FISHES or THE PHILIPPINE AND ADJACENT SEAS 161 



HOLACANTHUS LAMARCK Lacepfede 



Holacanthus larnarck Lacj^pede, Hist. Nat. Poiss., vol. 4, 1802, pp. 526, 530. 



No locality (Holland Collection). — Cuvier, Hist. Nat. Poiss., vol. 7, 1831, 



p. 198, pi. 184 (East Indies). 

 Holacanthus lamarckii Gunther, Cruise Curagoa, Brenchley, 1873, p. 410 



(Misol, Moluccas). 

 Holacanthus lamarcki Bleeker, Atlas Tchth. Ind. N6erland., vol. 9, 1877, p. 59, 



pi. (9) 371, fig. 4 (Buru, Amboina, Ceram, Nusa Laut, Banda).— Herre 



and MoNTALBAN, Philippine Journ. Sci., vol. 34, No. 1, Sep. 1927, p 83 



pi. 16 (Tablas). 

 Genicanthus lamarckii Swainson, Nat. Hist. Animals, vol. 2, 1839, p. 212 (on 



Lacepede). 



Depth 14^ to 23^; head 3% to 4, width 1% to 1%. Snout 23^ to 

 3 in head; eye 3}4 to 3%, IK to 1% in snout, 1^ to 1^ in interor- 

 hital; maxillary reaches ^ in snout, 4}4 in head; interorbital 3, 

 convex. Gill rakers 4 + 12, lanceolate, H of gill filaments, which 1}4 

 in eye. 



Scales 45 to 50 between gill opening and caudal base; tubes 43 to 

 47 in lateral line; 6 or 7 scales above lateral line, 21 to 23 below. 

 Scales with 7 basal radiating striae, 3 to 7 auxiharies sometimes pres- 

 ent; apical denticles 20 to 37, each with rod-like base, often many 

 auxiliary denticles; cu'culi fine. 



D. XV, 15, 1 to 17, 1, last spine 1% to IJi in head, eighth ray lli 

 to 1%; A. Ill, 17, I or 18, i, third spine Ij^ to 1^, eighth ray ly^ 

 to 1}4; least depth of caudal peduncle 2 to 2}4; caudal 1^ to 1^ 

 in combined head and body, deeply lunate, exserted upper and lower 

 points long as rest of fin; pectoral 1 to 1^ in head; ventral 3^ to 

 33^ in combined head and body. 



Pale brown generally, back little darker than sides and lower sur- 

 face. Four longitudinal dark brown lines from vertical of eye to 

 caudal base, of which all but lower touch hind eye edge; uppermost 

 horizontal from suprascapula and follows along below greater part of 

 arch of lateral line, so that it appears broadened. Upper outer por- 

 tions of dorsals broadly blackish, behind only extending to point of 

 soft dorsal, basal portion of latter finely dotted with dusky brown. 

 Soft anal finely dotted with dusky brown. Caudal with upper and 

 lower borders, including points, broadly dusky brown, median part of 

 fin finely dotted with dusky brown. Pau-ed fins dull brownish. 



East Indies. Apparently rare in collections, though known to the 

 early naturalists, such as Ruysch, Valentyn, and Renard. Its appear- 

 ance IS quite unlike most members of the genus and suggests certain 

 Pseudochromids superficially. Great variation in the color pattern 

 is noticeable. Our 2 larger examples both show a broad dusky band 

 embracing and coextensive with the uppermost dark longitudinal 

 line, it crossing obliquely down on caudal peduncle laterally nearly 

 till median. The dark longitudinal lines are variably waved in ah 



