Contributions to the Ichthyology of the Western Coast of the United States, from specimens in the msueum of the Smithsonian Institution

1856.]

Color. Yellow above, incllulog ^to brown, with very

numerous

small black spots; underparts of abrighteryellow throughout, withoutspots.

Dimen&ions. Length^ofhead4 lines;greatestbreadth 3 lines; length ofneck and body ^1inch 1\lines, (Fr.;) oltail 1inch 5lines; total length 3 inches¹ lines.

Ilabitat.

With

theprecedingⁱⁿ Georgia.

One

_specimen inMus.

Acad.

Nat.

Sc,

presented by Mnjor

Le

_Cunie,U.S.A.

Contributions to the Ichthyology of^the Western Coast ofthe United _States,

from

specimens^{in the}

museum

_oftheSmithsonionInstitution.

By Charles

Girard, M.^D.

Two

_{years have}scarcely elapsed since^I

communicated

to the

Academy

^de-

scriptions ofvariousfishes collected

upon

^differentpoints of the Pacific coast of North America.

Dnring

that period the indefatigable researches of several^oifi-

ccs

of the U. S.

Army,

^and naturalists attached to the surveys

made

under ordersfromtheGeneral Government, have brought to lightnuxny

new and

in- teresting

members

of thatclassof animals,

and

of

which

Ipropose

now

to give abrief account, extractedfrom finalReports,

made

to the officers in charge ^of these surveys.

Ithas alsobeen

deemed

advisabletomention such changes^ashave been

made

inthe generic position of several species previously described, either

by me

or others,ⁱⁿ ordertogive a

more

correct ideaof theReportsjust alluded^to.

Itwillbe

remembered

thatwhileI

was

_engagedinthose investigations ofour

Western

_fishes,

two

naturalists,Drs.

W.

0. Ayers

and W.

P. Gibbons, both^resi- dents of

San

_Francisco, Cal.,

had

_(without

any knowledge

^of

what

I

was

_doing,) described a certain

number

of_species,

some

of

which we

_already

know

have proved^identical with

my

^own.

The

^law of priority ^{in their} publication ^will decide

upon

^the

names

tobe_finallyadopted^{in the}nomenclature.

So

farIhave been unwilling^{to settle}

upon

anyidentificationswithoutthespecimens^togoby, inordertoavoid confusion as well as complicate ^the sj'nonymy. ^Drs. AyreK

and

_{Gibbons, both,}have

shown

anearnest desireto furnish

me

with authentic specimensof the species

which

_{they havedescribed,}

and

I

am happy

to say that fromtheformerIhave beenfavored

by

^a

good many up

^tothis day, aswill be seen further on.

For referencetothe species described

by

^Prof.Agassiz,

some

of

which

havf appearedⁱⁿ

my

papers,^itisbut_justto say^thatsuch identificationsas were at- temptedby me, were

made

fromthe accounts published^{atthat time.}

As

far a.s

genera^areconcernedIfeelconfident thatnoerror

was

committed; in regard ^to the species^Ientertain certaindoubts

which

can not be

removed by

^{the docu-} mentsatour

command.

Ihave sought^todojustice^to the subjectfromthevery beginning, and ratherthan introduce

any

changes ^{in their} present nomencla- tureIsend

them

before theworldasthey

now

stand.

With

theabovepreliminaries^Iproceedinto the subject.

The

_{speciesformerly}described

by me

under the genus Lahrax

were

_found,

upon

^furtherexamination,^{to constitute a} genus by itself, the relationship of

which

_being

more

those ofSerranusthan _{of Labrax,}

and

itis in the vicinity of the formerthat it ought ^to be placedⁱⁿthe ichthyicmethod.

From

Serranus it

may

be distinguished

by

the outline of the spinous^dorsal fin,

and

the rela- tive development^{of the}canine_taeth,

which

are so small as to have suggested the idea that the species belonged^toLabrax.

The new

_genus

we

will henceforthcall

FARALABRAX,

and

characterise as follow^:"General

physiognomy

^{that of} Labrax, but thefirst dorsalfiniscontiguous^tothesecondasinSerranus.

The

_profil of the body ^is subfusiform the caudal fin subtruncated or _slightly emarginated posteriorly.

