210 Dr. A. Gunther on a new Characinoid Genus of Fish. 



fin short, occupying the middle of the length of the body; 

 adipose fin slender, styliform, slightly dilated at its extremity; 

 anal short; caudal deeply forked, not scaly; ventrals scarcely in 

 advance of the dorsal. Body low, elongate, tapering behind, 

 covered with very large, hard, rugose scales, which have the 

 margin serrated ; the scales are imbricate, and form a complete, 

 hard carapace. Lateral line uninterrupted ; belly flat, head 

 elongate, entirely osseous, the cheeks being covered by the very 

 large infraorbital bone. Snout elongate, conical; cleft of the 

 mouth wide, the angle of the mouth being situated just before 

 the eye; the intermaxillaries and maxillaries of both sides 

 coalesce, forming a very moveable flattish bone, which is armed 

 with a series of strongish, compressed, tricuspid teeth round its 

 entire margin, without canine teeth in front ; another series of 

 minute teeth runs along the inner edge of the bone. The denta- 

 ries of the mandible also are coalescent into a single bone, with- 

 out median suture ; their dentition is the same as that of the 

 upper jaw. Both jaws are equally moveable in a vertical direc- 

 tion ; and when the lower is pressed downwards, the upper is 

 moved upwards at the same time; they shut spontaneously. 

 Palate toothless. Nostrils on the upper surface of the head, in 

 front of the eye, close together. Gill-openings of moderate 

 width, the gill-membranes being attached to the isthmus. 



Phago loricatus. 

 D.12. A. 10. P. 9. V. 8. L.lat.47. L.transv. l±/3. 



The depth of the body is rather less than one-half of the length 

 of the head, which is nearly one-fourth of the total (the caudal 

 not included). Eye of moderate size, occupying the middle of 

 the length of the head ; its diameter is less than the width of 

 the interorbital space, and two-fifths of the length of the snout. 

 Intermaxillary and mandible with twenty teeth on each side, in 

 the outer series. Operculum small, with rather a deep notch 

 just above the hinder angle of the suboperculum. The origin 

 of the dorsal fin is somewhat nearer to the extremity of the 

 snout than to the root of the caudal fin ; it is higher than long. 

 Caudal with the lobes tapering, half as long as the head. Pec- 

 torals as long as ventrals, or as the postorbital portion of the 

 head. The portion of the tail behind the anal is much elongate, 

 and a transverse section would have the form of a regular hexagon. 

 Uniform reddish shining silvery; vertical fins with brown dots; 

 each caudal lobe with three oblique brown bands. 



Length 4^ inches. 



