115 



terminates in another. The supra-scapular furnishes one 

 small acute spine, and the superior bone of the humeral 

 chain forms an elevated thin ridge at the upper border of 

 the gill-opening, which ends posteriori^' in a pungent an- 

 gle. Immediately posterior to this, at the commencement 

 of the lateral line, there are two moveable pungent points, 

 like spinous scales, being the only armature percepti- 

 ble on the line. The upper extremity of the maxillary 

 forms a small bluntish point at the end of the snout on 

 each side, but the preorbitar appears to be wholly without 

 any angular points that are perceptible through the integu- 

 ments. The second suborbitar is traversed by a thin, pro- 

 minent, perfectly smooth ridge, which abuts against the 

 base of the upper preopercular spine. In the figure, the 

 under edge of the disk of the suborbitar is also shown, but 

 this becomes visible only when the integuments are allowed 

 to shrivel by drying, and is not prominent. The preoper- 

 culum has three small spines, of which the upper one pro- 

 jects farthest back, and the lowest one is minute, but none 

 of them are readily found in the thick integument unless 

 sought for. In the presence of these sjiines the species 

 resembles P. pristiger of Quoy and Gaimard, but none of 

 the bony ridges of the head are rough, either to touch or 

 sight ; neither can any angular points be detected on the 

 inter-operculum. The operculum is armed by two small 

 spines, the upper one, which is the most posterior, termi- 

 nating the upper edge of the bone. The flexible cartilagi- 

 nous point of the suboperculum projects far bej'ond them, 

 and is bordered by a thin membrane above, which restricts 

 the gill-opening there, and by the gill-membrane beneath. 

 The head is mostly covered with a spongy integument, like 

 that which prevails among the Scorpcoice, and the same 

 kind of covering envelopes the scales of the back and 

 sides, being the part on which the brilliant colours of the 

 fish depend. None of the streaks or sculptures on the 

 cranium, which exist in some PlatycephaU, are to be seen 

 in this species. 



The teeth, disposed in smooth shaven villiform bands, 

 arm the premaxillaries, mandible and palatines. The 

 bands are broadest on the premaxillaries, and very nar- 

 row on the palatines. There are also two small oval 

 patches on the prominent chevron of the vomer, separated 

 from each other by a deep smooth mesial furrow. The 

 wide, thin, serai-cartilaginous, truncated tongue is smooth. 



The lateral line, which runs parallel to the back, on a 

 level with the upper part of the gill-opening, is traced on 

 fifty-eight scales, and is keeled particularly posteriorly, 

 but not strongly even there. One of these scales, with its 

 short tubes diverging laterally from the central one, is re- 

 presented at figure 9 ; and an ordinary scale, with its pte- 

 noid disk, at figure 10. They are all clothed with thick 

 integument. 



The first dorsal spine stands above the posterior lobe of 

 the gill-cover, and behind the attachment of the pectoral ; 

 the third dorsal spine is opposite to the base of the 

 ventrals ; and the last spine is so closely tied down to the 

 back as not to be very obvious. It requires to be forcibly 

 raised to be seen as represented in figure 7. There are no 

 spines in the second dorsal or anal. 



The patterns of colour which are to be traced on the 



specimen after long maceration in spirits will be best un- 

 derstood by consulting the figure. Most of the shaded 

 parts on the head, body and fins are aurora-red : the 

 cross bars on the lips, however, some spots on the maxil- 

 lary, others immediately beneath the eye, a few minute 

 specks on the top and sides of the head, a large patch on 

 the gill-membrane including the upper two rays, and the 

 border of the first dorsal, are brown. Some spots on the 

 upper plate of the coracoid bone, others in the axilla; of 

 the pectorals and ventrals, and a series of round ones at 

 the bases of the rays of the first and second dorsal, are 

 brownish-black. A large saddle-shaped patch, which 

 descends from the whole length of the first dorsal well 

 down the sides, is red, mixed and outlined with black. 

 The bars on the tail have also some dark or blackish 

 shadings. The ground colour is generally gray. The 

 transverse lines on the caudal, ventrals and pectorals, and 

 the oblique ones on the two dorsals and anal, are aurora- 

 red. 



Length 9j inches. Length of head 3 inches. Length 

 from end of snout to anus 4-6 inches. Height at shoulder 

 1-2 inch. 



Hab. Botany Bay. 



PsAMMOPERCA. Richardson. 



This name has been devised to express one of the cha- 

 racters by which an Australian fish may be distinguished 

 from the other PEECiDiE, namely, the granular form of its 

 teeth ; the term being compounded of ^aa/x/xuS'ni, areiiatus 

 and CTifxa. The depth of the notch between the spinous 

 and jointed portions of the dorsal fin induces us to com- 

 pare this fish with the " Perches proprement dites " of the 

 ' Histoire des Poissons," but it difi'ers from Perca not only 

 in its dentition, but also in the want of a well-marked pre- 

 opercular disk, in the dorsals being rather more connected, 

 and in general aspect ; from Lates in the absence of large 

 angular teeth on the lower limb of the preoperculum, and 

 in the perfectly entire preorbitar; from Perca-labrux in 

 its smooth tongue and its solitary opercular spine ; and 

 from the other described forms of this group by still more 

 obvious characters. Among the Percoids with a single 

 dorsal, Ceniropristes is the only genus with which it assi- 

 milates ; and indeed it has an equal claim to be placed in 

 the genus with Centropristes scorpenoides, which has a pre- 

 operculum aimed beneath with recurved spinous teeth, 

 and in that respect differs from the rest of the group as 

 much as Plectropoma does from Serraxus. It has been 

 already remarked, in pages 27 and 30, that the admission 

 of these anomalous species among the Centropristes makes 

 the group unnalural, and it would be better to separate 

 both them and the Australian Cetitrojrristes — truttaceus, 

 sahir, georgianns, &c. — which have the even dorsals and 

 general habit of a Casio or Smaris,* from the typical mem- 

 bers of the genus. On this account, therefore, and in ac- 

 cordance with the present practice of ichthyologists, we 



Vide Hist des Poiss. iii. 



T 2 