[June, The

headissubconical, thelower

jaw

^alittlelongerthan the upper, the

mouth

rather large^;card-like teeth

upon

the premaxillaries, dentaries,

vomer and

_pala-

tines,witha

row

of smallcanineteeth along^the edges ^of the jaws.

Tongue

smooth. Small

and homogenous

spines

upon

^{the outer}curve of the preopercle.

Two

small

and

inconspicuousspines

upon

^the margin^{of the} opercle.

Edge

^of suborbital, entire;

humerus

denticulated;opercularapparatus

and

cheekscover- ed with_scales,smalleronthecheeksthan onthe opercles. ^Gill openings con- tinuousunderthe throat; branchiostegalrays, sixin number. Scalesminutely serrated posteriorly."

Paralabrax

nebulifer

and

P.

clathratus

are the

two

_species.

Dr. Ayres's Centrarchus maculosus^is

my

^C.interruptus.

A new andinterestingmemberof thegroup TrachinidoB,we inscribe into the methodunderthe appellation of

HOMALOPOMUS,

"

Thegeneralaspect of

which

iselongated, the

mouth

_large,thelower

jaw

long- est

;upper and lower jaws provided with canine ^teeth; card-like teeth on the vomer. Palatines toothless; tongue smooth. ^{Dorsal fins} separated; anterior, smallandsubtriangular; posterior,extending mostly ^{to rest} of space towards the caudal.

Anal

finlongerthandeep, situated^farback. Opercular apparatus spineless

and

_scaly;cheeks

smooth

andscaleless.

Upper

^{surfaceofheadcover-} ed withminutescales. Scalescovering^the

body

^ofmoderate development with posteriormarginentire,

and

smooth. Gill openings continuous under^thehead;

branchiostegals,^sixinnumber."

A

single species^is

known,

^severalspecimens ^of

which

were examined, ^{all of}

which

were collected at Astoria,

Oregon

Territory,

by

^Lt.

W.

P.Trowbridge,

U._{S. A., to}

whom

Itake pleasureⁱⁿ dedicating^it.

HoMALOPOMUS

TROWBRIDGII

hasthe"snoutpointed, the

mouth

_deeplycleft,

and

the posterior extremity of the raaxillariesextending^tothevertical lineof the posterioredge^{of the}puj)il.

The

eyes arelarge.

The

_tipsof the pectoral^finsreachasfarasthe anterior margin of the analfin.

The

colorisgreyish

brown

_above,

and

_silverygreybeneath."

Inthe Cottoidgroupthere are glorious additions. In the first place ^I have

had

_{the great}satisfactionof identifying,fromactual specimens, the Coitus asper of Sir

John

Richardson,

and

to describeit comparatively with^theother

members

of the

same

_genus.

Amongst

^{the trulymarine}representatives^I will first introducea type

which

seemsto bear

much

closeraffinitiestothe freshwater genera than

was

_anticipa-

ted.

In

naming

^it

OLIGOCOTTUS,

allusionis

made

_{chiefly to}its diminutive size.

We

have^fullevidence that the specimensbefore us are_adults,

and

consequently havenot hesitated in the se- lection of thatname.

We

areaware, however,^that further search might bring tonotice other species not quite so small

and

still of the

same

_{generic stamp.}

On

the otherhand,^theetymology^{of a}

name

isofbutlittleavail towards eluci- dating the history of the object ^it designates.

The

natural characters of the genus ^willreadas follows^:

"Head

smooth, with ^the exception of afew_spines

upon

the preopercle

and

snout.

Upper jaw

slightly the longest. Teeth

upon

the premaxillaries, dentaries, front of

vomer and

_palatines. Gill openings continuous under the throat; branchiostegals ^six. Dorsal fins contiguous.

Caudal

posteriorlyrounded. Insertionof ventrals

backwards

thebase _{of pec-} torals. Origin of anal^fininadvanceof the anteriormargin ^ofsecond dorsal.

Skin smooth,lateral linecontinuousforthewhole length^{of the}body."

OlIGOCOTTUS MACCLOSnS.

being^theonlyspecies

known

at present,

we

will characterize it

by

saying^:

" that the

mouth

ismoderately^cleft; the posteriorextremity ^{of the} maxillary extending^{toa verticalline}intersecting the pupil.

