COUCH S POLYPRION. 



1.9 



ACAKTHOPTERYGU. 



PERL IDJE. 



COUCH'S POLYPRION. 



Polyprion cernium, Cuv. et VALENC. Hist, des Poiss. t. iii. p. 21, pi. 42. 

 M. A. VALENC. Mem. du Mus. t. xi. p. 265, pi. 17. 

 Amphiprion Americanus, SCHNEIDER, Syst. Ichth. p. 205. 



,, Australe, 



ScorptEtia Massiliensis, 



Serranus Couchii, 



pi. 47. 



Risso, Ichth. p. 184. 



Stone Basse, COUCH, Linn. Trans, vol. xiv. p. 81. 

 Couch's Serranus, Brit. Fish. vol. i. p. 12. 

 ,, ,, JENYNS, Brit. Vert. p. 334. 



Generic Characters. A single elongated dorsal fin, the rays of the anterior 

 portion rather short and spinous, those of the secondary portion longer and 

 flexible ; branchiostegous rays 7 ; small incurved teeth on the bones of botli 

 jaws, on the palatine bones, and on the vomer, with some elongated teeth 

 among the smaller ones ; cheeks, operculum, the whole of the body, the base 

 of the flexible portion of the dorsal and anal fin, and the base of the tail covered 

 with small rigid scales, serrated at the free margin ; suborbital bone, preoper- 

 culum, and operculum below the line of the pectoral fin, denticulated ; opercu- 

 lum above the line of the pectoral fin traversed by a single strong horizontal 

 bony ridge ending in a point directed backwards ; over the eye, over the oper- 

 culum, and over the origin of the pectoral fin, a semicircular row of short 

 spines ; the first ray of the ventral fin, and the first three rays of the anal fin, 

 furnished also with small short spines. 



IN the first edition of the History of British Fishes I ven- 

 tured to consider the Stone Basse of Mr. Couch, of which 



c 2 



