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PACIFIC SCIENCE, Vol. XXI, April 1967 
Uranidea gulosa, in part. Jordan and Gilbert, 
1883:695 (misidentifications: all specimens 
from "Vancouver’s Island" and probably those 
from "about Port Townsend,” cf. Jordan and 
Evermann, 1898:1944). Kermode, 1909:87 
(listing only; misidentification : Shawnigan L., 
Vancouver Island, cf. Fowler, 1923:282). 
Cottus gulosus, in part. Jordan, 1895:141 
(misidentification: San Luis Cr., near Avila, 
California, cf. Hubbs, 1921:7). Jordan and 
Evermann, 1898:1945 (misidentification: all 
specimens from San Franciscito Cr., Santa Clara 
Co., California). Jordan, Evermann, and Clark, 
1930:383 (probable misidentifications: speci- 
mens from Loring and Boca de Quadra, 
Alaska). Evermann and Clark, 1931:57 (mis- 
identifications: Presidio, Monterey, Fort Read- 
ing, Petaluma, and San Luis Cr., California). 
Evermann and Clark, 1931:12, 13 (misidenti- 
fications: Monterey, Presidio, Fort Reading, and 
Petaluma). Bean and Weed, 1920:76 (ques- 
tionable identification: 4 specimens from 
Victoria, Vancouver Island, British Columbia). 
Wilimovsky, 1954:285 (doubts validity of 
southeast Alaska record). 
Centridermichthys gulosus. Lord, 1866£: 
352 (listing; "frequenting the same localities 
as . . .” Centridermichthys asper). 
Cottus sp. Dill, 1946:54 (San Joaquin R., 
near Friant, California; identification as asper 
by Hubbs and Wallis, 1948:141). 
NOMENCLATURAL HISTORY 
The specific name asper is currently well 
founded in the genus Cottus, to which it was 
originally designated by Richardson in 1836. 
But, as shown in the preceding synonymy, the 
binomen was extremely unstable for the first 
100 years after its introduction. After an initial 
period of uncertainty regarding its affinity to 
marine or to fresh-water Cottoids, three main 
nomenclatural difficulties are encountered: the 
often-repeated misidentification as Cottus gulo- 
sus (Girard) ; the failure to recognize that 
Cottopsis parvus and Cottus asper are con- 
specific; and the failure to recognize the specific 
relationship of asper to other species in the 
genus Cottus. 
The almost immediate placement of asper 
into Trachidermus by Heckel (1840), and then 
into the synonymous Centridermichthys by 
Richardson (1844), reflects the early opinion 
that asper was more closely allied to the marine 
Cottoids. Girard (1851 1852) recognized its 
affinities with the fresh-water genus Cottus, but 
distinguished it from that genus by erecting the 
genus Cottopsis, based on the presence of 
palatine teeth and the "skin beset with prickles, 
instead of being smooth and scaleless." Lacking 
any specimens, Girard defined Cottopsis on the 
basis of Richardson’s original description but, 
on p. 63, where he quoted Richardson’s entire 
discussion of prickles (p. 295), he misquoted 
Richardson by attributing to him the statement, 
"There are no scales." Girard’s lack of speci- 
mens proved unfortunate since soon thereafter 
(1856£) he named and described Cottopsis 
parvus from the Presidio (in San Francisco), 
California, comparing it not with C. asper but 
with Cottopsis gulosus Girard, also newly 
described (1856^) from the San Joaquin R., 
California. In his later report (1859), Girard 
had 8 specimens of C. asper in his possession, 
from the Columbia R. and Puget Sound. 
Obviously he again failed to recognize the con- 
specificity of asper and parvus, and he followed 
Richardson’s original description rather than 
comparing them with specimens of parvus, 
which he seems to have reserved for com- 
parison with gulosus. 
Jordan (1877) referred, in passing, to Cot- 
topsis parvus as the young of C. asper. Jordan 
and Jouy (1882), however, Fsted specimens of 
Cottopsis asper from Mare Island and Sacra- 
mento R., California, and from Puget Sound 
and the Columbia R. Less than a year later, 
Jordan and Gilbert (1883) placed asper in 
the genus Uranidea DeKay, subgenus Cottopsis, 
based on the presence of palatine teeth and the 
gill membranes being broadly united to the 
isthmus. In the same report, they referred to 
the Sacramento R. form of U. asp era as "var. 
parvus, smaller in size, paler in color and with 
the interorbital space concave, narrower than 
eye." 
Eigenmann (1895) used the valid name to 
describe specimens from the Fraser and Colum- 
bia rivers, as also did Gilbert and Evermann 
(1895), who suggested that the nominal spe- 
