FISHES. — MCCULLOCH. 189 



the hypural joint ; head 3.1 in the same. Eye 2.8, ninth 

 dorsal spine 1.7 in the head. Fourth dorsal ray and third 

 anal ray subequal, 0.08 longer than the head. 



Body much compressed, rhomboidal. Profile from the 

 snout to the first dorsal spine convex, tumid before the eye. 

 Maxillary reaching backward to below the anterior orbital 

 margin, but httle expanded posteriorly, its greatest breadth 

 being less than the internasal width. Preoperculum with a 

 few rudimentary seriutions on its rounded angle. Operculum 

 with a flat spine, and a rounded bone on its upper portion. 

 Gill-openings lateral, with a wide interval between them. 

 Anterior nostril circular, the posterior sht-hke and placed 

 in front of the eye. Chin with a series of minute pores. 

 Teeth compressed, trilobate, arranged in about four distinct 

 series in each jaw ; the innermost series is smaller than the 

 others, and its teeth appear unicuspid. A small patch of 

 teeth on the vomer ; palatines and tongue toothless. 



Body covered with small ctenoid scales, which extend over 

 the bases of the fins, and cover the membrane between the dorsa 1, 

 anal and caudal rays. There are about fifty-two rows in a 

 straight fine between the operculum and the hypural joint ; 

 thirteen or fourteen between the base of the seventh dorsal 

 spine and the lateral fine, and thirty-four to thirty-six more 

 to the first anal spine. They extend forward to between the 

 posterior nostrils on the forehead, and cover the cheeks, 

 opercles and breast. 



First dorsal spine short, situated a httle behind the vertical 

 of the operculum ; the others rapidly increase in height to 

 the fourth or fifth, and then more gradually to the eighth ; 

 the ninth is distinctly longer than the preceding one, but is 

 little more than haK as high as the longest rays. Soft 

 dorsal rounded, with the fourth to seventh raj^s longest. 

 Anal spines graduated, the first inserted below the anterior 

 dorsal rays. Soft anal similar in form to the dorsal, its 

 anterior portion somewhat more angular. First ventral ray 

 produced, reaching to or a httle beyond the anal. Caudal 

 subtruncate, with the outer and median rays very slightly 

 produced. 



Colour. — Silvery, with narrow horizontal lines between 

 each row of scales. A brown ocular band extends from the 

 nape through the eye to the ventrals, and another less distinct 

 one from the nuchal region across the operculum to the vent ; 

 both these may be obscure. Spinous portion of the dorsal 

 and anal fins with darker margins, which are continued 

 around the soft portions as well defined marginal bands. 

 Ventral rays dusky. 



