32 LOPHOBRANCHII. 



Descr. — Length of the snout equal to the distance between 

 the hinder angle of the orbit and the further edge of the gill- 

 cover. The head is shagreened or roughly streaked. The la- 

 teral lines coalesce with the angle of the tail in an arch. Number 

 of the body-rings 15, of the tail-rings from 38 to 40. Dorsal fin 

 situated on the second and following tail-rings to the 7th inclu- 

 sive. Almost the entire side of the tail is covered by the inter- 

 mediate rings, which are very high. The female has two rows 

 of black spots on the yellowish under part of the snout. 



Rad.— P. 17; D. 24 ; A. 2; C. 10. 



Length of the head 0-39 to 0-46 inch; the body L02 to 114 

 inch; the tail 2 - 80 to 300 inches; and the egg-pouch L30 

 to 1'46 inch. 



The Parisian Museum possesses three males and three females, 

 sent from Pondicherry by Leschenault; the Leyden Museum 

 one female, obtained at Macassar by M. Piller ; and a pair from 

 Assam, sent by Mr. Walker, are deposited in the Berlin Mu- 

 seum. 



This species bears a resemblance to Dr. Riippell's spicifer, 

 and may easily be confounded with it, if the generic characters 

 be overlooked. Dr. Bleeker mentions this resemblance. He 

 found the dorsal placed on the 3rd to the 8th rings. 



Genus 5. SYNGNATHUS *, Linn. 



Diagn. — No spines on the straight outstretched cylindrical 

 snout. Body heptagonal. The dorsal fin stands on a level 

 with the back, not on an elevated base. The upper border 

 of the back never runs into the same line with that of the 

 tail ; and the upper border of the tail is either coalescent 

 with the lateral line, or is interrupted at the end of that line. 

 Dorsal surface of the body flat or flatly concave, and never 

 much compressed or bent into an arch. The number of the 

 body-rings never amounts to 24 or 27. The species occur 

 in every sea. 



* Late authors, following Rafinesque, have placed the Nerophet 

 that have a caudal fin in Syngnathus, but these cannot be separated 

 from the Nerophes with finless tails. Bibron has named this genus 

 Typhlus in the Paris Museum, but has included therein almost all my 

 new genera of the Syngnathin<e, and even of the Doryrhamphinm, so 

 that I cannot employ his name. 



