FAMILY, V— SPARID^. 141 



Spams hasta ■with eleven dorsal spines and /Sjj. benla, Forsk." (Gunther, Catal. i, p. 491). Professor Peters 

 having shown me a specimen 14| inches long with Bl. Schn.'s name Sparus hasta on it, marked as his type, and 

 which was sent to Valenciennes, by whom it is also labelled, I certainly think that Valenciennes was correct 

 and the specimen belongs to the variety calamara. 



Hahitut. — Red Sea, and seas of India to the Malay Archipelago and beyond. I have taken specimens of 

 berda in Sind 30 inches in length. The calamara is known as " black rock cod" in the Madras Presidency, and 

 is excellent eating : it is common in Malabar until July. 



3. Clirysophrys Cuvieri, Plate XXXIV, fig. 3. 



Dentex hasta, Cuv. and Val. vi, p. 255 ; Giinther, Catal. i, p. 373 (not Sparus hasta, Bl. Schu.) 



B. vi, D. tJ.Vy, P- 15, V. 1/5, A. -g^^, C. 17, L. 1. 48, L. tr. 4-5/13. 



Length of head 2/7 to 1/4, of caudal 1/6, height of body from 2/7 to 1/3 in the young of the total length. 

 Uijes — diameter 1/6 (to 1/4 in the young) of length of head, Ij to 2 diameters from end of snout, and 1| apart. 

 Dorsal profile scarcely elevated in the adult, that of the abdomen almost horizontal. Preorbital low in the 

 3'oung with an almost straight inferior edge, in an adult (as 14| inches) the depth of the preoi'bital equals the 

 diameter of the eye. The maxilla reaches to below the front third of the oi'bit or to under its centre in the 

 adult. Vertical limb of preopercle very minutely serrated in the immature : opercle with a distinct spine. 

 Teeth — four to six sharp, pointed and rather conical incisors in front of either jaw, with villiform teelh behind 

 them : a pointed and compressed row along the outer side of either jaw, the last few of which ai'e small and 

 with rounded crowns ; internal to these are two rounded rows of small molars in the lower and three in the 

 upper jaw. In a fine specimen 14| inches in length this distribution of the teeth is still seen, and the size of 

 the molars is far less than is apparent in any other of the genus taken in India ; they approach very close to 

 the dentition of Bentex nufar, pi. 34, f. 4, which was mislaid until too late to insert in its proper place. Fins — 

 alternate dorsal spines strongest on one side, the fourth or fifth being the highest, and nearly equalling the 

 length of the postorbital portion of the head in the young or 1/3 the height of the body in the adult : pectoral 

 not quite so long as the head : first anal spine short, the second strong and equal to half the length of the head 

 or even more in the young, but it greatly decreases in comparative length with age, being only 2f in the length 

 of the head in the adult : caudal slightly lobed. Scales — seven rows between the eye and angle of the preopercle : 

 a few over the base of the soft portion of the dorsal : a band at the base of the anal : the caudal with fine ones 

 almost to its end : four entire and two half rows between the lateral-line and the base of the spinous dorsal : 

 10 rows between the base of the ventral fin and the lateral-line. Lateral-line — very slightly curved. Colours — 

 silvery-gi'ey, about eight Hnes radiate from the eye and posterior edge of the preorbital : each row of scales has 

 a darkish band along its centre : dorsal and caudal fins black tipped, a grey band along the centre of the dorsal 

 fin and a grey spot at the base of each spine and ray : anal spines grey, the membrane and rays black except 

 the two last rays which are white. 



This species difiers from the C. datnia in its teeth and more pointed snout, whilst the head at its widest 

 part only equals its postorbital length. It is identical with the two specimens of Dentex hasta, C. V. in the Paris 

 Museum. 



Habitat. — Seas of India to at least 14i inches in length : the figui-e is from a specimen captured at 

 Mangalore measuring 14J inches. 



4. Chrysophrys bifasciata, Plate XXXIV, fig. 5. 

 Chmtodon Mfasciatus, Forsk. p. 64. 

 Holocentrvs rabaji, Lacep. iv, p. 725. 

 Sparus mylio, Lacep. iii, pi. 26, f. 2, and iv, p. 131. 

 7 Lahrus catenula, Lacep. iii, p. 4G7, pi. 26, f. 3. 



Clrijiophriis bifasciata, Cuv. and Val. vi, p. 118 ; Riipp. N. W. Fische, p. 112 ; Giinther, Catal. i, p. 488 ; 

 Klunz. Fische d.'Roth. Meer. Verh. z. b. Ges. Wien, 1870, p. 758. 

 Bah-mear, Bel. 



B. vi, D. tJ.Vt> P- 15, V. 1/5, A. t^'^, C. 19, L. 1. 48-50, L. tr. 7/15, Ca;c. pyl. 2. 



Length of head 2/7, of caudal 2/11, height of body 2/5 of the total length. iJyes— diameter 2/9 of length 

 of head, 1| to 2 diameters from end of snout, and Ij apart. Dorsal profile more convex than the abdominal : 

 a slight elevation above the anterior angle of the eye. The maxilla reaches to below the middle of the orbit : 

 preopercular margin a little roughened above its angle, its height equal to at least the diameter of the eye. 

 Teeth — six large compressed incisors in the front of the upper and four in the lower jaw : five rows of rounded 

 molars along the sides of the upper and four in the lower jaw. Fins — dorsal spines strong increasing in length 

 to the fifth, which is two-fifths of the length of the head, whilst the rays are scarcely higher than the spines : 

 pectoral a little longer than the head : ventral does not reach the anus : second anal spine much the strongest 

 and equal in length to the third : caudal forked. Colours — silvery, with dark lines along each row of scales on 

 the body, and having two black cross bands, the first through the eye, the second over the hind edge of the 

 opercle : a yellow band before the eyes, snout black, dorsal, caudal and pectoral yellow, dorsal spine black, and 

 a narrow black edge along soft dorsal : ventral and anal black except the last anal ray which is yellow. 



Habitat. — Red Sea, East coast of Africa and seas of India, attaining at least 15 inches in length. The 

 specimen figured is from Sind and 14 inches long. 



