286 BULLETIN 10 0, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



Serranus hexagonatus var. merra (part) Gunther, Cat. Fish. Brit. Mus., 



vol. 1, 1859, p. 141. 

 Sebastes meleagris Peters, Arch. Naturg., 1865, p. 392. 

 Serranus dispar Playfair, Fishes of Zanzibar, 1866, p. 6, pi. 1, figs. 2-3. 



Seychelles and Zanzibar. — Gunther, Journ. Mus. Godeffroy, vol. 1, pt. 1, 



1873, p. 9 (Marshall Group). — Castelnau, Proc. Linn. Soc. New South 



Wales, vol. 3, 1878, p. (349) 365 (Port Jackson). 



Depth 2 7 / 8 to 3; head 2% to 2^, width 2}/ 2 to 2%. Snout 4^ to 

 5 in head from snout tip; eye 5% to 7%, \% to 1% in snout, little 

 greater than interorbital in young; maxillary reaches eye diameter 

 beyond eye, expansion 1 to l}i in eye, length 2 to 2% in head from 

 snout tip; teeth fine, outer row in each jaw moderate; along sides of 

 mandible 2 inner rows of depressible teeth, innermost row longest; 

 small teeth on vomer and palatines; hind nostril greatly enlarged at 

 all ages, large as pupil; interorbital Q% to 73^ in head from snout 

 tip, very slightly convex; preopercle edge finely serrated, without 

 spines at angle; 2 opercular spines, lower little advanced, if third 

 upper present usually obsolete. Gill rakers 13+17, all short trun- 

 cate, with coarse prickles, shorter than gill filaments, which % of eye; 

 8 or 9 above and below rudimentary. 



Scales 75 to 90 in lateral line to caudal base and 10 to 13 more on 

 latter; tubes 58 to 62 in lateral line to caudal base and 10 to 12 more 

 on latter; 15 to 22 scales above, 27 to 32 below, 75 to 78 predorsal, 

 35 to 37 rows across cheek to preopercle edge; scales smooth, small 

 or minute on head and fins; maxillary with % of expansion finely 

 scaled. Scales with 8 to 16 basal radiating striae; circuli fine. 



D. XI, 14, i or 15, i, third spine 334 to 3^2 m total head length, 

 fifth ray 2% to 2%; A. Ill, 8, 1, third spine 43^ to h%, fifth ray 2% 

 to 2%; caudal 2 to 23^, rounded; least depth of caudal peduncle 

 33^ to 33^; pectoral 1% to 2}/ 8 ; ventral 2}/% to 2%. 



Brown, with large darker spots, blotches and markings or marblings. 

 Indistinct dusky streak across opercle above. Jaws with three broad 

 dusky transverse bands. Indistinct broken blackish streaks along 

 back, more or less broken into reticulations. Five large blackish 

 saddle-like blotches across back, first four at bases of dorsal fins and 

 last deeply colored on caudal peduncle above. Indistinct broad trans- 

 verse bands across haemal region. Lower surface of body more or 

 less marbled and with some paler markings than upper surface. 

 Inside gill opening brownish. Iris brownish green. Marginal portions 

 of vertical fins dusky or blackish. Markings on spinous dorsal diffuse 

 and indistinct, other fins with rather large spots of blackish brown, 

 paler basally and in transverse series on caudal. Paired fins spotted, 

 also in more or less transverse series, with pale and whitish reticulated 

 lines between. 



Red Sea, Persian Gulf, Zanzibar, Mozambique, Natal, Mauritius, 

 Madagascar, Seychelles, India, Ceylon, East Indies, Philippines, For- 



