Dr. A. Giinther on a new form of Mudfish. 307 



fin. Caudal fin rounded, as long as the head (without snout) ; 

 pectoral somewhat shorter. 



Brown, with irregular blackish transverse spots. 



Total length 5^ inches. 



The peculiar circumstances under which the specimen was 

 obtained arc best explained in the following letter, by which it 

 was accompanied : — 



" Geological Survey Office and Colonial Museum, 

 "Wellington, 27th July, 1867. 

 " Dear Sir, 



" At the request of His Excellency Sir George Grey, I forward a 

 specimen of a fish which is found under peculiar circumstances near 

 Hokitika, on the west coast of the province of Canterbury, with a 

 request that, if it proves to be a subject of interest, you will describe 

 it and deposit it in the British Museum. I also enclose a pencil- 

 sketch of the same specimen, which was found at a depth of 4 feet 

 from the surface, in a stiff clay imbedding roots of trees. The 

 locality is 37 feet above the level of the Hokitika River, and three 

 miles from the sea, and has at one time been a backwater of the 

 river during floods. The gold-fields township of Kaneiri is now built 

 upon it ; but little more than two years ago it was a swamp covered 

 with dense forest. The surface of stiff clay rests on a deep deposit 

 of gravel, which has been pierced in all directions by the gold- 

 miners ; so that, during the above period, no surface- or river-water 

 could have collected, and the original swamp has disappeared. 



" Mr. Schaw, the warden of the district, to whom I am indebted 

 for my information, has examined seven or eight specimens of this 

 fish, and assures me that they occur enclosed in hollows in the clay; 

 and that, although when first extracted they moved freely, if placed 

 in water they get sluggish and soon die. The specimens seen vary 

 from 3 to 7 inches in length. 



" That a fish should survive when imbedded in clay for months 

 or even years, is a matter of familiar experience ; and it is not diflfi- 

 cult to conceive bow these fish might, on the desiccation of the 

 swamps, get into the position in which they are found, by following 

 crevices among the roots of trees ; and 1 believe that the early 

 settlers in New Zealand were frequently much astonished by digging 

 up fish along with the potatoes they bad planted in the rich swampy 

 land — a natural bounty which they were not prepared for. 



" I am sorry I cannot send you specimens of the fish from the 

 neighbouring waters for comparison; but I believe you will find it 

 to be only an abnorm.il form of some commonly recognized species. 



'• I remain, 



"Yours faithfully, 



" Dr. Giinther, F.R.S., " James Hector." 



" British Museum." 



The last surmise of Dr. Hector is natural enough, and would 



'21* 



