FISHES OF THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS AND ADJACENT SEAS 191 



interorbital; maxillary reaches % in eye to little beyond with age; 

 expansion 1^ to 2% in eye, length 2J/£ to 2^ in head from snout 

 tip; teeth villiform, in bands in jaws, outer laterals scarcely enlarged; 

 interorbital 5 to 5^, flattened, frontal ridges conspicuous; hind 

 preopercle edge minutely serrated and several serrae conspicuously 

 enlarged; 3 spines along lower preopercle edge directed downward; 

 lower opercular spine longest and most posterior. Gill rakers 7 to 

 9 + 15 to 17, lanceolate, % of eye; 3 upper sometimes rudimentary. 



Scales 80 to 88 in lateral line to caudal base and 6 to 14 more on 

 latter; 14 or 15 above, 17 or 18 below, 50 to 62 predorsal; 10 to 20 

 rows across cheek to preopercle ridge and 6 more on preopercle flange; 

 scales largest on flanks and very small and crowded at bases of rayed 

 vertical fins and on predorsal region; low scaly sheaths along spinous 

 dorsal and anal bases; maxillary, end of snout and preorbital naked. 

 Scales with 7 to 9 basal radiating striae; apical denticles 43 to 56; 

 circuli fine. 



D. XIII or XIV, 12, i or 13, i, fourth spine 2 to 2}/ h in total head 

 length, sixth ray 2% to 2%; A. Ill, 8, i, second spine 2\i to 2%, first 

 ray 2}{ to 2}/%; caudal 1% to 1%, emarginate; least depth of caudal 

 peduncle 3 to 4y$; pectoral \% to 2)4', ventral \% to 1%. 



Silvery gray brown, lower sides and under surface silvery white. 

 In large examples back, chiefly above lateral fine, also spinous and 

 soft dorsal marked with many irregular dark spots, not extending on 

 head or predorsal region. Iris brown and silvery. Dorsals and 

 caudal pale gray brown, other fins pale brownish. 



China and Japan. Though listed from the Philippines by Elera no 

 other notice of its occurrence has been given. 

 6834. Hong Kong market. October 18, 1909. Length 356 mm. 



Genus NIPHON Cuvier 



Niphon Cuvier, Hist. Nat. Poiss., vol. 2, 1828, p. 131. Type Niphon spi- 

 nosus Cuvier, monotypic. 



Body compressed. Mouth large, protractile. Maxillary exposed, 

 without supplementary bone. Villiform teeth in jaws, on vomer and 

 palatines; tongue smooth. Preopercle serrate, with very strong spine 

 at angle and few small antrorse spines on lower edge. Opercle with 

 3 strong spines. Gill membranes separate. Pseudobranchiae pres- 

 ent. Gill rakers long and slender. Branchiostegals 7. Vertebrae 

 31, of which 17 caudal. Scales very small, ciliated. Head scaly. 

 Lateral line complete, tubes straight and each occupies whole length 

 of scale. Dorsal with 11 or 12 spines, soft fin with spine and 10 or 

 11 rays and shorter than spinous fin. Anal spines 3, rays 7, fin short. 

 Caudal slightly emarginate. Pectoral rays 16 or 17, partly symmet- 

 rical, rounded, upper rays longest. Ventral with strong spine, below 

 pectoral base, fins close together. 



Japan, Philippines. 



