PISCES 239 
in different parts of the extensive Bay. Even before they were 
finally cast ashore, the fishes were more or less mutilated by gulls, 
most of them having their eyes picked out. Many theories have 
been advanced to account for the peculiar behaviour of the 
fishes. I beleve that von Lendenfeld*> considers that they 
approach the surface for spawning purposes, but not having 
access to his paper I am unaware if this is merely a theory 
or a proven fact. 
Family LEPTOSCOPIDA. 
CRAPATALUS Giinther, 1861. 
CRAPATALUS NOVH-ZELANDI® Giinther. 
Crapatalus novae zelandiae Giinther, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist. (3) 
wie, L861, p87, pl. x, 
Leptoscopus angusticeps Hutton, T.N.Z.1. vi. 1874, p. 106, 
pls xox, 
Station 17. 
Bias; Dias An 39); Po 2h Vo to Ole Aas. Jat. -50; 
L. tr. 16 + 18. 
Length of head 4.1, height of body 8.8, length of caudal 7.6 
in the length; diameter of eye 9.1, interorbital space 6.2, length 
of snout 4.5 in the head. 
The opercles mark the widest part of the fish, and the head 
tapers to the snout, which is obtusely rounded; the top of the 
head is quite flat with a ridge on the inner side of each eye 
forking behind: the mouth is oblique, the lower jaw being much 
the longer with a prominent chin; both upper and lower lips 
bear long fringes. The body is rounded passing into the long 
and compressed tail. 
Teeth.—The teeth are depressible, and arranged in bands; 
they are uniformly short in the mandible, but the median teeth 
of the premaxilla are twice as long as the others. 
Fins.—The dorsal fin arises at a poimt one-third the distance 
to the end of the caudal rays; it is low, the median rays being 
longest and nearly-one-fourth the length of the head; the anal 
arises close behind the vent, whose distance from the tip of the 
snout is one-fourth the total length (caudal included), and 
extends closer to the caudal than does the dorsal: its rays are 
longer and thicker than those of the dorsal, and all are 
undivided ; the pectoral extends to the fourth dorsal ray, and its 
(45) Lendenfeld, Zool. Anzeiger, 1883, p. 559. 