A

stoutishbicuspidprocessus

on

theconvexityof the preopercle.

Two

acute nasal _spines. Anterior dorsal lower thanthesecondor posterior. Yellowish

brown

above, mottled^{or varie-} gated with blackish; along^{the dorsal}region^aseriesofblotches of adeeperhue;

lowerhalf of the sidesvermiculated.

Abdomen

of a _bright saffron or yellow

hue

inthemale. Inferiorsurfaceof

head

withtracesofblack

markings

^;throat

and abdomen

_unicolor, as also the ventrals

and

anal. Dorsals, caudal,

and

pectorals transversallybarred."

Ithasbeen observed onseveral points of the coast

between

the

bay

^of

San

Francisco, Cal., toPuget Sound,

W.

T. In 1854, afewdriedup specimens

were

taken nearPresidio

by

^Lt.

W.

P. Trowbridge, but their precarious ^{state of} keeping^didnot permit usto classifythem.

The same was

thecasewith those collected atFortSteilacoom

by

^Dr.Geo. Suckley. ^{It is} but veryrecently that well preserved specimens,^collected

by

^B.Samuels,ⁱⁿ

Tomales

_{Bay,Cal.,having} reached_us,

we

have been prepared^todeterminetheir position in the ichthyic method.

The

fishmentioned

by

^Dr.Ayres

under

the

name

of Acanthocottusinermis_jiroyes tobe

my Leptocottus

armatus.

Next

inorderisanother

and

_entirely

new

_genus,for

which

the

name

of

LEIOCOTTUS,

hasbeenselected,

more

particularlyⁱⁿreference toits

smooth

_aspect. Itschar- acters are^:"

head

_pei'fectly

smooth

: spines

upon

^the preopercle only.

Mouth

moderately ^cleft: jaws equal. Teeth

upon

^the premaxillaries, dentaries

and

frontof the

vomer

;

none on

the palatines. Barbules

upon

^the maxillaries.

Gillopenings continuous under ^thethroat; branchiostegal rays^five. Dorsals nearlycontiguous

upon

^{theirbases. Ventrals inserted}

backwards

of thebase of tlie pectorals.

Caudal

posteriorly subtruncated. Skin _perfectly smooth, bearingneither pricklesnorscales. Laterallinewell

marked and

continuous

from head

totail."

The

_species

which

has

come

under

my

observation has so

much

ofthe aspect of Trigla that the specific

name

of

Leiocottus hirundo

suggested^{itselfforit."}

The

snoutisdeclivous

and

rather pointed; the poste- riorextremity ^{of the} maxillary^is provided with

two

or three barbules

and

reaches averticalline

drawn

alittle

beyond

the anteriorrimoftheorbit.

Su-

perior regionsblackish

brown

;

abdomen

whitish beneath; inferior part of^tail

yellow."

It

was

collected

by

^Lt.

W.

P. Trowbridge, ^{U. S.} A. at the island of

San

Miguel, Cal.

Dr.Ayres'Ilemitriptcrus marmoratus,^is

my

Scorpj^nichthys

marmoratus,

Clypcocottus robustus of the

same

_author,is

my

^{Aspicottusbison.}

The

_speciesdescribed

by me

as Scorpcenichthys^lateralis

was

subsequently ^re- ferred

by

^Dr.Ayres^{to a}

new

_genusof his

under

thedenominationofCalycilepi- dotus_lateralLi,together with anotherspecies at thattime

unknown

tome, under the

name

ofC._spi/iosus.

On

a former occasionDr. Ayres

had announced

the presence^of

two

_{species of}hemilepidoti ^inthe

Bay

^of

San

_Francisco, for

which

he proposed ^the

names

of II. nebulosus

and H.

_spinosus.

My

Scorpcemchihys lateralis

was

subsequently^identified

by

^{himselfto his If.} nebulosus,

and

it

was

thenthat thegenus Calycilepidotusappeared with

two

_species: C. spinosus

and

C. ^lateralis.

G. spinosus^Ihave_carefullyexamined,

and

I

am

^satisfiedthatitsproperplace isinthe genusIlemilepidotus,ascharacterised

by

^Cuvier. In order,however, tofurnish reliabledatatogo upon, ^I

must

be permitted^{to offer}a _diagnosis of of thatgenus^asit

now

stands.

