FISHES OF THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS AND ADJACENT SEAS 7 



114 in snout with age, greater than interorbital in young to IYq in 

 interorbital with age; maxillary reaches eye, little inclined from 

 vertical, expansion IV5 to 2% in eye, length 2% to 2^ in head from 

 snout tip; 4 canines in front of each jaw, of which lower lateral pair 

 posterior; teeth in villiform bands in jaws, with outer enlarged series 

 laterally; narrow band of villiform teeth across vomer; interorbital 

 0% to 6 in head, convex. Gill rakers 6 + 12, cuneate, short. 



Tubular scales 53 or 54 in upper section of lateral line, 13 to 18 + 2 

 or 3 in lower section ; 7 or 8 scales above lateral line, 19 or 20 below, 

 28 to 30 predorsal ; 9 vertical rows of scales on cheek. Scales with 14 

 to 18 basal radiating striae; apical denticles 92 to 100, with single 

 row of basal elements; circuli very fine. 



D. II, 25 I, second spine 4i^ to 4% in total head length, twenty- 

 third ray li/s to 1% ; A. Ill, 14, i, third spine 41/8 to 41/5, twelfth 

 ray 1^4 to 1%; least depth of caudal peduncle 1% to 2i/^; pectoral 

 ll^ to 11/^; ventral I14 to II/3; caudal 3 to 3% in combined head 

 and body, convex behind. 



Vandyke brown to burnt umber, with dozen oblique brown lines 

 on cheek. Iris brown. Dorsals deep umber, front of soft fin finely 

 dotted with neutral dusky or blackish anteriorly and greater portion 

 of fin with oblique neutral black lines, inclined backward. Anals 

 deep umber, with some obscure longitudinal darker parallel lines. 

 Caudal deep umber, obscurely mottled with dark, edges pale all 

 around. Paired fins dull brown, with large dusky blotch usually 

 at pectoral origin. 



East Indies. Many examples show the middle of the side dull 

 yellowish-brown and the tail with 9 or 10 longitudinal deep brown 

 bands, following medianly or alternately the rows of scales. The 

 oblique dark lines on the soft dorsal are quite variable, sometimes 

 even parallel longitudinally with fin margin, or the lower may each 

 end in rather a large blackish blotch on greater portion of subbasal 

 median extent of fin. The anterior membranes of the soft dorsal 

 may be crowded with white dots. Some examples have the vertical 

 fins uniformly pale, while in others they may be pale with narrow 

 blackish edge all around. Many are without a pale median lateral 

 area or each scale of the anterior portion of the body may have a 

 deep brown spot, when the posterior longitudinal dark bands are 

 usually obsolete or absent. The dark blotch at the pectoral origin 

 is variably large, obscure, to very small or absent. Often the greater 

 posterior portion of the body and most all the fish may even be light 

 yellowish. Some pale examples have a blackish basal line all along 

 the soft dorsal. 



My examples corresponding to the nominal CichJops heUmuthii 

 Bleeker are all largely uniform or without connected longitudinal 

 dark lines. Many are quite dark or dusky and evidently melanistic. 



