5. SEBASTES. 103 



length of the head. Snout subclongated, vertex ^\'ith prominent 

 spines. Tongue free anteriorly ; the upper maxillary reaches beyond 

 the vertical from the centre of the eye. The second and third dorsal 

 spines are elongate, and one-half the length of the head, even longer 

 than the second of the anal ; generally none of the rays of the pec- 

 toral branched ; coracoid with a single spine. Red, with small 

 brownish spots ; pharjTix colourless. 

 Sea of Madeira ; Canary Islands. 



a. Adult : stuffed. Santa Cruz. (Teneriffe.) 



h. Adult : skin. Santa Cruz. (Tenexiffe.) 



c. Adult. Madeira. From the Haslar Collection. 



d. Adult : skeleton. Madeira. Presented by Sir A. Smith. 



e. Adult. Old Collection, as Scoijnena chorista. 



Skeleton. — All the bones of the sktdl are thin and transparent. 

 The upper maxillary is styliform in its anterior half, and spatuliform 

 in its posterior ; the intermaxillary has a broad plate-like process on 

 the descending branch, which is much longer than the posterior pro- 

 cesses. There is a wide free space between the dentary and articular 

 bones of the mandibula, and the former has an ovate shallow cavity 

 at its outer side ; pores and a mviciferous channel are scarcely visible. 

 The toothed portion of the palatine bones is situated in a horizontal 

 direction, the posterior part being slightly bent downwards. The 

 praeoperculum is arched, and furnished with a distinct mucifcrous 

 channel ; two triangular spines, pointing downwards, are found at 

 the lower limb, whilst a stronger and rather larger one is situated 

 opposite to the articulation of the infraorbital with the praeoperculum ; 

 a very small spine is situated between the latter spine and the next 

 inferior one. The operculum forms an irregular pentagon, with three 

 slight radiating ridges, visible interiorly and exteriorly ; the sub- 

 operculum and interoperculum are oblong, the former mth an an- 

 terior process directed upwards, for the junction with the operculum. 



The turbinal bones are lost ; the prseorbital has two spines at the 

 inferior margin, pointing backwards ; the infraorbital has a longi- 

 tudinal ridge, with three small spines ; the posterior portion of the 

 infraorbital ring is veiy narrow. The ethmoid is intercalated be- 

 tween the principal frontal bones, which diverge anteriorly, and is 

 armed with a pair of small spines, pointing forwards. The autei'ior 

 frontals form the anterior part of the orbit, and terminate superiorly 

 in a strong spine. The principal frontal bones are rather narrow 

 and elongate, anteriorly transformed into a mucifcrous channel, each 

 with a small slit between the orbits ; their orbital margin is armed 

 with three spines. The crown and occipital region are flat on each 

 side, with a slight ridge, each of which has two depressed spines. 

 The basal portion of the brain-capsule has an ovate-elongate pro- 

 tuberance on each side; the basisphenoid, anteriorly very narrow 

 and without ridge, has a small opening behind the occipital joint. 



There arc ten abdominal and fourteen caudal vertehra', the length 

 of the former portion of the vertebral column being to that of the 

 latter as 1 : 1-2. The third neural is the strongest, supporting the 



