Notes on sharks from the coast of California

PEOCEEDINGS OF UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. 51

A

second example of Xystreurys liolepis,taken at Santa Barbara,is sinistral.

The

species is, therefore, like Faraliclitliys maculosus

and

Flatk'hthysstellatus, both dextral andsinistral. Inthesecond example the small accessoryscales are extremelynumerous.

Two more

examples ofthespecies, noticed

by

us asPlatysomatlcJithys sfomiasj have been obtained in trawl-nets from near the Farallones.

This speciesis apparentlynot congeneric with Flatysomatichthys hippo- glossoides, differing inthe long

and

slender gill-rakers

and

the ctenoid scales, aswell as in the dentition,narrow interorbital space,

and

other minordetails.

The

largeteethin both jaws,

and

the smallteeth inthe outer

row

in the upperjaw, are distinctlyarrotc-sliaped, being abruptly widened towardthe tip,thence acutely triangular.

We

propose to consider this species asthe tyjie of a distinct genus, which

may

be termedAtheresthes, fromthearrow-shapedteeth. It

may

be thus defined

:

Atheresthesgeu.nov.

Eyes and

color on the right side.

Body

long

and

slender, closely compressed, taperinginto a long

and

slendercaudal peduncle.

Mouth

extremely large, oblique, the long

and

narrow maxillary extending

beyond

the eye.

Both

jawswith twoirregular seriesofunequal, sharp teeth, which are anteriorly long

and

slender,posteriorly short. All the longteeth ofboth jaws,

and

the outer seriesofsmallteeth inthe upper jaw, arrow-shaped.

Some

of theanterior teeth freely depressible. In- terorbitalspace narrow. Gill-rakerslong

and

strong,numerous. Scales comparatively large, ciliated,thin,

and

readily deciduous, those on the blindside similar, smooth. Lateral line without arch. Fins low

and

ratherfragile,the dorsalbeginning over the eye,its anteriorrayslow.

Caudal lunate; no analspine. Pectorals

and

ventralssmall, the latter bothlateral.

Type,Flatysomatichthys stomias Jor.

&

^Gilb.

NOTKS

OIV

SHARKS

FROITI

THE COAST OF

CAI.IFORJVIA

By DAVID

S.

JORDAN and CKAS. H. OII.BERT.

The

following speciesofsharks,not hitherto recordedfromthe Pacific coast of theUnited States, have been observed

by

thewriters during thei^resent winter (1880)

:

1. Isurus oxyrhynchus Eafinesque._(?)

The

jaws ofa speciesofIsitruswere obtained

by

us at

San

Pedro, the shark having been taken off Santa Catilina Island.

The

teethagree essentially with those of Isurus oxyrhynchus

{Lamna

spallanzani of authors). Isurus glaucushas,however, also the

same

dentition, hence

we

areunableexactly to determinethespecies.

52 PROCEEDINGS OF UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM.

2. Carcharodoii rondeleti Miiller

&

Henle.

—

Man-eater Shark.

A

large iudividualof^tliis species

was

lately barj)oone(l atthewlialiug stationof Poiut Carmelo, nearMonterey; Its ja\ys,

now

in theposses- sionof Mr. A. C. Keating, a drnggist at Monterey, are about twofeet across.

Schools ofthis species are said tobe occasionallynoticed intheopen seafromMonterey southward.

3. Cetorhinus maximus (Linnaeus)Blainville.

—

Baffling Shark; GroundShai'k.

An

individual of this species, 31 feet in length,

was

taken

March

25

by

the whalers at Monterey,

and

another

somewhat

larger on

March

26. Several otherswere noticed,but only

two

were secured.

We

are toldthateighteen or twentyyearsago several of

them

were taken at Monterey, sincewhich timefewornonehave beennoticedin the bay.

4. Carcharhinus glaucus (L.) Blainville.

—

Blue Shark.

A youngindividual of this species, taken in San FranciscoBay, isin themuseum of theCalifornia Academyof Sciences. A"Blue Shark"

isfoundin theopen sea along thesouthern coastof California,butIdo not

know

whetherit isthis species.

5. Galeorhinus galeus (L.) Blainville.

As

already noticed, this speciesisthe most abundantsharkofSouth- ern California. It is

common

at Santa Barbara,

and

I

am

toldisnot nnfrequentlytakenat Monterey.

6. Galeocerdo tigrinus Miiller

&

Henle.

—

Man-eater Sharl.

As

already noticed

by

us,jaws of an individual of this specieswere seen

by

us at

San

Diego,nearwhichplacetheanimal

was

obtained.

7. Cephaloscyllium laticeps (Dum^ril) Gill.

—

GroundShark.

The

occurrence ofthis species at

San

Pedro has been already noticed

by

us.

At

Santa Barbara it is, nextto Triads semifasciatus, themost abuudautof thesharks. Itistheretaken daily inthelobster-pots set forthe " craw-fish^" {PaUnurusinterruptus). Itshabit of inflatingitself,

when

caught,

hy

swallowingair, is veryremarkable.

8. Pleuracromylonlaevis (Eisso) Gill.

Two

specimens of this specieshave been obtained

by

usatMonterey.

One

of them, afemale, taken

March

26,

had

the

young

about8 inches long,each of

them

connected

by

a long umbilical cord to a placenta whichisattached tothe uterus.

The

occurrence of thisshark, in con- nection with its relative, Mustelus hinnuhcs{vulgaris^ canis, etc.),on the Pacific coast, is veryinteresting.

March

26, 1880.