FISHES OF THE PHILIPPINE AND ADJACENT SEAS 13 



protruding from scaly skin. Ventrals very small or rudimentary, 

 below pectorals. 



Africa, Southern Asia, and Australia. Three species known, the 

 following and Monodactylus sebae from West Africa. 



ANALYSIS OF THE SPECIES 



«i. Body ovoid, depth IJ-^; silvery, young with 7 or 8 brown vertical streaks. 



falciformis 



a^. Body deeply ovoid, depth 1^ to IJ/^; silvery, at all ages black ocular band 



and second from dorsal spines to opercle argenteus 



MONODACTYLUS FALCIFORMIS LacSpfede 



Monodactylus falciformis Lacepede, Hist. Nat. Poiss., vol. 3, 1801, p. 132; 

 vol. 2, 1800, pi. 5, fig. 4. No locality. (On Commerson.) — Barnard, 

 Ann. South Afric. Mus., vol. 21, pt. 2, Oct. 1927, p. 639 (Algoa Bay, 

 Natal, Zululand, Delagoa Bay). 



Psettus falciformis Gunther, Cat. Fish. Brit. Mus., vol. 2, 1860, p. 488 

 (Red Sea).— Day, Fishes of India, pt. 2, 1876, p. 234, pi. 51^, fig. ft 

 (Madras); Fauna Brit. India, vol. 2, 1889, p. 180.— Sauvage, Hist. 

 Madagascar, Poiss., 1891, p. 334 (types of Psettus orbicularis). — Weber, 

 Zool. Jahrb. Syst., vol. 10, 1897, p. 142 (Illovo River, Natal). — Boulenger 

 Cat. Fresh Water Fish Africa, vol. 3, 1915, p. 120 (Red Sea, Mombasa, 

 Durban, Illovo River, Algoa Bay, River Chalumna). 



Psettus commersonii Cuvier, Hist. Nat. Poiss., vol. 7, 1831, p. 250. Vanicolo. 



Stromatoidea layardi Castelnau, Mem. Poiss. Afriq. Australe, 18G1, p. 44. 

 Algoa Bay. 



Psettus orbicularis Guichenot, Mem. Soc. Sci. Cherbourg, vol. 12, 186G, p. 

 136. Madagascar. 



Psettus argenteii,s (part) Klunzinger, Fisch. Roth. Meer., 1884, p. 117. 



Psettus falcipin)ds BovLE^iGER, Cat. Fresh Water Fish. Africa, vol. 3, 1915, 

 p. 121, fig. 89 (evidently slip for /aZci/ormis). 



Distinguished from Monodactylus argenteus chiefly by its less deep 

 body contour. Reaches 160 mm. 



Red Sea, South Africa, India, Vanicolo. 



MONODACTYLUS ARGENTEUS (Linnaeus) 



Chaetndon argenteus Linnaeus, Syst. Nat., ed. 10, vol. 1, 1758, p. 272. In 

 Indies; Amoen. Acad., vol. 4, 1759, p. 249; Syst. Nat. ed. 12, vol. 1, 1766, 

 p. 4611 (Indian Seas). — Gmelin, Syst. Nat. Linn., vol. 1, pt. 3, 1789, p. 

 1242 (Indian Seas).— Walbaum Arted. Pise, vol. 3, 1792, p. 441 (on 

 Linnaeus). — Forster, Fauna Indica, 1795, p. 15. — Schneider, Syst. 

 Ichth. Bloch, 1801, p. 230 (Indian Seas). 



Acanthopodus argenteus Lacepede, Hist. Nat. Poiss., vol. 4, 1802, pp. 558, 

 559 (Sea of Indies). 



Psettus argenteus Richardson, Voy. Erebus and Terror, Ichth., 1844-48, 

 p. 57, pi. 35, figs. 1-3 (Sydney). — Richardson, Ichth. China Japan, 1846, 

 p. 246 (Canton and Norfolk Island). — Gunther, Cat. Fish. Brit. Mus., 

 vol. 2, 1860, p. 487 (Moluccas, Amboina, Malay Peninsula, Ceylon, Aus- 

 tralia). — Kner, Reise Novara, Fische, 1865, p. 164 (Madras).— Day, 

 Fishes of Malabar, 1865, p. 99. — Playfair, Fishes of Zanzibar, 1866, 

 p. 64 (Aden and Zanzibar). — Klunzinger, Verb, zool.-bot. Ges. Wien, 



