440 TELEOSTEI. ACAJfTIIOPTERYQII. 



fin with a scaly sheath. Caudal forked. 



Aual spines 3 28. GF.RRES. 



Preopercle serrated along lower edge. Inferior 

 pharyngeal bones not united by a suture. 

 Dorsal with scaly sheath. Anal spines 5 . . 29. PENTAPRIOX. 



First group. PEKCINA. 

 1. Genus LATES, Cuv. & Val. 

 Syii. Cnidon, Mull. & Troschel ; Pseudates, Alleyne & Macleay. 



Brachiostegals seven.- Body oblong and somewhat compressed. 

 Preorbital and shoulder-bone serrated ; preoperele with strong 

 spines at its angle, and denticulated along its horizontal border ; 

 opercle spiny. Teeth villiform on jaws, vomer, and palatine bones ; 

 tongue smooth. Two dorsal fins united at their bases, the first 

 with 7 or 8 spines, the anal with 3 ; caudal rounded. Scales finely 

 ctenoid and of moderate size. Caecal pylori few. 



Geographical Distribution. Mouths of the Nile ; the coasts of 

 Baluchistan and Sind, and throughout the seas of India to the 

 Malay Archipelago, China, and Australia ; absent from the Red 

 Sea. These fishes in India are marine forms, largely frequenting 

 brackish water and occasionally ascending into fresh waters. 



Uses. Excellent as food. The air-bladders or sounds are dried, 

 and made into rough isinglass, much of which is exported from 

 India to China, and some to Europe. 



558. (1.) Lates calcarifer *. (Fig. 139.) 



Holocentrus calcarifer, Sloch, Ich. t. 244. 



Lates calcarifer, Day, Fish. India, p. 7, pi. i, fig. 1, Suppl. p. 779 (see 

 synon.). 



Dangara, Sind. : Fitdda, Marathi ; Nuddee-meen or Nair-meen, Mai. ; 

 Painnee-rneen or Koduwa, Tarn. ; Pandit kopah or Pandu menu, Tel. ; 

 Durruah and Beltkut, Ooriah ; Beyti, Beng. ; Nga-tha-dyk, Arracanese ; 

 Nga-ka-kadyt, Burmese; Koral, or if large Baor, Chittagong; Todah, 

 Andam. ; Cock-up of Europeans. 



D.7-8 | 1/10-12. P. 17. V. 1/5. A. 3/8-9. L.I. 52-00. L.tr. 6-7/13. 

 Length of head from 3| to 4, height of body 3| to 3| in the 

 total length. Eyes 5 to 6 diameters in the length of head, 1 to 

 1| from end of snout, and f apart. Fins dorsal spines strong, the 

 third the highest ; third anal spine longest and strongest ; pectoral 

 shorter than ventral, and rounded. Colow grey, with a dash of 

 green along the back and silvery on the abdomen, during the mon- 

 soon with a tinge of purple. The immature are usually darker 

 than adults. 



* Whilst these pages were passing through the press, Mr. Boulenger called 

 attention to two specimens of Psammopcrca waiyiensis, recently obtained at 

 Madras. P. uaigiensis is very similar to L. calcarifer, being chiefly distin- 

 guished by baving the inferior margin of the preoperele entire, not toothed, 

 and by the 2nd anal spine being nearly as long as the 3rd. 



