THE FISHES OF PORTO RICO. 
305 
Carnivorous fishes of small size and of no value as food, chiefly of the warm seas, usually living 
among loose stones between tide marks and clinging to them firmly by means of the adhesive disk. 
Their relations are obscure, but they are probably descended from allies or ancestors of the CotlicLx 
or the Balrachoididic. Genera about 15; species 50. The principal genus is Gobiesox. 
Genus 146. GOBIESOX Lacepede. 
Body anteriorly very broad and depressed, posteriorly slender, covered with tough, smooth skin; 
opercle with a strong spine; head large, rounded in front; mouth terminal, crescent-shaped; lower jaw 
with a series of strong incisors in front, their edges rounded or truncate; upper jaw with a series of 
strong teeth, behind which are sometimes smaller teeth; no teeth on vomer or palatines; gills 3; gill- 
membranes broadly united under throat, not attached to isthmus; sucking disk large, posterior portion 
without anterior free margin. Dorsal and anal moderate, dorsal rays 6 to 12, anal rays 6 to 10. 
Vertebrae about 26, as far as known. 
Species numerous, all American; mostly tropical, clinging to rocks near the shore. 
Jordan & Evermann recognize 18 species of this genus in American waters; 5 of these are known 
only from our Pacific coast and the remaining 13 are all known oidy from the West Indies and the 
South Atlantic and Gulf coasts, though but one species has as yet been found in Porto Rico. 
a. 
Gobiesox: 
b. 
c. 
d. 
dd. 
ddd. 
dddd. 
ddddd. 
dddddd. 
cc. 
c. 
f. 
ff. 
Sicyases: 
lib. 
ff- 
h. 
hh. 
ffff- 
i. 
j- 
jj- 
ii. 
Dorsal fin moderate or short, its rays 6 to 11. 
Upper teeth in more than 1 series (character not verified in a few species); head broad. 
Coloration in life chiefly olivaceous, with little red, sometimes banded with darker or paler. 
Dorsal rays 12; anal rays 7 gyrinus 
Dorsal rays 11; anal rays 6; fins black mgripinnis 
Dorsal rays 9 or 10; anal rays 6 cephalus 
Dorsal rays 8; anal rays 6 tudes, 258 
Dorsal rays 11; anal rays 10 strumosus 
Dorsal rays 10; anal rays 8 virgatulus 
Coloration in life chiefly bright-red, or else with red spots or bands, color not fading in spirits. 
Color uniform red, unspotted, color not fading in spirits; dorsal rays 6 to 8; anal rays 6. 
Lower jaw with short incisors on each side, followed by canines macrophthalmus 
Lower jaw with 2 horizontal incisors on each side, third horizontal tooth not incisor-like; no distinct canines. 
cerasinus 
Upper teeth in a single series (character not verified in some species): dorsal and anal short. 
Color chiefly red. 
Body with dark crossbands and with spots of clear blue; body rather slender. D. 6 or 7; A. 6 rubiginosus 
Body plain, light red; form rather slender carneus 
Color olivaceous or brownish, not red.- 
Dorsal rays 9; anal rays 6. 
Color olivaceous, without bands hseres 
Color greenish, with 3 dark crossbands and many dots punclulatus 
Dorsal rays 7; anal rays 7; body with dark crossbands fasciatus 
258. Gobiesox tudes Richardson. 
Head 2.5; depth 4.66; width of head 2.5; D. 8; A. 6 in plate (5 in description, the first short 
ray apparently not counted by Richardson). Head t'ery broad, as broad as long, abruptly truncate 
anteriorly; mouth large, maxillary reaching front of eye; lower jaw included; teeth entire; eye large, 
4.75 in head, a little more than half interorbital width, 1.5 in snout. Distance from front of dorsal 
to caudal about equal to length of head ; insertion of dorsal before vent ; anal behind dorsal and much 
shorter than it; pectoral short. 
This is a very little known species, which reaches a length of 5 inches.- The type locality is not 
certainly known, but it has been supposed to be China. It is, however, certainly not Chinese, and is 
now shown to be West Indian. A single specimen, 1.25 inches long, collected on the reef at Culebra 
Island February 9, agrees very well with the above description by Richardson. There are but 8 dorsal 
and 6 anal rays. The color is uniform pale-yellowish, with a slight tinge of rosy on middle of back; 
fins all pale; eye very large, about 3 in head, much larger than in specimens of G. strumosus of same 
size, and the interorbital width is decidedly narrower. It seems to be a good species, distinct from 
G. cephalus and G. nigripirinis. 
Gobiesox ludes Richardson, Voy. Sulphur, Fish., 103, pi. 16, figs. 1-3, 1845, habitat unknown; supposed to be China; 
Jordan & Evermann, 1. e., 2333, 1898. 
F. C. B. 1900—20 
