individual has a transverse white band between the eyes. 
This is the most abundant species among the Hawaiin Islands, although not represented in our 
collections by many specimens. Doctor Wood obtained 1 example, the Albatross 2 in 1896, Doctor 
Jenkins 1 (the type), and. 1 was secured by us, all at Honolulu. The Albatross found it at Puako Bay, 
Hawaii. There are 2 specimens from Honolulu in the California Academy, and yve have examined a 
specimen collected by Snodgrass and Heller at Clipperton Island. The species was also found by 
Doctor Jordan at Apia where it is known as Moamoa Samasama. 
Ostracion sebx Bleeker, Verh. Bat. Gen., XXIV, 32, tab. 6, fig. 13, East Indies. 
? Ostracion bombifrons Hollard, Ann. Sci. Nat. ,1857, VII, 168. 
Ostracion camurum Jenkins, Bull. U. S. Fish Comm, for 1899 (June 8, 1901), 396, fig. 9, Honolulu (type, No. 49697, U. S. N. M. 
Coll. 0. P. Jenkins); ibid., 1902 (Sept. 23, 1903), 486 (Honolulu); Snyder, op. sit. (Jan. 19, 1904), 535 (Puako Bay, 
Hawaii). 
