FISHES OF THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS AND ADJACENT SEAS 299 



upper and lower obsolete and lower most advanced. Gill rakers 

 10 + 15 or 16, short, robust, % of gill filaments which % of body; 9 

 to 12 rudimentary above and below. 



Scales 86 to 98 in lateral line to caudal base and 6 to 8 more on 

 latter; tubes 50 to 60 in lateral line to caudal base and 10 more on 

 latter; 21 or 22 scales above lateral line, 28 to 31 below, 50 predorsal, 

 30 rows on cheek; body scales without small, basal, auxiliary scales; 

 head with small scales, more or less smooth; basal parts of fins 

 minutely scaled; upper half of maxillary finely scaled. Scales with 

 5 to 7 basal radiating striae; circuli fine. 



D. XI, 14, i or 15, i, third spine 4^ to 5 in total head length, 

 sixth ray 2% to 2%; A. Ill, 8, i, third spine 4>£ to 5, fifth ray iy 2 to 

 2%; caudal 1% to 1%, rounded; least depth of caudal peduncle 3% 

 to 3%; pectoral \% to V/ 8 ; ventral 2% to 2^. 



Deep grayish dusky, more or less inclined to blackish on back and 

 whitish below. Sides variegated with obscure dusky mottlings. 

 Diffuse mottlings and blotches of head becoming distinct on sides. 

 Body below soiled with darker grayish or dirty gray markings. 

 Interopercle and lower edge of preopercle with large blackish brown 

 blotch. Vertical fins dilute brownish yellow, marked with black 

 spots or blotches. Paired fins bright lemon yellow, variably spotted 

 and blotched with black. 



Zanzibar, Natal, Mauritius, Seychelles, India, East Indies, Formosa, 

 Queensland, Micronesia. Boulenger doubtfully reports an example 

 1779 mm. long, stuffed, in the British Museum, from West Africa. 

 Until more secure evidence from that region is forthcoming it seems 

 best to us to consider its distribution Indo-Pacific. The species has 

 not previously been reported from the Philippines. 



6316. Cavite market. June 27, 1908. Length 410 mm. 



9362. Cebu market, Cebu. August 25, 1909. Length 264 mm. 



6298. Manilla market. June 12, 1908. Length 237 mm. 



1421. Makasser market. December 22, 1909. Length 330 mm. 



Genus CROMILEPTES Swainson 



Cromileptes Swainson, Nat. Hist. Animals, vol. 2, 1839, p. 201. Type Ser- 

 ranus altivelis Valenciennes, designated by Bleeker, Arch. Neerland. 

 Sci. Nat. Haarlem, vol. 11, 1876, p. 257. 



Serranichthys Bleeker, Nat. Tijds. Nederland. Indie, vol. 8, 1855, p. 344. 

 Type Serranus altivelis Valenciennes, monotypic. 



Body strongly compressed. Mouth large, protractile. Maxillary 

 exposed, with supplemental bone. Teeth in jaws in broad bands, 

 villiform, inner depressible and hinged basally; teeth on vomer and 

 few on palatines. Tongue smooth. Hind nostril large crescentic 

 slit, placed vertically. Preopercle serrated. Opercle with 2 spines. 

 Gill membranes separate. Pseudobranchiae present. Gill rakers 

 very short, nearly rudimentary. Branchiostegals 7. Vertebrae 24 



