FAMILY, IX— BERTCID^. 171 



BmncMostegals eight. Eyes large, lateral. Jaws of equal length, or the lower sUghthj the^ longer: snout of 

 moderate length. Operdes and suborbitals serrated: opercle with two sjnnes : generally a large spine at the angle of 

 the preoperde. Vilhform teeth on the jaws, vomer, and palatines. Two dorsal fins scarcely united : ventral wdh^ 

 one spine and seven rays: anal with four spines, the third being long and strong : caudal forked. Scales ctenoid, oj 

 moderate size. Air-vessel oval and simple. Pyloric appendages numerous. 



Bleeker observes that amongst the characters by which these fishes may be distinguished_ one from 

 another, especial notice should be taken of the number of rows of scales on the preoperde, the relative height 

 of the two last dorsal spines, and the presence or absence of spines at the margin of the nostrils or the end^ot 

 the snout. To show that these intra-nasal spines are not invariable I would refer to H. Andamanense, p. 1/2. 

 It appears that in some at least of the species of Holocentrmn, the comparative length of the preopercular spine 

 to that of the body increases vdih. age, whereas, as already observed (p. 9) in Serrani or Lidiani (p. 29), when 

 one exists at this spot in the immature it becomes more or less absorbed in the adult. 



SYNOPSIS OF SPECIES. 



1. Eolooentrum diadema, D. 11 | ■^, A. f , L. 1. 47-48, L. tr. 3/7. Width of interorbital space 1/4 of length 

 of head. No intra-nasal or rostral spine. Red, with silvery bands. Red Sea, East coast of Africa, seas of 



India to China. „^. , , „ . , ., , , , 



2. Eoloceutrum Andamanense, D. 11 | 15, A. a, L. 1. 42, L. tr. 3|/7|. Width of interorbital space about 

 1/.5 of length of head. Intra-nasal spine present or absent : a rostral one bifid at its extremity. Umform 

 rosy-scarlet. Andamans. ,„. , , „. , , ., , 



3. Holocentrum caudimaculatum, D. 11 | 13-14, A. f, L. 1. 40-43, L. tr. Slj/h Width of interorbital space 

 about 1/5 of length of head. Intra-nasal and rostral spines present. Red, with longitudinal violet bands, a 

 white spot on the free portion of the tail behind the end of the dorsal fin. Red Sea, seas of India to the Malay 



Archipelago. . , . , n m-^ 



4. Holocentrum ruhrwn, D. 11 1 12-13, A. f, L. 1. 35-39, L. tr. mh. Width of interorbital space from 2/7 

 to 1/4 of length of head. No intra-nasal spines, but rostral ones present. Red, with more or less longitudinal 

 bands : fins sometimes with dark marks. 



5. HolocentrHmsammara, D. 10 | ttItt- A. r%, L. 1. 39-40, L. tr. 3/7. Width of interorbital space from 

 31 to 1/4 of length of head. No intra-nasal spines, but rostral ones present. Red, with or without violet 

 longitudinal bands : usually a dark mark between the first four dorsal spines, and a dark spot at the base of each 

 spine : vertical fins usually with some dark markings. 



1. Holocentrum diadema. 



Holocentrus diadema, Lacep. iv, pp. 372, 374, pi. 32, fig. 3; Riippell, Atl. Fische, p. 84, t. x^", f- J- 



Holocentrum diadema, Cuv. and Val. iii, p. 213 ; Less. Voy. Duperr. Zool. 11, p. 22U, t. xxv fig. 2 ; Bleeker, 

 Moluc. p. 259, and Revis. Holoc. p. 13; Gunther, Catal. i, p. 42; Klunz. Fische Roth. Meer. Verh. z. b. &es. 

 Wien, 1870, p. 723. 



B. viii, D. 11 I ^, P. 13, V. 1/7, A. A, C. 19, L. 1. 47-48, L. tr. 3/7, Vert. 11/16. 



Length of head 2/7, of pectoral 2/9, of caudal 1/6, height of body 3i to 3| in the total length. Eyes— 

 diameter 2 to 2 V in the length of the head, 1/2 a diameter from the end of snout, and from 1/2 to 2/3 ot a diameter 

 apart, the width of the interorbital space being about 1/4 of the length of the head. The height of the head equals 

 its length without the snout ; its width equals half its length. The maxilla reaches to below the anterior third 

 of the orbit. Opercles, preorbital, and suborbitals denticulated, as is also the posterior half of the upper edge ot 

 the orbit. Lower edge of preorbital serrated and having a strong blunt spinate projection, directed dovvTiwards 

 and forwards. Upper opercular spine the longest and strongest, but not equalling that on the preoperde. Ihe 

 posterior edge of the preoperde and the lower ones of the sub- inter- pre- and opercle spmate. No spmes at 



specimen of Eolocentrum {H.platyrhinum, Khinz. 1^ inches Ions) exists in the Berlin Museum, and does not possess this elongation of 

 the snout, the latter being nearly 1/2 a diameter of the eye in length. The following may be the fry of a Holocentmm ( .' riMbram). 



Rhyncliiclitliys omatus. 



Day, Proc. Zool. Society, 1868, p. 149. 



B. viii, D. 11/12, P. 15, V. 1/7, A. f, C. 17, L. 1. 3S, L. tr. .■5/7. 



Length of head .3i, of pectoral 1/G, height of body 3^ in the total length. Eyes— diameter 2/5 of length of head, 1/2 a diameter 

 from end of snout, the width of the interorl>ital space equalling nearly 1/3 of the length of the head. Height of he.id near y e(iual to 

 its length. Upper jaw the longer, overhung bv a prc.jeuting and transparent fnout. The maxilla reaches to below the micklle ot^ tne 

 orbit. Preopercular spine equals about 1/2 the" width of the orbit : the opercular pieces and shoulder-bone serrated, \]V\kv opercular 

 spine the longer nearly equalling the length of that at the angle of the preoperde. Teetfc— villiform. Pms-dorsal spme3_ moderately 

 strong, the second and third the longest equalling half the height of the body and much higher than the rays, its last two spines ol about 

 equal height, interspinous membrane deeply cleft. Third anal spine longest and strongest, eciualhng the one at the angle ot the 

 preoperde. caudal slightly forked. Scales— seven rows between the occiput and dorsal fin, and also along the preoperde. Colours 

 bluish-silvery along the back and sides, rosy on the abdomen: dorsal orange, with black spines; interspinous membrane between the 

 first three spines and also between the sixth and last of a deep black coloui', the other fins yellowish. 



Habitat. — Madras, to 1^ inches in length. 



z 2 



