1914.] R- B. Seymour Seweli. : Notes on Indian Fish. 135 



The body is covered with small cycloid scales which increase 

 somewhat in size towards the posterior extremity ; the depth of 

 the body is greatest at the insertion of the spinous portion of the 

 dorsal fin and from that point it tapers gradually to the caudal 

 peduncle. 



The head is nearly as wide as it is deep : the measurements 

 of width and height being ii"5 mm. and I2'5 mm. respectively. 



The mouth is wide and is somewhat oblique; the jaws are 

 equal and the maxilla extends back to a point situated vertically 

 below the centre of the eye : the jaws are furnished with numerous 

 teeth of unequal size and the lower jaw bears a pair of lateral 

 canines. The head is naked and the cheeks and operculum are 

 traversed with rows of minute warts. 



The lateral fine, as in the case of C. filifer (Cuv. and Val.), is 

 represented by a series of vertical rows of small pores; there 

 appear to be eighteen such rows in all, of which the first is separated 

 by a fairly wide interval from the remainder, of these latter the 

 more anterior are about 2 mm. apart but posteriorly the distance 

 is somewhat less than this. 



Fins. — The spinous portion of the dorsal fin is completely 

 separate from the posterior rayed part and is also somewhat 

 greater in height; the 3rd spine is the longest and measures 15 

 mm. in length, the rayed part of the fin is io"5 mm. in height. The 

 anal fin is 9 mm. in height. Both caudal and pectoral fin are 

 sharply rounded. 



In colouration the specimen was of a pale green on the dorsal 

 aspect fading to a dull white below: the body and tail were 

 crossed by a series of eight nearly vertical bands of a pale mauve 

 colour. The tail was dotted with a series of small ocelli of a 

 bright blue colour, while the cheeks and operculum were marked 

 with scattered crimson spots, each spot being surrounded by a 

 dark circle; a single similar spot was situated on the muscular 

 base of each pectoral fin. The caudal and ventral fins were 

 marked by faint longitudinal stripes of alternate pale green and 

 mauve. 



As is usually the case, the spots on the head and tail have 

 completely lost their colour in spirit and the former are now a 

 dull white. 



A very closely allied species has been described by Tate 

 Regan", but the present specimen differs from it in several parti- 

 culars and is, I think, a new species. I, therefore, propose the 

 name Cryptocentrus rubropunctatus for it. 



1 Tate Regan, 1907-09. " Report on the Marine fishes collected by 

 Mr. J. Stanley Gardiner in the Indian Ocean." Trans. Linn. Soc, 2nd Ser., 

 Vol. XII, p. 241, pi. 29, fig. 2. London. 



