COASTAL FISH 



145 



A mailed-cheek, Parabembras robinsoni, /rowz ^§0 metres, off JVatal, 



the continental shelf, do not venture into deeper water, we find here the 

 small, closely related family of Bembridce ; though on the whole expedition 

 we obtained only one specimen, a Parabembras robinsoni, at about 550 

 metres off Natal. It is considerably more robust in structure than the 

 flatheads, with serrated crests on the head, very large upturned eyes, and 

 a magnificent red colour. In general, it bore a close resemblance to mein- 

 bers of the Bembropsidx family, of which we obtained a few specimens 

 in Indonesia. This is another example of the unifying influence of en- 

 vironment on animals which, like these, are not closely related but which 

 live under the same conditions. 



Of the sea robins (Peristediidce), which resemble gurnards but are 

 completely armoured and have a head which terminates in two flat ex- 

 tensions, we were fortunate, at two stations off Natal, in catching 1 1 spe- 

 cimens of the species Peristedion weberi, of which there was only one 

 known specimen, caught in the same area. The colour, previously un- 

 known, was a pale yellowish red, with brick-red spots 'and stripes along 

 the edges of the armour plates. 



In one of our extremely rich hauls off the coast of Natal, at about 

 350 metres, we got 137 individuals of the order Iniomi, a group of fishes 



