BY W. MACLEAY, F.L.S. 227 



the flap to the commencemeiit of the caudal fin ; the profile of 

 the head is a little convex near the snout, the space between the 

 eyes is a little depressed and as wide as the diameter of the orbit ; 

 the eyes are large, about two diameters from the extremity of 

 the lower jaw, and more than four from the point of the opercular 

 flap. The teeth are strong, numerous and sharp on the jaws, 

 vomer and palatine bones, with two strong canines on each side 

 of each jaw placed outside of the others and very close together ; 

 the maxillary bone is very broad at its extremity and extends far 

 beyond tiie vertical from the hind margin of the eye ; the pree- 

 operculum is rounded behind with a slight emargination above 

 the angle, but no apparent serrations ; the middle spine of the 

 operculum is long and acute, the others are distant from it and 

 very small. The scales are small all over the body and the lateral 

 line is almost straight. The dorsal fin commences opposite the 

 root of the pectorals, the spines are tolerably strong but not 

 long, the first is the shortest, and from the fourth onwards the 

 longest; the soft dorsal more elevated than the spinous; the 

 cmdal fin is slightty rounded behind ; the anal has the first spine 

 short and the third a little longer than the second, the rays are 

 much longer, and the posterior ones are inserted a very little in 

 ad vane 3 of the last of the dorsal ; the ventral fins take their rise 

 behind the root of the pectorals, and do not reach to the extremity 

 of them ; the pectorals are large, spreading and rounded and are 

 inserted in a line with the large opercular spine. The colour in 

 spirits is yellowish-brown covered all over — head, fins and all — 

 with pale brown spots, smaller than the interspaces, two spots of 

 a large size show on the back, one about the end of the spinous 

 dorsal, the others over the tail ; the pectorals are more sparsely 

 spotted except at the base. 



I have only one specimen of this Fish, it measures about 16 

 inches in length ; unfortunately the number of its label has become 

 illegible, so that I am unable to give the native name or the 

 colours in a fresh state. 



