292 Mr. Mont ag i *s Observatima 



straight to the tail: skin smooth, but when examined by a lens 

 appears finely punctured. 



Colour pale carmine, darkest above and towards the tail; gill 

 plates and undulated transverse lines along the sides, silvery; fins 

 of the same colour as the body, except the ventral, which are 

 nearly white. 



Length, ten inches; depth behind the head rather more than 

 three quarters of an inch; breadth, half an inch. 



The specimen of this elegant fish, from which the description 

 and annexed figure were taken, was caught in Salcomb bay, on 

 the south coast of Devonshire, on the 25th of February 1803. 

 • It appears to differ a little in the characters given of the genus, 

 for it has only four branchiostcgous rays; but we suspect this 

 circumstance is not always to be depended on. 



Gmelin seems inclined to think this a variety of CepolaTania; 

 but that is out of all question, as the. body of this species is not 

 carinated on each side, nor has the lower jaw a double row of 

 teeth; and in other particulars it differs*. 



Toothed Giltiiead. 



Spams niger. Turt. Linn. \.p. 789- 



Brama marina Cauda forcipata. Rail Syn. Pise. p. 115. n. 4. 



mil Icth. t. V. 12. 

 Spams Rail, La Castagnole. Blocli. IcJiih. Pt. 8. p. 75. pi. 273. 

 La Castagnole. Diiham. Trait, de Peck. t. 3. p. 26. pi. o.f. H 

 Toothed Giltiiead. Br. Zool. iii. p. 243. t. 43. 



* Since the above was written, another specimen was brought to us from the same 

 pla?L- : this w.is taken on the 25-th of March. It was an inch longer, but not quite so 

 deep; the branchiostcgous and fin rays corresponded exactly; the colour was rather 

 darker, and the base of the dorsal fin inclining to orange. This is probably a male, the 

 other a female. 



This 



