492 APPENDIX. 



ASSICULUS. 



Cn. Gen. — Corpus compressissimum, assuleeforme : caput 



crassius, minus altum, declive. Os parvum. Maxilla inferior 



porifera, ore clauso ascendens, hinc, ore hiante, ultra maxillam 



speriorem modlck protractam extensa. 



Preoperculum margine integro nee spinifero, disco arcto, 

 incequali, esquamoso, genam squamosam postich et infrd cin- 

 gens. Operculum tridentatum : Suboperculum crena^Mw,* 

 utrumque et interoperculum latiusculum squamis satis magnis 

 tecta. Denies villiformes, mlnuti cum dente canine in medio 

 utroque latere maxillw inferior is et trans apicem utriusque 

 maxiUce dentibus quatuor (vel sex) fortioribus, altioribus, 

 in serie exteriori ordinatis. Denies voraeris et palati acuti, 

 stipati minuti. Denies pharyngei, acerosi inequales, acuti. 



Membrana branchialis radiis sex sustentata, interoperciiUs 

 liberis, accumbentibus tecta. 



SquarasB satis magnce, nitidce ciliatce. Linea lateralis antice 

 abrupte ascendens, dein dorso parallela et approximata, 

 postich diffracta infraque per mediam caudam ciirsum re- 

 sumens. 



Pinnce magnce esquamosce. Pinna dorsi anique radiis tribus 

 spinosis, ceteris articulatis. Pinnae ventrales sub pectorales 

 affixes, propter tenuitatem ventris invicem approximatce. 



The strong resemblance which the subject of this article 

 bears to the Pseudochromh olivaceus of Dr. Riippell, (Neue 

 Worlbelkiere, p. 8, taf. 2, Jig. 3,) induced me at first sight to 

 refer it to the same genus, but on examination I found that 

 very material alterations would require to be made in the 

 generic characters assigned to Pseudochromis,* to enable them 

 to apply to our fish. The above character has therefore been 



* M. Swainson, considering this name as very objectionable, has proposed 

 Labristoma instead. Both names are founded on the resemblance which 

 the fish bears to another genus, in whole or in part, and the objection which 

 has been made to the one, is equally valid against the other. 



