THE FISHES OF MALABAR. 3 



B. vii. D. *$$*. P. 18. V.},. A. f. C. 17. L, r. about 100. 



Length of head \, of pectoral ], of caudal };, of base of dorsal §, of base of anal J of the total 

 length. Height of head J, of body ^, of hard dorsal J, of soft dorsal I, of ventral I, of anal J of 

 the total length. 



Eyes — Transversely oval, longest diameter I length of head, {of a diameter apart, \ of a 

 diameter from end of snout. 



Maxilla extends to beneath tho centre of the orbit, preorbital entire : preopercle strongly 

 serrated at the posterior portion of its vertical limb, two strong teeth at its angle, the 

 superior directed backwards, tho inferior which is tho strongest directly downwards ; inferior 

 limb horizontal, entire. Operclc with three spines, the central flat, strong, distinct, the inferior 

 less developed, the superior almost concealed. Sub- and interopercles entire. 



Teeth — Villiform in upper and lower jaws, vomer and palate, an external larger band in 

 superior maxilla, and a large canine on either side of each intermaxillary : teeth in centre of 

 lower jaw largest, whilst all are directed more or less backwards. 



Fins — First dorsal spine t 3 q shorter than the second, which is jfo shorter than the third, from 

 thence the rest of the spines and the first thirteen soft rays are about the same height. Anal, first 

 spine half the height of the second, which is stronger than, but of the same length, as the third ; 

 and they are t 3 q shorter than the soft rays. Fins rounded. 



Lateral line — In upper fifth of body, and on about the twentieth row of scales. 



Colours — Brownish with a dash of pink on the back, and becoming of a pinkish rose colour 

 on the abdomen. Six vertical dark bands, one passing over the head ; the second from fourth to 

 sixth spine passes downwards over the pectoral to the base of the ventral ; the third from between 

 the eighth and eleventh spines is lost midway between ventral and anal fins; the fourth arising 

 opposite from the third to seventh dorsal rays, passes to base of spines and first soft ray of anal ; 

 the fifth arising between the tenth to the fourteenth soft dorsal rays passes down to last four rays 

 of anal ; the sixth passes over the tail just before the origin of the caudal fin. A black line passes 

 from the lower margin of the orbit to the angle of the preopercle. Fins stained darker at 

 their margins, and the bands partially continued on to them. Eye rose coloured. 



Small in size, nearly eight inches in length, being the largest captured in Cochin. In Sir 

 Emerson Tennent's collection of drawings of the " Fishes of Ceylon" is one apparently of this 

 species, with a remark that the specimen was four feet and a half in length. 



Habitat — Seas of India, and Malaysia. 



Serranus bontoo. 



Serranus bontoo, Cuv. & Vol. ii. p. 334, vi. p. 523; Cantor, Catal. p. 11 ; Giintlier, 



Catal. i. p. 138. 

 Madinawa bontoo, Russell, pi. 128. 



B. vii. D. T ^ TT . P. 19. V. l. A. f. C. 17. L. r. about 100. 



Length of head \, of pectoral -£ s , of caudal \, of base of dorsal f , of base of anal \ of total 

 length. Height of head \, of body \, of hard dorsal j 1 ^, of soft dorsal ^, of ventral \ , of anal \ of 

 total length. 



Eyes — Diameter } of length of head, the two slightly approximate at their upper margins, 

 where they are \ of the length of the head apart, and the same distance from the end of the 



snout. 



Posterior extremity of maxilla extends to slightly behind the orbit. Preorbital entire. Pre- 



b 2 



