1884.] NATURAL SCIENCES OF PHILADELPHIA. 231 



for an Asiatic species. The original Teidhis hepatus of Linnaeus 

 is based on various references, including caeruleiis, chirvrgus and 

 the Asiatic species in question. Tiie original type is, however, 

 evidently the Hepatus mucrone rejiexo iitrivqve prope < andam 

 of Gronow, and part of the confusion has come from Gronow's 

 attempt to identify with his specimen the Asiatic references of 

 Yalentyn and others. Gronow's specimen, however, is the type 

 of his Hepatus, and consequently the proper type of Teuthis 

 hepatus Linnseus. This same specimen, Hepatus, became the 

 Acronurus fuscus of Gronow's Systema (Gray), and it is still in 

 the British Museum. Giinther identifies it with Acanthurus 

 chirurgus ; we do not, therefore, see how the substitution of 

 hepatus for chirurgus is to be avoided, if the rules of nomencla- 

 ture are strictly carried out. The same line of argument is used 

 by Cuvier and Valenciennes, but they erroneously supposed 

 Gronow's specimen to be an Asiatic fish. 



Poey has referred the Chsetodon chirurgus of Cuvier and Valen- 

 ciennes to Acanthurus tractus, because of this expression in 

 their description : "La caudale echancree en croissant jusqu'au 

 tiers peu pres de sa longueur ; ses lobes sont arguises en pointe 

 et le superieur est plus long que Tinferieur." This does not 

 indicate the tractus, which has the caudal still more deeply 

 divided, and it is true of the average example of T. hepatus. 

 Acronurus carneas seems to be the young of this species. 



