1 1 . ATYPLS. <>;■> 



/>. Adult: skin. Holdfast Bay. Voyage of H.M. 8. Fly. 

 r, d. Adult : skins. Australia. Purchased of Mr. Warwick. 

 r. Fine male specimen. Raoul Island. Presented by the Lords of 

 the Admiralty. 



Description. — Tlie fish, upon which I have founded this new genus, 

 has some affinity to several others of diffei'ent families. It might be 

 referred to the family of the Percida'., if it had not the soft portions 

 of the dorsal and anal entirely covered with scales. In consequence 

 of the presence of teeth on the palate, and of the sti-ucture of the 

 air-bladder, we are obliged to remove it from the Pristijiomutidce, 

 although it bears a strong resemblance to Therapon. For the present, 

 the fish appears to be nearest allied to Scotpis, from which, however, 

 it ditt'ers gencrically by the shape of the spinous dorsal. 



The general form of the body is that of a species of Therajion ; it 

 is compressed, oblong, its greatest height below the fifth dorsal si)ine 

 being one-third of the total length. The upper profile descends 

 obliquely do^vn wards to the end of the snout, in a vei'y slightly curved 

 line. The length of the head is 4^ in the total ; the extent of the 

 snout is less than the diameter of the eye or the space between the 

 orbits, which is slightly convex. The cleft of the mouth is small, 

 the upper maxillary reaching to the anterior margin of the orbit. 

 The pricorbital is nearly as wide as high, with the lower margin 

 rounded and veiy slightly serrated. No pores are Aisible at or be- 

 tween the pieces of the mandibula. The eye is of moderate size. 

 The prseoperculum is rather deeply serrated round its margins, the 

 denticulations being longest at the angle, Aviiich is a right one. The 

 operculum is not armed. All the head is covered with veiy small 

 scales. 



The dorsal fin begins in a vertical drawn from between the bases 

 of the pectoral and ventral fins, and terminates at a distance from 

 the caudal, which equals that between the eye and the posterior 

 margin of the operculum. The upper margin of the fin has no notch 

 between the two portions, and its profile descends gradually from the 

 fifth spine to the extremity of the fin. The spines are of moderate 

 strength, broader on one side : the first is the shortest, about half 

 the diameter of the eye ; the following increase in length to the fifth, 

 which is the tallest, one-half the length of the head ; the last_ is 

 rather longer than one-half the fifth. The anterior rays do not 

 exceed in length the last spine, and the whole soft portion is covered 

 with minute scales. The caudal is scaly at the base only, forked, 

 each lobe being 4| in the total length. The a7ial fin begins in a 

 vertical from the last dorsal spine, and terminates a little behind the 

 dorsal ; the three spines are as strong as the dorsal ones : the first 

 equals in length the second of the dorsal ; the second is the tallest, 

 2| in the length of the head; the third is intermediate between 

 the first and second. The soft portion is very much like the corre- 

 sponding part of the dorsal fin. The pectorals are scaly at the 

 base, pointed, one-sixth of the total length, and do not reach to the 

 vertical from the vent. The ventrals are inserted behind the pec- 



VOL. II. I' 