10

[June,

Hemilepidotus.

''

Head rough and

prickly,with

membranous

flapsonvarious parts; opercu- larapparatusspinous.

Mouth

_{moderatelycleft; jawsequal.} Teeth

upon

^the premaxillaries, dentaries, front of

vomer and

_palatines. Gill openings sepa- ratedbeneath

by

^{an isthmus}; branchiostegals, ^sixoneitherside. Dorsal fins contiguous. Caudal

rounded

posteriorly. Insertion of ventrals opposite the baseof pectorals. Longitudinal bandsof scales alternatingwith

nacked

areas;

scalesthemselves_finelydenticulated."

Hemilepidotus spinosus

'has

membranous

flapsontheupper^surface

and

sidesof the head.

The

_eyes are quite large.

The

_posterior free extremity^{of the} maxillary extends ^{to a} vertical line

drawn

atthe posterior rimof the pupil. Dorsal

band

of scales

composed

^{ofsixrowsorseries;lateral}

band

_{of seven,}five

below and two

above thelateral line.

Ground

colordark reddish brown, with darker^transversebands

and

blotches."

Specimens^labelled

by

^Dr.Ayres

were

collectedinthe

Bay

^of

San

Francisco, Oal.,

by

^Dr.

John

S.

Newberrv

; others in

Humboldt

_Bav,

by

^Lt.

W.

P.

Trow-

bridge, U.^S.A.

"

So much

for Calycilepidotusspinosus^{: itis}a trueHemilepidotus.

As

^toC.lateralis, thesecondspecies of Dr.Ayres' genus,a careful study has convinced

me

thatitisnotspecificallyidenticalwith

my

Scorpcenichthys^lateralis.

Subsequentinvestigations of

more

_{perfectsi^ecimens}have convinced

me

of the propriety of

removing

^{thelatterfrom the}genusScorpsenichthys,

and

sinceI

had

uo specimens of Hemilepidotusnebulosus, Ayres, {Calycilepidotus lateralis,Ayres,

non

mihi)

by which

^{to determineits}genericaffinities,Ihavebeen compelled^to institute, underthe

name

of

Artedius,

a

new

_genus^toreceive

two

_species,theoneabovereferredto,

and

_formerlyde- scribed

by me

as Scorpcenichlhyslateralis,

and

another

which

sofar

had

remained unnoticed.

The

following are ^itscharacters:

"

Head

rough, withsupra-orbital

membranous

flaps. Spines

upon

the preopercle only.

Mouth

_moderatelycleft;

lower

jaw

slightly overlapped

by

^the upper. Teeth

upon

^the premaxillaries, dentaries, front ofvomer,

and

palatines. Gill openings continuous under ^the throat; branchiostegals^fiveoneitherside. Dorsalfinsseparated. Caudal sub- truncatedposteriorly. Insertionofventrals opposite the baseof the pectorals.

A

dorsal

band

of pectinated scales."

Artedius

lateralis.

Scorpcenichthyslateralis, Grd.,hasthe"surfaceof thehead smooth. Preopercle

armed

withaflatbicuspidspine.

Band

of dorsal scalesnarrow,originating at the thoracicarch

and

_extendingtoneartheterminusof the baseofthesecond dorsal. Anterior

margin

^{of first}dorsal situatedinadvanceof the thoracic arch.

Deep chesnut

brown

above, maculated with_yellowish; beneathyellowish."

Specimens ^{collected at}

San

Luis _Obispo, Cal..

by

^Lt.

W.

P.Trowbridge,^U.

S.A.

Artedius

notospilotus

is characterised

by

^{the"surfaceof the}

head

being subtuberculous

and

_scaly.

Preopercle

armed

withaflat tricuspid spine. Anterior

margin

^{offirst dorsal} situatedinadvanceof thebeginningof the dorsal

band

of_scales,

which

isbroad

and

extends fromthe thoracicarchtoneartheterminusof thebaseofthesecond dorsal. Olivaceous,withaseriesof saddle-like black_patches.

Abdomen

dull yellowor white."

Collected

by

^E.

Samuels

in

Tomales

_Bay, Cal.

Sebastes_ruber,Ayres,^is

my

Sebastes rosaceus.

