of the Island of Tnnidad^ W. I. 21 



Lobotes ocellatus. If it should be found, on u more critical 

 examination, to be really distinct from Astronotus, to which it 

 is most nearly allied, Heckel's name of Acaka might appropri- 

 ately be retained as its generic name. This would be no more 

 than an act of justice to that naturalist, who has contributed 

 more than any other to the history of the family. The Acara 

 crassispinis is generically distinguished from Cychlasoma by the 

 smaller scales which cover the body, the concave forehead, 

 and the much larger number of rows of scales which cover the 

 cheeks, the number of rows amounting to ten. It belongs to the 

 Section E. of the genus Acara, in the arrangement of Heckel, a 

 section which is characterized in the words, "Bucca squamarum 

 seriebus 10 ; squamis omnibus minoribus:" the other sections of 

 his Acara are distinguished by the number of rows of buccal 

 scales, the size of the sub-orbital, and the presence or absence of 

 dark colored vertical bands, and all belong to Cychlasoma, as 

 now restricted, 



Cychlasoma will then include the Acara Heckelii of MUller 

 and Troschel, Perca bimaculata and P. punctata of Bloch, and 

 Heckel's species Acara tetramerus, viridis, diadema, vittatus, 

 pallidas, dorsiger, marginatus, dimerus, nassa, cognata, and 

 unicolor. Some of the fishes recently described as belonging 

 to " Chromys," by Count Castelnau, also belong to this genus, 

 but as he has not described the character of the pharyngeal 

 bones or the dentition, it is difficult to refer some of his species 

 to any established genera. His Chromys uniocellata and C. 

 obscura appear to be species of Cychlasoma. The species 

 which he describes and figures as " Chromys punctata? Bloch," 

 is certainly very different from the Labrus punctatus of Bloch, 

 and even appears to belong to another genus. 



