LOPHOBRANCHII. 43 



distal edge of the pectoral ring, or to the base of the pec- 

 toral fin. The space occupied by the dorsal fin a little ex- 

 ceeds the length of the head. There are 17 or 18 rings up 

 to the dorsal fin, which stands on 9 rings. 



Descr. — This species approaches nearer to Acus and rubescens 

 than to tenuirostris; but the cross-bands are not so distinct as 

 in the two former species. It inhabits the Black Sea. The Paris 

 and Berlin Museums possess several specimens collected by 

 Count Demidoff and Von Nordmann ; temdrostris being mixed 

 with this species in both collections. The Petersburg Museum 

 also possesses specimens. 



18. Syngnathus rubescens, Risso. 

 Syngnathus fermgineus, Michah. Isis, 1829, p. 1013. 



Diagn. — Length of the snout measured from the proximal 

 border of the orbit equal to the distance from thence to the 

 extremity of the pectoral ring, or a little more. Head 

 longer than the space occupied by the dorsal fin, which 

 stands on from 7 to 9 rings. Body-rings from 16 to 18. 



Descr. — This species is intermediate between Acus and tenui- 

 rostris, and is not easily distinguished. Its snout is longer and 

 generally more slender than that of Acus, but not so long as that 

 of tenuirostris. In nineteen examples the number of body-rings 

 is 16; in two it is 17. In ten individuals the number of rings 

 belonging to the dorsal fin is 7, and in seven others it is 8. The 

 rays of the dorsal fin vary in number from 37 to 39. In some 

 individuals the lateral lines are interrupted on both sides, in 

 others the line is broken on the right or on the left side only, 

 and in others again it unites without break to the upper edge of 

 the tail. The largest number of specimens have a uniform red- 

 dish hue, others exhibit cross-bars as in acus and tenuirostris. 



In the Paris Museum there are three dried specimens from 

 the Canaries, collected by Webb and Bertholet, eight procured 

 on the voyage of the ' Zelee and Astrolabe,' and seven others 

 sent by Picart, without any notice of the locality from whence 

 they came ; but as they are covered with the same kind of varnish 

 that Webb and Bertholet's have been prepared with, it is pro- 

 bable that they also came from the Canary Islands. The Leyden 

 Museum possesses seventeen specimens in alcohol brought from 

 the Cape of Good Hope by Horstock. Some of these have a 

 uniform reddish tint, others are grey, speckled and barred with 

 black. 