Sebasies_nebulosus,Ayres,^is

my

^{Sebastespasciatus.}

Sebastes variabilis,Ayres(notCuvier)^is

my

Sebastes auriculatus.

1856.]

Sebastes melanops,.1,

isa species hithertonudcscribed,

and which we

thus characterise: "

Upper

^sur- faceof

head

generally spineless. Posterior extremity^of maxillaryreaching ^a vcrticalline

drawn

_interiorlyto the posteriorrimof theorbit. Origin of dorsal finopposite or^else slightly inadvanceofthebaseof the pectorals.

Upper

^re- gions blackish

brown

; sides brownish, spotted with black; beneath _greyish brown."

Specimens were

collected at

Cape

Flattery,

W.

_T.,

and

at Astoria, 0.^T.. bv Lt.

W.

P. Trowbridge,^U.S.A.

A

fineadditiontothegroupof Heterolepids instituted in1854 with

two

_genera.

Chirus

and

_Ophiodon,isthe

new

_genus

OPLOPOMA,

characterised

by an

^"elongated body,

membranous

_flaps abovethe_orbits,

and

spinesonthe preopercle.

The

snoutisconical

;the

mouth

_large,

and

thelower

jaw

the longest. Canineteeth

upon

the premaxillaries, dentaries, front of

vomer aud

the palatines. ^Gillopenings continuous;branchiostegals^sixoneitherside.

Dorsalfinscontiguous.

Caudal

posteriorly subcrescentic or^else concave. In- sertionof ventralsalittleposterior tothe _pectorals.

Body

^covered

by

^small cycloid scales."

Oplopoma

pantheeina,

theonlyspecies hitherto

known,

^{hasthe "}upper^surface

and

sidesof the

bead

granular.

The

preopercular spines are few, small

and

blunt. Posterior ex- tremity ^ofmaxillary extending

beyond

^{the orbit.} Origin ^of anterior dorsal situatedin

advance

of theconvexity^ofthei^reopercle. Scalesextending over thebase ofboththecaudal

and

_pectoralfins. Blackish

brown

_above, reddish

brown

beneath. Dorsal

and

lateralregions spottedwithblack."

Specimens^{of this} species

were

collected

by

^Lt.

W.

P.Trowbridge,^at

Cape

Flattery,

W.

T.

Gastbrosteus

serratus, Ayres,^I

have

investigatedcarefully,

and

found_speci- ficallydistinctfromitscongeners.

Idescribeanother_speeiesakintoit

and

G._plebeius.

Gasterosteus

inteemedius

having^{the "}

body

plated ^all over; the peduncle^{of the tail keeled.} Dorsal spines three,moderateindevelopment

and

inconspicuouslj- serrated

upon

^their edges^{; anterior}oneinsertedimmediately behind^thebaseofthe pectorals. In- sertion of ventrals irnder thesecond dorsal spine;their

own

_spinebeingserrated

upon

^bothedges,

more

conspicuously above than below,

and

their extremities not extending^{as faras the} tipsofthe ossa innominata. Posterior

margin

^of caudal concave."

Inhabits

Cape

Flattery,

W.

_T.,

where

it

was

collected

by

^Lt.

W.

P.Trowbridge, U.S.A.

Finally,

under

the

name

of

Gasterosteus

_pugetti,

Iintroducea

new

_speciesin

which

the "

body

^is onlyplated in _part. Dorsal spines three, slender,notserrated

upon

^theiredges; anterior inserted

immedi-

ately behind the baseof pectorals. Insertion of ventrals in advanceof the seconddorsal spine;their

own

_{spinebeingslender,}crenated

upon

^itsedges

and

extending

beyond

^thetipsofthe os.w innorainata. Posterior

margin

^ofcaudal slightlyemarginated."

Fort Steilacoom,

Puget

Sound,

W.

T.;collected

by

^Dr.Geo. Suckley,^U.S.A.

Leiostomuslineattts,Ayres, has

come

within

my

observation.

The

_speciesis characteristic.

Specimens

^ofit

were

_brought

home by

Dr.J.S. Newberry.

Leptogunellus

_gracilis,Ayres,^Ihave likewise

examined

on specimens ^col- lected

by

^Dr.

