84 Annals of the South African Museum. 



dark streaks on centre, forming indistinct longitudinal lines on the 

 body ; top of head and snout covered with minute dark brown 

 specks. 



One specimen, 47 in length, from Durban Bay ; K. H. Barnard. 



FAMILY CHIASMODONTIDAE. 



GEN. CHAMPSODON, Giinth. 



CHAMPSODON CAPENSIS, Began. 

 Trans. Linn. Soc. Lond. Zool. xii. p. 244, 1908. 



Fine, curved, villiform teeth on each jaw; a patch on vomer, some 

 of the teeth on each side anteriorly being enlarged ; tongue strongly 

 toothed, Depth of body 5f to 6 times in total length excluding 

 caudal, length of head 3^ to 4 times ; depth of head about f its 

 length. Snout 3^ to 4 times in length of head, distance from tip of 

 snout to end of maxillary about length of head ; eye 4|- to 5 times 

 in length of head, situated in a notch of the upper profile, with one 

 or two filaments on the eyeball at its superior posterior angle, least 

 distance between eye and maxillary much less than diameter 

 of eye ; interorbital width about ^ diameter of eye, feebly con- 

 cave, with 2 rows of pores down the centre ; cleft of mouth 

 exceedingly wide, about f length of head and extending beyond 

 posterior margin of eye, lower jaw projecting and bent upwards ; 

 praemaxillaries with a double notch anteriorly ; preoperculum 

 with a few fine serrations on vertical limb, angle armed with a 

 strong lanceolate spine curving upwards ; opercular margin very 

 thin, fringed and striated ; preorbital with 2 sharp diverging 

 spines on anterior margin ; a ridge from snout passing along 

 upper margin of each orbit and across nape to suprascapula, 

 where it ends in a small spine ; one or two detached ridges on 

 head behind eye. 



Dorsal v 18-20 ; spines of 1st dorsal feeble, slightly filamentous, 

 highest anteriorly and about f to length of head ; soft dorsal higher 

 than spinous, rays slightly filamentous. Pectorals small, f length 

 of head. Ventrals | length of head, reaching to vent, 3rd and 4th 

 branched rays longest and considerably higher than the 1st. Anal 

 17, similar to soft dorsal. Caudal truncate, about length of head. 

 Scales small, strongly toothed on their posterior margin ; covering 



