HAKIC. 



517 



Tlie nostrils lie near the eye, being separated from it 

 bv ;i distance which is ' ., of that between the eye 

 and the tip of the upper jaw. The anterior nostril is 

 round, the posterior crescent-shaped. 'Plie maxillary 

 bones extend hack to a line with the nuddle of the 

 eyes, the distance between the tip of the snout and 

 their hind extremity being often exactl^• half 1 he length 

 of tile head". The lower ja\\' projects considerably 

 beyond the upper, its length being about (il %'' of 

 that of the head. Some of the teeth are iai-ge (."} mm. 

 long in a specimen 42 cm. in length), tirmlv set, 

 pointed, slightlj' recurved, and sparsely set in a single 

 row, containing about 1 5 teeth on each side of the upper 

 jaw. Besides these we iind small teeth in both jaws, in 

 the upper jaw between and within the large ones, and in 

 the lower jaw a row of fairly large teeth outside the for- 

 mer row. The vomerine teeth form a transverse semi- 

 circle in the roof of the palate, being set in an irre- 

 gular, double row. The pharj-nx is also furnished, as 

 usual, with three dentated, upper pharyngeals. The 

 tongue is fleshy, large, and flat. The gill-opening is 

 fairly large, the upper margin of the operculum being 

 free up to the lateral line near the occipital bones. 

 The branchiostegal membrane is large, with exposed 

 margin and 7 large, only slightly flattened rays. Un- 

 derneath it is divided forward to the middle of the 

 lower jaw. There is no trace of a barbel. The bran- 

 chial arches are, as usual, 4 in number, and the hind- 

 most gill-slit is rather narrow. The gill-rakers in the 

 outer row on the first branchial arch are pectinal, 

 but scattered, only 7 — 9 on each side; in the other 

 ro^vs they are tubercular. 



The body is elongated, only slightly compressed, 

 and broadly rounded at the dorsal and ventral mar- 

 gins, each of these margins being furnished with a 

 deep groove in which the dorsal and anal flns are set, 

 and into which they may l)e almost entirely depressed. 

 As we noticed in the last forms of the preceding ge- 

 nus, here too we find, in the hind parts of the dorsal 

 and ventral profiles, at the spots which correspond to 

 the beginnings of the third dorsal and second anal fins 

 in the preceding genus, a break from which these pro- 

 files converge more sharply towards the base of the 

 caudal fin. The least depth of the tail is about 4 — 



4V'2 % of the length of the Ixjdy or about 1>5' ,, — 17 % 

 of the length of the head. 



The lateral line begins at the sides of the occiput 

 and runs almost straight, in a direction sloping slightly 

 downward from the back, to the middle of the caudal 

 iin. It is dccph' depressed, shar]»ly defined, and per- 

 fectly naked. Along its whole length we Iind rather 

 fine tul)ercles or projections, with the ordinary apertures 

 for the passage of water to the sensory organs and for 

 the discharge of mucus, set at intervals about equal in 

 length to three of the neighbouring .scales. The first in 

 or 11 apertures are double, the rest simple, and the 

 posterior ones rather indistinct. 



The vent is situated just in i'ront of the begiiming 

 of the anal fin, which lies far in front of the middle 

 of the bod'V', at about the beginning of the third fifth 

 of its length', a little behind or in front of the per- 

 pendicular from the tip of the pectoral fin. 



The pectoral fin of each side is inserted below the 

 tip of the operculum. Its length is between about 14 

 (sometimes only 12) and 16' ^ % of that of the body. 

 It contains 13 or 14 rays, the first of Avhich is rather 

 small, the second ''/, of the fin in length, and both simple. 

 The other rays are doubly bifid, the sixth ray is the long- 

 est, and the length of the last ray is ", 3 of that of the fin. 



The ventral fins are firm and elastic, in young 

 specimens longer than or ecjual in length to the pectoral 

 fins, in old ones shorter than the latter. They contain 

 7 rays, the first simple and measuring ^ 3 of the fifth, 

 which is the longest. The length of the last ray is '' - 

 of that of the fifth. Thus, as appears from the relati^"e 

 length of the ravs, these fins are obtusely rounded, 

 with even margin and without any perceptible elonga- 

 tion of any f)f the rays. 



The first dorsal fin begins close behind the perpen- 

 dicular from the base of the pectoral fins, at a distance 

 from the tip of the snout of between about 27 (sometimes 

 2(i) and 29 % of the length of the body. It is almost 

 triangular, and is generally composed of lU or 11 rays, 

 the fii-st simple and in length ' 4 of the second, which is 

 the longest ray in the fin, measuring about 12 — 10' , % 

 of the length of the body, and, like the other rays, bifid. 

 The last rays are small. The base of the fin measures 

 9 — 9' . % (sometimes 10 %) of the length of the body. 



" yarvins; however, according to our nieasurements, between about 4 7 and .t1 '■,. 



'' VaryinS' liowever, between about 58 and Gl^, %. 



"■ At a distance from tlie tip of (be sinout tliat varies between about 40 and 42' o % of the length of the body. 