Newberry and

^labelled

by

Dr. Ayres.

[June,

GOBIUS

NEWBERRTI

isa small

and

_{verygi-acefulspecies ofGoby,}hithertoundescribed.

The

_average

sizeof

many

specimens observed^isabout

two

inches or_less,the

head

_forming the fourth of thetotallength.

The

firstdorsal iscontiguous^{to the} second at itsbase,

and

isconsiderably lower than^thelatter.

The mouth

is deeply cleft, the posterior extremity^{of the} maxillary extending ^to a vertical line passing posteriorly to the^orbit.

The

origin of the analissituated alittlebehind the anterior

margin

^{of thesecond dorsal:} bothfinsterminate _{evenly, as}farascon- cerns the_tips of the posterior rays.

The

caudal forms the fifthofthe total length.

The ground

^colorisolivaceous,buttheupperregionsappear ^blackish withisolated spots of the

ground

^color; theinferiorregions are unicolor.

Atherina_storeri,Ayres,^is

my

Atherinopsiscaliforniensis.

Rhacocheilus

toxotes, Agass.,

was

identified on a specimen^collected

by

^E.

Samuels

in

Tomales

_Bay.

Hysterocarpus

_traskii. Gibbons, could be recognized on^aspecimen^collected atFort

Reading by

^{Drs.J. F.}

Hammond and John

S.Newberry.

Another

_speci-

men

fromthe

same

_locality

had no

irregular transversebands_{of black,}but

was

almostunicolor.

Another

_{species ofviviparousfish,}

Embiotoca

argyrosoma,

iseasily distinguishedfromits congener

by

^{the brilliant} argentine ^tintofits entirebody,

though made

alittledarker along^{the dorsal}region

by

a greyish or pinkish hue.

The

_generalformiselongated; ^theheadrather small, subconical,

rounded

anteriorly,

and

contained four times

and

ahalfin thetotal length.

The

caudal isdeeply ^forked.

The

_{posterior extremity}of theanal extends a little

more

posteriorlythanthe dorsal.

The

_tipsof the pectorals reacha ver- tical linepassing

beyond

the origin of the anal. Specimens

were

collected at

San

_{Francisco,Cal.,}

by

^Lt.

W.

P.Trowbridge, ^U.S.A.

Osmerus

elongatus,Ayres,hasbeen collected at

San

_{Francisco,Cal.,}

by

^Dr.

John

S.Newberry.

The

_specimens

were

identified

by

^Dr. Ayres.

A mostimportant(Iwasalmost goingto say unexpected)discovery of awhite fishwas made bythe party onthe R. R.Surveyof CaliforniaandOregon,com- manded byLt.R.S. Williamson. And since it is different from its hitherto

known

_congener,

we

will callit

COREGONUS

WILLIAMSONI,

as

commemorative

of thatSurvey. ^Its

head

is rather small,being contained aboutfivetimes inthetotallength,

which

measureseleven inches.

The mouth

isvery^small

and

the posteriorextremity^ofthemaxillary does not extend^asfar

back

as the anteriorrim oftheorbit.

The

scalesare large; eighteen

rows

of

them may

^{be counted}

between

the anterior

margin

^{ofthe dorsal}

and

the inser- tionof the ventrals^: nineabovethelateralline,

and

eightbelowit.

The

lateral line,itself, isperfectlystraight.

The

caudalfinforked as usual.

The

_pectorals are rather small. ^Ihavealludedtothe colorinsaying^it

was

awhitefish;

add

toita bluishgrey

hue

_alongthe back. It

was

collected

by

^Dr.

Newberry

ⁱⁿ theDes Chutesriver, a tributary of theColumbia.

In adding^a second _species^to the genus Platichthys, the diagnose^{of this} genus

must

be modifiedso as toread:

"

eyes

on

either the right or^left side,"

for

Platichthys umbrosus,

which

isthe

new

_species referred _to,hag its eyes on the _right,whilst in the speciesformerlydescribed,they^are ontheleft. Itcan also readilybe distin- guished from^itscongenerⁱⁿ having^the

body

completely covered with scales, onthe surface of

some

of

which

prickles or asperities are observed.

The

_speci-

men

before us measures seveninches

and

a_half,isof auniformblackish

brown hue

onthe right side

and

light

brown

on theleft. It

was

collected

by

^Lt.

