PISHES OF THE PHHilPPINE AND ADJACENT SEAS 333 



convex; preorbital, preopercle limb, opercle and scapular arch rather 

 finely striate. Gill rakers 4 + 17, short, flexible, spinescent, cuneate 

 points. 



Scales very small, ovoid, cycloid, 90 to 140 circuli. Cheek more or 

 less completely covered with small scales to preopercle ridge. 



D. XIII, 10, I or 11, I, fifth spine 1% to 1% in head, fom-th ray 

 ^H to 1^; A. VII, 9, I or 10, i, third spine 1^ to l^g, thu'd ray 

 1^ to l^; caudal little emarginate or lunate, 1}4 to 1%; least depth 

 of caudal peduncle 4}4 to 5; pectoral IJ-^ to 13^; ventral l^-'s to 1^. 



Brown generally, becoming much paler posteriorly and on vertical 

 fins, which quite light. Front of head including upper surface of 

 muzzle and chin up to eye dusky brown, also all of thorax and gill 

 opening; latter pale in very young. Cheek quite white or silvered, 

 very finely dotted deep brown, also upper front of back in old exam- 

 ples. Paired fins brown. Cheek, lower half of head and shoulder 

 girdle imiformly pale in young. 



East Indies, Philippines. 



Owing to its constricted thorax and produced muzzle this species 

 has been made the type of a distinct genus, Lo. It is not otherwise, 

 however, structurally different from the various species included in 

 Siganus. Lo unimaculatus has been proposed by Evermann and 

 Scale also as a distinct species, though we consider it a synonym of 

 the present, probably a sexual variation. Its distinctive character is 

 the large dark blotch on the lateral line below the front of the soft 

 dorsal or last dorsal spines. This blotch is very variable, even on 

 the same individual, as it may be large on one side of the body and 

 small on the other. When large it may be twice or more size of eye. 

 Sometimes it may be present on one side of the body and absent 

 from the other side. In some cases it is conspicuously smaller than 

 the eye. We list our materials according to the presence or absence 

 of the black blotch. 



1. Examples with black lateral blotch below last dorsal spines and 

 front of soft dorsal: 



332, 15404 to 15406. Atulayan Island. June 18, 1909. Length 197 to 212 mm. 

 12247, 12248, 19148. Batan Island. June 5, 1909. Length 180 to 190 mm. 

 15619. Casogoran, Malhon Island. July 27, 1909. Length 153 mm. 

 12838. Cebu market. April 6, 1908. Length 180 mm. 

 8827, 8828. Maculabo Island. June 13, 1909. Length 225 to 230 mm. 

 16518, 15519. Palag Bay, Luzon. June 16, 1909. Length 180 to 200 mm, 

 15521, 15522. Pandanon Island. March 24, 1909. Length 208 to 215 mm. 

 14357, 14358. Paron Point, Albay Gulf, Luzon. June 21, 1909. Length 188 



to 190 mm. 

 Two examples. Philippines. Length 180 to 182 mm. 

 5896. Polloc, Mindanao. May 23, 1908. Length 216 mm. 

 5758, 5759. Point Capunuypugan, Mindanao. May 10, 1908. Length 210 to 



218 mm. 



