8 



Fam. PLEURONECTID.^. 



Pseudorhombus natalensis, n.sp. 



(Plate XX\;) 



D. 6;. A. 52. V. 6. L. 1. 62. 



• Head 3^ times, depth of body a little over two times in 

 length of body, without caudal. Diameter of eye i length of 

 head. Eyes on left .side, the lower slightly in advance of the 

 upper, close together, divided only by a ridge. The distance of 

 lower from the end of the snout is li in the diameter of the eye. 

 The lower jaw^ projects slightly beyond upper. The posterior 

 end of the maxillary falls in the vertical between the anterior 

 margin and the centre of the eye. Teeth : about 20 in lower 

 jaw, a few more in upper, slightly more developed on blind side. 



The dorsal hn commences in front of the upper eye, just 

 behind a small indentation on the snout. The first ray is 

 partially free, being attached to an inter-radial membrane for 

 about i of its length, the second to the fifth approach gradually 

 the form of the remaining rays, viz., with tips free only. All 

 the rays are simple but the last two, which are small and 

 bifurcate. The longest is in the posterior third, and is 2f in 

 length of head. The anal has the last three rays branched. 

 Left pectoral is if in length of head, the right pectoral a little 

 more than one-half the left. The pre-anal spine is very slight. 

 C-audal is w'edge-shaped, with upper and lower border of 

 posterior margin slightly concave. 



Scales : Ctenoid on the left, cycloid on the right side. 

 Lateral line with strong anterior curve for about ^ of its 

 length, the height of the curve being a little more than l ^^s 

 length ; the nucal branch ends about f of the way tow^ards the 

 8th ray of the dorsal fin ; a branch starting from the same 

 origin, proceeds to the interorbital region, giving off on its way 

 another branch towards the pre-operculum. 



Colour: Body covered with dark brown ring-shaped spots of 

 fairly constant arrangement. Heads and fins with smaller 

 spots. 



Length of the largest specimen (including caudal), 132 mm. 



Locality: Cape Natal bearing W. by N., distant 6^ miles; 

 'depth, 54 fathoms ; bottom, fine sand. 



Pseudorhombus. 



The apparent generic characters of this fish may be described 

 as follows : — Eyes partly on left side, the upper occupying a 

 crescentic gap between the dorsal fin and the heiid, and nearly 

 in the vertical middle line of the head ; mouth wide, the length 



