EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. l7 



Family III.-GRYSTIDiE. 



Branchiostegala five, six, or seven : pseudobrancliiae present. Body 

 oblong or elevated. Eyes lateral. Opercles indistinctly serrated, or spini- 

 I'erous, or entire. Mouth in front of the snout, with lateral cleft which is 

 more or less oblique. Teeth in the jaws villiform or cardiforni, without 

 canines : vomerine, palatine, or lingual teeth present or absent. Dorsal fin 

 generally continuous (separated in Suro and Percilict) : ventrals thoracic. 

 Scales minutely ciliated or eyelid, of moderate size, rarely small. Lateral, 

 line continuous. Airbladder present, simple. Pyloric appendages in small 

 moderate, or large numbers. 



Geographical distribution. — Fresh waters and seas of tropical and temperate 

 regions. 



Genus I.— OLIGORUS. 



Grystes, part. Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. iii. p. 58, 1829. 

 Oligorus, Gnth. Catal. Fish, i, p. 251, 1859. 



Branchiostegals seven : pseudobranchise little developed. Body oblong and 

 posteriorly compressed. Opercle with two weak points : preopercle 

 smooth, or obtusely denticulated : preorbital, posttemporal, and clavicle 

 entire. Villiform teeth on the jaws, vomer, and palatines : tongue smooth. 

 One dorsal fin with ten to twelve, normally eleven, spines : the anal with 

 three. Scales small and eyelid : the entire head scaly : vertical fins with a 

 deep scaly basal sheath. Airbladder large. Pyloric appendages in small 

 numbers. 



GeograpTiical distribution. — Rivers of Australia. 



OLIGORUS MACQUARIENSIS. 



Gn/sfes macquariensis, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. iii. p. 58, 1829 ; 



Richards. Voy. Erebus & Terror, Fish. p. 118, pi. liii. ff. 8, 9. 

 Grystes hrisbajvii, Less. Voy. Coquille, Zool. ii. p. 227. 

 Grystes peelii, Mitch. Exped. Austr. p. 39, pi. v. f. 1, 1838. 

 Oligorus macquariensis, Gnth. Catal. Fish. i. p. 251, and Study of Fish, p. 392, 



f. 164 ; Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. i. p. 51< ; Macleay, Catal. Austr. 



Fish. i. p. 52, and Proc. Linn. Soc. N. S. Wales, viii, p. 200 ; "Woods, 



Fisher. N. S. Wales, p. 102, pi. xli. ; McCoy, Prodr. Zool. Vict. dec. 



ix. pis. 85, 86. 

 Oligorus mitclielli, Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. ii. p. 150; Macleay, Catal. 



Austr. Fish. i. p. 53 ; Woods, Fisher. N. S. Wales, p. 103. 

 Oligorus gibbiceps, Macleay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N. S. Wales, s.. p. 265 



Murray Cod. 

 Plate VIII. 



B. vii. D. 10-12/16-14. A. 3/11-13. V. 1/5. P. 19-20. C, 17, L. 

 lat. 75-80. L. tr. 25/45-47. Coec. pyl. 4, 

 Length of head 3-33-3-60, of caudal fin 6-00-7-00, height of body 

 S'75— 4"40 in the total length. Eye small, its diameter from 4'33 in immature 

 to 7'00 in adult examples in the length of the head, and 1"33-1"75 in that 

 of the snout, which is rather depressed, broad, and very obtusely rounded : 

 interorbital space slightly convex, its breadth 1'20-1'40 in the diameter of 

 the eye. Nostrils separated by a considerable interval, the anterior provided 

 with a triangular flap, the posterior oval and patent. Upper profile of head 

 concave. Jaws subequal. Cleft of mouth deep and oblique; the maxilla 



