21. OPHICHTUYS. 75 



eye rather small, one-half of the lenj^th of the snout, situated above 

 the middle of the mouth. Teeth small, uniserial, apparently in two 

 .series on the vomer*. Li^^s fringed. Gill-openings narrow and 

 elo.se together. Fins moderately developed. The dorsal fin com- 

 mences at a short distance behind the angle of the mouth ; pectoral 

 fin one-fourth of the length of the head. Tail nearly twice as long 

 as the body. Erownish, lower parts whitish. 

 Australia. 



u. Seventeen inches long. Freeman tie. 



C. Maxillart/ teeth equally small, fonniny bands; lips ffinged. 



43. Ophichthys chinensis. 



CiiThimur?ena chinensis, Katip, Apod. p. 27. 



Ophisurus polyodon, Bleek. Act. Soc. Indo-Nederl. viii .Sumatra, viii. 



p. m. 



Cirrhimurrena polyodon, Bleek. Atl. Ichthyol. Murcen. p. 41, tab. 8. 

 fig. 1. 



The Icngtli of the head is two-fifths or rather more than two-fifths 

 of tlic distance between the gill-opening and the vent. Snout pro- 

 duced, pointed, the cleft of the mouth being two-fifths of the length 

 of the head. Eye small, situated in the anterior fifth of the length 

 of the head. Teeth small, pointed, of equal size ; those of the inter- 

 maxillary and maxillary form a rather broad band, and those of the 

 vomer and mandible are arranged in a double or triple series t. 

 Lips fringed. Gill-openings rather narrow and close together. 

 Vertical fins moderately developed ; the dorsal fin commences above 

 the gill-opening ; pectoral Jin narrow and long, nearly one-half of 

 the length of the head. Tail t^vice or nearly twice as long as the 

 body. Coloration uniform. 



China, Sumatra. 



a. Type of the species, 7 inches long. China. 



b. Type of C. polyodon, 11 inches long. Priaman. From Dr. 



Bleeker's Collection. 



44. Ophichthys tapeinopterus. 



Cirrhimurciena tapeinopterus, Bleek. Nederl. Tydschr. Dierk. p. 183 ; 

 or Atl. Ichthyol. Muran. p. 41, tab. 8. fig. 3 ; ? K)ier, Norara, Fisch. 

 p. 37l). 



The length of the head is contained twice and a third in the dis- 

 tance of the gill-opening from the vent. Snout produced, pointed, 

 the clift of the mouth being one-third of the length of the head. Eye 

 small, situated in the anterior fifth of the length of the head. Teeth 

 small, pointed, of equal size, forming a broadish band in the maxil- 

 lary, and narrower ones along the vomer and mandibles. Lips 

 fringed. Gill -openings rather narrow and close together. Vertical 



* All the bones are iiiucli softened by tlic fluid in which the speciuieu lias 

 been preserved : and the teeth are very indistinct and partly destroyed, 

 t Kaiip's description is erroneous. 



