60 CATALOGUE OF FISH. 



middle of the fish. Distance between the tip of the snout and the 

 gill-opening nearly one-seventh of the total length. 



Ground colour of the dried skin, brownish, varied by 82 or 34 

 irregular, blackish vertical bars, which descend from the dorsal fin, 

 and branch and anastomose about the gill-opening, so as to produce 

 five or six meshes in the height, the bar-like arrangement not being 

 perceptible there ; more posteriorly the meshes are larger, and not 

 above three or four in the height ; at the anus they increase in size and 

 diminish to two in the height ; while towards the end of the tail the 

 meshes are wholly superseded by bars. The areas throughout are 

 traversed by fine dark lines, like veins in marble ; and on the head 

 and throat the mesh-like arrangement gives place to a fine mottling 

 of the dark brown, with a paler colour in smaller quantity. No 

 traces of this mottling are perceptible in any of the examples of 

 M. nuhila. In the specimen the dorsal fin ends abruptly about an 

 inch fi'om the point of the tail, the anal being perfect. The defect 

 appears to have arisen from mutilation before death. 



Length of the fish (dried), 4r50 in. From tip of snout to anus, 

 10'75 in. From ditto to gill-opening, 6-01 in. 



Coasts of the Mauritius [Richardson). 



113. MuR^NA RETICULATA, f. 49. 



Murtena reticulata, Ciivier. 



Gymnothorax reticulatus, Block, 416; Syst. 528. 



Ground colour, pale honey-yellow, with from 20-33 dark, hair- 

 brown bands, encircling the head, body, and fins. The intervals 

 are about equal to the bands in breadth, and are marked with 

 round brown dots, intei'spersed with many minute brown specks. 



Teeth, compressed-subulate, disposed in a single series on both 

 jaws. The nasal teeth, about 9, or more, in number, are a little 

 more remote ; and the palatine ones are more compressed, closer, 

 more reflex, and diminish in size as they appi'oach the corner of the 

 mouth ; but there is no sudden change in the series, either of form 

 or height. The palatine teeth number about 10 ; and the series on 

 the mandible corresponds generally with that of the upper jaw ; 

 The usual 3 mesial teeth exist on the nasal disk ; and there are 

 about 7 small, acute vomerine teeth in one row. When the teeth 

 are examined with a lens, the maxillary ones, and those on the ante- 

 rior part of the lower jaw, are seen to be minutely crenated towards 

 the base posteriorly ; and beneath the creuatures is a compressed 

 rounded lobe, which is inserted into the gura. 



Eye of moderate size. Snout obtuse. Profile full, slightly 

 arched. Gape moderate. Dorsal commencing before the gill- 

 opening. Throat plaited, distensible. Anus one-twelfth part of 

 the whole length before the middle of the fish. The upper parts 

 of the bands are formed of a close assemblage of dots and spots ; 



