FAMILY BALISTIDAE — WOODS 113 



3.4; length of middle caudal fin rays 1.7 to 1.9; interorbital width 4.2 

 to 4.5; all in length of head. Angle of snout profile 36 to 38 degrees, 

 snout profile slightly concave. 



Teeth large, white, notched; no deep groove before eye below nostril; 

 interorbital convex, rounded; third dorsal spine weU developed, at 

 least half of it projecting above rim of groove; caudal peduncle armed 

 with two rows of strong recurved spines, 3 or 4 spines per row; caudal 

 peduncle scarcely constricted; hind margin of pectoral fin rounded; 

 soft dorsal and anal fin low, slightly rounded; hind margin of caudal 

 fin slightly rounded, sub truncate. 



Color in alcohol. — Ground color of head and body light greyish 

 brown to dark brownish black; lips dark brown, the lower with a 

 transverse light line; light line across chin running posteriorly along 

 lower cheek and joining a fainter light line coming from anterior part 

 of snout just behind lips ; thin light line crossing snout running oblique- 

 ly backward and downward across cheek; light lines curving around 

 base of soft dorsal in widening concentric curves covering entire side ; 

 caudal peduncle spines black, the area around these spines jet black; 

 spiny dorsal membrane with a round intensely black dot on distal 

 portion between first and second spines, rest of membrane dusky 

 brown; soft dorsal and anal fins pale with the bases of rays brown; 

 caudal fin rays dusky, outer unbranched rays with black margin, 

 membranes pale; pectoral fin pale yellow. 



Color in life. — Ground color dark purplish brown; brick red bar on 

 lower lip; 3 red lines extending posteriorly from chin and snout (just 

 behind mouth), joining and curving downward below pectoral fin where 

 they fade, these lines narrowly margined with black and separated by 

 narrow dark blue lines; spiny dorsal membrane brown with black spot 

 in anterior distal portion between first and second spines; soft dorsal 

 and anal pale orange red on basal four-fifths, margin pale, color 

 stronger on rays than membranes; pectoral fin rays reddish, mem- 

 branes hyaline ; caudal fin base with 3 indistinct narrow vertical red 

 lines separated by narrow black-bordered blue lines; caudal fin rays 

 reddish brown basally, each ray with a black border, membranes and 

 distal third of each ray bright yellow. 



Genus RHINECANTHUS Swainson 



Rhinecanthus Swainson, Natural history and classification of fishes . . ., vol. 2, 

 pp. 194, 325, 1839 (type species, Balistes aculeatiis Linnaeus). 



RHINECANTHUS RECTANGULUS (Bloch and Schneider) 



Plate 140,C 



Batistes rectangidus Bloch and Schneider, Systema ichthyologiae . . ., p. 465, 

 1801 (based on "le Baliste echarpe" of Lacepede, Histoire naturelle des 

 poissons, vol. 1, pp. 333, 352, pi. 16, fig. 1, 1798; type locality, Indian Ocean). 