W.

P. Trowbridge,^U.S. A., at

Cape

Flattery,

W.

T.

1856.]

I

have

likewise asecond _{species to}

add

to

my

genus Pleuronichthys, taking thisopportunityof correcting a lapsuslingiice

which

occurredinthe diagnosis of itsgeneric characters^: "teethvery inconspicuous, occupyingthe colorless side of thejaws,"^{instead of}bothsides of thejaw.

That

this

was

a

mere

accident willappear obvious

by

readingthe charactersgiven ^toParophrys,ⁱⁿ

which

an allusionis

made

tothetruestateof things inPleuronichthys.

Pleuronichthys

suttulatus,

appears^tobeasmaller_species than itscongener^{; it isalso} deeper, ^less elon- gated,hence

more

of a subcylindricalgeneral^form.

The

eyes are situated

on

the right^side.

The

origin of the dorsal finis not _quite even with the anterior

margin

^oftheorbit,

and

inthat respect the generic diagnosis will

undergo

^a slight modification.

The

_largestspecimens observed

measure

alittleoverthree inches.

The ground

^colorappearsgreyish black, over

which

are scattered light spots ajipearing^likeas

many

dropsirregularly dispersed.

Specimens were

^col- lected in

Tomales Bay by

^E.Samuels.

A

_specimen of Ophidium, in a too precariousstate of preservation to be de- terminedspecifically,

was

found

by

^Lt.

W.

P.Trowbridge,^atS.Farallones,near

San

Francisco.

Another was

collected

by

^Dr.Suckley^at Shoalwater Bay,

W.

T.,apparently^ofthe

same

_species.

We

havealso tomention a Sandlaunee, under the

name

of

Ammodytes

personatus,

thegeneralaspect of

which

isshorterthanits congeners, although

theform and

outlineof the

body

^arenotmaterially ^different.

We

perceive

no

teeth on the palat.

The

_{posteriorextremity}of themaxillary extends^toaverticalline

which

intersectstheanterior rimoftheorbit.

The

origin of the dorsal^{fin is}situated anteriorly to the tips ofthe pectorals.

The

base of the caudal fin is black.

Specimens were

collected at

Cape

Flattery,

W.

_T.,

by

Lt.

W.

P. Trowbridsre.

U.S. A.

Syngnathus

californiensiSj Storer,

was

received from Monterey, Cal.,

through

^{the care ofA. S.} Taylor.

The

specimen^is

somewhat

_imperfect;it isthe largest of those

which we

have ex-

amined

from thePacific coast.

AcciPBNSBR acutirosteis,Ayres,

was brought home by

Dr.Newberry, the specimen

having

^beenlabelled

by

^Dr.

Ayres

ⁱⁿ

San

_Francisco,

where

thespecimen

was

_procured.

AciPENSER

MEDiROSTRis,Ayrcs,

was

receivedinthe

same manner

as the _pre- ceding.

AoiPENSER

TRANSMONTANUS,Rich.,from the

Columbia

_river,hasbeencollected

by

^Dr.Suckley.

We

conclude

by

referring toa ray^of aremarkable genus,

Rhinoptera

vespertilio,

which was

caught ⁱⁿ

Tomales

Bay,

by

^{E. Samuels.}

The

_specimen before us measures nineteen inches

and

a halffrom the extremity ^ofthe

mouth

to the tipofthe_tail,sixinches

and

three quartersbeing ^the length ^ofthe

body and head

_together.

The

width fromthe_tipofone_pectoralfintotheotheristwelve inches. Thereisa smalldorsalfinsituated

upon

the anterior portion of the tail, followed

by

a flattened spearshaped spine, serrated

upon

^its edge.

The

tailisvery attenuated, flagelliform, tapering^into a filiform extremity.

The

cephalicregion^isaslong^asthe rest of thebody. ^Itsanterior outlineisround- ed.

The

_{eyes are}very prominent

and somewhat

raised above the surface of thehead.

The

respiratory apertures, ^fivein

number

are transversally elonga- ted

and

_arranged

upon an

open ^curve.

The

_lipsare fringed.

The

color is of an uniformbluishslateabove; dullwhitish beneath.