34 BULLETIN 10 0, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



TOXOTES SQUAMOSUS Hutton 



Toxotes squamosus Hutton, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., London, ser. 4, vol. 16, 

 1876, p. 313. Cook Straits, New Zealand. 



Depth 2H; head nearly 4. vSnout equals interorbital. Eye 3^ 

 in head. Mouth reaches opposite eye center. Teeth in jaws cardi- 

 form, outer row in premaxillary larger; each palatine with single row, 

 none' on vomer. Opercle, preopercle and maxillary scaly, margins 

 smooth. Scales 85 in lateral line, 11 above, 18 below. Dorsals and 

 anals covered with scales. Ventral v/ith pointed axillary scale. D. 

 V, 23 ; A. Ill, 23, first ray longest with fin suddenly contracting behind 

 then uniformly short. Caudal deeply forked, lobes equal pectoral. 

 Pectoral long and pointed. Ventral small. Uniform silvery, darker 

 above. Length 560 mm. (Hutton.) 



This species does not appear to have been noticed since described 

 and has been omitted from New Zealand lists. Bleeker framed a 

 distinct genus for it, especially on account of its increased soft dorsal 

 and anal rays and small scales. 



Hutton says of it: "This description is from a stufi"ed specimen 

 belonging to W. T. L. Travers Esq., F. L. S. of Wellicgton, who 

 kindly sent it to me for description. He informs me that several 

 years ago he saw other specimens of this fish on the shores of Mas- 

 sacre Bay." 



Family SCATOPHAGIDAE 



Body subrhomboid, deep. Caudal peduncle short. Eye moder- 

 ate. Jaws robust, not protractile. Teeth only in jaws, setiform, 

 tricuspid. Preopercle without spine. Gill rakers few, short. Pseu- 

 dobranchiae present. Branchiostegals 6. Post temporal firmly 

 joined with skull. Vertebrae 24, of which 12 or 13 caudal. Scales 

 uniformly small, ctenoid. Lateral line complete, concurrent with 

 back. Dorsals well marked. Soft dorsal and anal higher than spi- 

 nous fins. Caudal with 14 divided rays, truncate. Pectoral short. 



One genus in the Indo-Australasian region. Allied with the Chae- 

 todontidae in the solidly joined post temporal, these fishes differ m 

 the complete lateral line, unarmed head and contrasted dorsal fins. 

 Genus SCATOPHAGUS Cuvier 



Scatovhagus Cuvier, Hist. Nat. Poiss., vol. 7, 1831, p. 136. Type ChaHo- 

 don argus Linnaeus, designated by Jordan and Eveumann, Genera of 

 Fishes, pt. 1, 1917, p. 136 (Versus Scatophaga Meigen 1802 in Diptera). 



Prenes Gistel, Naturg. Thierr., 1848, p. x. Type Chaetodon argus Linnaeus, 

 virtually (as Prenes Gistel proposed to replace Scatophagus Cuvier). 



Cacodoxus Cantor, Journ. Asiat. Soc. Bengal (Cat. Malay Fishes), vol. 18, 

 pt. 2, 1849, p. 1145. Type Chaetodon argus Linnaeus, virtually (as 

 Cacodoxus Cantor proposed to replace Scatoghagus Cuvier). 

 Body greatly compressed, elevated, nearly cuboid. Snout moder- 

 ate, broad. Mouth terminal, small, transverse. Palate toothless. 



