﻿FISHES.-MCCULLOCH. 



37 



extending to or beyond the vertical of the anterior margin of 

 the eye. Preorbital narrow. Eye moderate, placed a little 

 above the mid-line of the head. Opercular bones very weak, 

 and with smooth margins in all my specimens, but they are 

 doubtless subject to the same variation as in 5. brama. 

 Posterior margin of the preoperculum oblique and usually a 

 little emarginate, the angle produced and broadly rounded ; 

 operculum terminating in a very thin flat point margined with 

 skin. 



Dorsal fin commencing a little behind the vertical of the 

 base of the pectoral ; the spinous portion is low and the middle 

 spines are the longest. The third or fourth rays are the 

 longest, but are shorter than the distance between the tip of 

 the snout and the hinder margin of the eye. The two first 

 spines of the anal are very small and more or less hidden in 

 the skin ; the third is longer and adpressed to the first ray. 

 Soft portion of the fin similar to, but lower than that of the 

 dorsal. Pectoral falcate not nearly reaching the vertical of 

 the vent. Ventrals small, inserted just behind the pectorals 

 and reaching one-third or more of the distance between them 

 and the anal. Caudal forked. 



Colour. — Body with numerous small round spots along the 

 middle line, and a large dark mark behind the head, near the 

 base of the lateral line, which is deeper than broad. A dark 

 vertical bar across the eye. Pectorals, dorsal and anal fins 

 dusky, especially towards their margins. Ventrals and caudal 

 lighter. 



Longest specimen 280 mm. 



Seriolella porosa, Guichenot,! is said to differ from S. 

 punctata in being more slender, the depth being 4 to 4^ in the 

 length as against 3! to 3I. The original figure of that species, 

 however, agrees very well in this respefct with my specimens 

 of 5. punctata. Regan^ considers the Tasmanian -S'. dobula, 

 Giinther, to be synonymous with S. porosa, and I think it 

 possible that both will prove to be merely variations of 

 Forster's species, though I have seen no specimens in which 

 the depth is 4^ in the length as described by Giinther. 



Two specimens were preserved which were taken between 

 Port Stephens and Newcastle, New South Wales, 22-60 

 fathoms, and seven others from the Victorian coast and from 

 Oyster Bay, Tasmania. 



1 Guichenot in Gay— Fauna Ohilena, Pisces, 1847, p. 238; Atlas ii., Ichth. 



pi. vii., fig. 2. 



2 Regan-Ann. Mag. Nat Hist. (7), x., 1902, p. 128. 



