422 MUGILID,!!:. 



caudal ; the length of the first spine is one-half, or a little more 

 than one-half, of that of the head. The distance between the origins 

 of the two dorsal fins is nearly equal to the length of the head. The 

 soft dorsal is considerably higher than long, as high as the spinous, 

 and has the upper edge sUghtly emarginate ; a few scales cover the 

 anterior rays. Caudal forked. The anal commences a little before 

 the opposite dorsal fin, is higher than long, rather higher, and not 

 more scaly, than the dorsal. Pointed scales of moderate length in 

 the axil of the first dorsal, of the pectoral, and of the ventral. 

 Colour greenish shining golden ; fins minutely dotted with blackish. 



7. Mugil hsematochilus. 



Mugil hEematocheilus, Scldeff. Faun. Japan. Puiss. p. 135. pi. 72. fig. 2; 



Bleek. Verhand. Batav. Genootsch. xxvi., Japan, p. 107. 

 xanthxu^us, Richards. Ichihyol. Chin. p. 248. 



D. 4 1 1. A. |. L. lat. 42. 



The height of the body is contained five times and a half to five 

 times and three-quarters in the total length, the length of the head 

 five times. Eye with a broad adipose membrane anteriorly and 

 posteriorly ; the prajorbital is slightly emarginate, and does not cover 

 the extremity of the maxillary. The upper lip is rather broad. 

 The spinous dorsal fin is rather higher than the soft, which, like the 

 anal, is scaly; the anal commences somewhat before the opposite 

 dorsal fin, and is nearly as high as long. The pectorals are shorter 

 than the head, the length of the snout not included. 



Coasts of Japan and China. 



a. Half-grown : stuffed. China. Presented by J. R. Eeeves, Esq. 



Sir J. Richardson Q. c. p. 249) also mentions a M. hc^matocheilus, 

 referring this name to one of Reeves's drawings. On comparing the 

 latter, it becomes at once evident that a species very different from 

 M. hcematochihis has been represented — a species which appears to 

 have eleven anal rays. The figure named by Sir J. Richardson 

 M. xanthurus is evidently the M. hcematocheihis of the ' Eauna Ja- 

 ponica,' and it is not improbable that the stuffed specimen mentioned 

 is the original of that figure. We would observe, however, that the 

 drawings of Miujil on which Sir J. Richardson has founded several 

 species may be true representations of the natural coloration (a 

 character of very little importance in tliis genus), but that none of 

 them show the natural form of the mouth of a Mugil, and that the 

 numbers of the fin-rays and scales cannot be depended upon. 



8. Mugil perusii. 



Cuv. 8) Val. xi. p. 116. 

 This species appears to be very distinct. We extract the following 

 characters from the scanty description given by Valenciennes : — 



D.4||. A.|. 

 The height of the body is contained four times and a half in the 



