124 perciDjE. 



53. Serranus coronatus. 



Perca guttata, Bl. i. 312. 



Spanis cnientatus, Lacep. iv. p. 157. pi. 4. f. 1. 



Serranus coronatus, Cuv. ^ Val. ii. p. 371. 



nigriculus, Cuv. Sf Val. ii. p. .375 ; Guichen. in Ramon de la Sagra, 



Hist. Cuba. Foiss. p. 14. 

 guttatus, Castelnau, Animaux nouveaux, Poksons, p. 1. 



D. ^. A. |. L. lat. 60. Caee. pylor. 6. Vert. 9/15. 



Caudalis rounded. Denticxilations of the i^rasoperculum very fine, 

 sometimes obsolete ; diameter of the eye one-sixth of the length of 

 the head ; length of the head not quite one-third of the total. Pecto- 

 rals nearly reaching to the fi'ont end of the anal fin ; the upper max- 

 illary bone reaching beyond the level of the posterior margin of the 

 eye. Brownish or brown (in spirits) ; on the head constantly nu- 

 merous round whitish spots, sometimes occupying the anterior half 

 or two-thirds of the body {8. nigrindus), or obsolete on the trunk, 

 and replaced by tlistant dark-brown (in life \iolet) spots ; fins with 

 very numerous small brown spots. Back sometimes with a series of 

 three or four small, round, black spots along the base of the dorsal fin. 



Caribbean Sea ; Gulf of Mexico ; Coast of Brazil. 



a. Adult. S. America. Presented by Sir R. Schomburgk. 

 h. Adult. Puerto Cabello. From Mr. Brandt's Collection. 



c. Half-grown. W. Indies. 



d. Half-grown : skeleton. W. Indies. 



e. Adult. W. Indies. 



/. Adult. W. Indies. From the Haslar Collection. — With only 



seven dorsal spines. 

 (J. Adiilt. Cuba. Presented by the Zoological Society. 

 h, i. Adult : skins. Jamaica. From Dr. Parnell's Collection. 

 k. Adult : skin : bad state. Trinidad. Presented by J. B. Richardson, 



Esq. 

 I, m. Adult : stuffed. W. Indies. From Mr. Scrivener's Collection. 



Var. NIGEICULI7S. 



7n. Adult. S. America. Presented by Sir R. Schomburgk. 



n-s. Adult : stuffed. W. Indies. From Mr. Scrivener's Collection. 



Skeleton. — The skeletons of the numerous species of Serranus are 

 very similar to one another : the eonfigiu'ation of the bones forming 

 the roof of the skull, the opercular pieces, and the maxillarj' bone, 

 exhibit slight differences, of no importance in systematical arrange- 

 ment, and difficult to be clearly described. In this species the upper 

 part of the skuU does not bear very prominent ridges ; a slight lon- 

 gitudinal crest nms from the supraoccipital to the liinder end of the 

 suture between the frontal bones, which are slightly swoUen, and 

 rather elevated above the level of the occipital ; the space between 

 the orbits is slightly concave, filled up by two divergent, rounded 

 ridges of the frontal bones. The raaxiUary bone is widened behind, 

 with straight superior and inferior margins. The praeoperculum is 



