FISHES OF THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS AND ADJACENT SEAS 313 



slightly enlarged conical teeth ; bands of villiform teeth on vomer and 

 palatines, tongue toothless. Preopercle and opercle entire, not armed 

 with spines. Gill membranes separate. Gill rakers short, rather few. 

 Pseudobranchiae present. Branchiostegals 6. Vertebrae 25, of which 

 15 caudal. Scales large, ciliated, spinulose. Lateral line in 2 sec- 

 tions; upper extends along back close to dorsal base, only reaching 

 below last dorsal rays; lower section median on tail and reaches 

 caudal; tubes straight, well exposed and form nearly continuous line. 

 A single dorsal with 11 or 12 spines and 6 or 7 rays, the membrane 

 deeply notched between spines or spinous portion thrice as long as 

 soft. Anal short, with 3 spines and 8 or 9 rays. Caudal rounded. 

 Pectoral short, rounded, upper rays longest, rays 20 or 21. Ventrals 

 below pectorals, close together, with spine and 4 soft rays, first of 

 which much thickened and bifid. 



Indian and Western South Pacific Oceans. 



ANALYSIS OF THE SPECIES 



a 1 . Head obtuse; large blue black ocellus on lower part of opercle nigricans 



a 2 . Head pointed; opercle without black spot oxycephalus 



PLESIOPS NIGRICANS (Ruppell) 



Pharopteryx nigricans Ruppell, Atlas Reise nordl. Afrika, Fische, 1828, p. 

 15, pi. 4, fig. 2. Mohila, Red Sea. — Jordan and Seale, Bull. Bur. 

 Fisher., vol. 25, 1905 (1906), p. 260 (Apia and Pago Pago).— Evermann 

 and Seale, Bull. Bur. Fisher., vol. 26, 1906 (1907), p. 78 (Bacon).— 

 Fowler, Bishop Mus. Bull., No. 22, 1925, p. 9 (Guam), p. 33 (Samoa); 

 No. 38, 1927, p. 15 (Howland and Baker Islands); Mem. Bishop Mus., 

 vol. 10, 1928, p. 188 (Shortland Island, Guam, Kingsmills, Ebon Island, 

 Ponapc, Apia, Fiji). 



Plesiops nigricans Ruppell, Neue Wirbelth., Fische, 1835, p. 5 (Red Sea). — 

 Gunther, Cat, Fish. Brit. Mus., vol. 3, 1861, p. 363 (copied).— 

 Klunzinger, Verh. zool. hot, Ges. Wien, vol. 21, 1871, p. 517 (Koseir, 

 Red Sea).— Day, Fishes of India, pt. 1, 1875, p. 128, pi. 31, fig. 5 (Anda- 

 mans). — Bleeker, Verh. Akad. Wet. Amsterdam, vol. 15, No. 5, 1875, 

 p. 27, pi. 3, fig. 2 (Sumatra, Batu, Nias, Java, Bawean, Java, Bali, Solor, 

 Flores, Timor, Celebes, Sangi, Ternate, Halmaheira, Ceram, Amboina, 

 Goram, Waigiu, Luzon). — Peters, Monatsb. Akad. Wiss. Berlin, 1876, p. 

 438 (Mauritius). — Bleeker, Atlas Ichth. Ind. Neerland., vol. 9, 1877, pi. 

 (1) 390, fig. 3. — Klunzinger, Fische Roth. Meer., 1884, p. 66. — Vaillant, 

 Bull. Soc. Philomath. Paris, ser. 8, vol. 1, 1889, p. 58 (Sumatra). — Day, 

 Fauna Brit. India, vol. 2, 1889, p. 19, fig. — Boulenger, Cat. Fish. Brit, 

 Mus., vol. 1, 1895, p. 340 (Zanzibar, Ceylon, China, Andamans, Sumatra, 

 Manado, Amboyna, Australia, East Australia, Fiji, Levuka, Tonga, 

 Samoa, Savaii, Micronesia). — Steindachner, Abh. Senckenberg. Naturf. 

 Ges., vol. 25, 1900, p. 414 (Ternate).— Pellegrin, Bull. Mus. Hist, Nat. 

 Paris, vol. 13, 1907, p. 204 (Tulear, Madagascar). — Jordan and Richard- 

 son, Bull. Bur. Fisher., vol. 27, 1907 (1908), p. 257 (Calayan).— Regan, 

 Journ. Linn. Soc. London, vol. 12, ser. 2, 1907, p. 224 (Coetivy, Seychelles 

 Group). — Gilchrist and Thompson, Ann. South Afric. Mus., vol. 11, 

 pt. 2, 1911, p. 37 (Natal).— Weber, Siboga Exp., vol. 57, Fische, 1913, p. 

 212 (Pidjot Bay, Lombok; Lirung; Sanana; Lucipara; Amboina; Nusa 



