440 Mr. A. Alcock on undescribed Shore- Fishes 



iseparated by a very narrow scaly space ; the upper nearly 

 half its length in advance of the lower. 



The anterior nostril of both sides is a slender tube ; the 

 one on the coloured side, which is the longer, measuring a 

 diameter of the eye. 



Mouth curved, to form a blunt truncated rostral hook, 

 which does not reach halfway to the vertical from the ante- 

 rior limit of tlie upper eye; its angle extends well behind the 

 vertical from the middle of the lower eye. Villiform teeth 

 on the blind side only. Mid mento-jugular line fringed with 

 ciliiform barbules. 



Gill-openings narrow ; the branchiostegal rays and mem- 

 brane project beyond the opercular margin. Scales uniformly 

 small, strongly ctenoid on both sides. Lateral line straight, 

 ending on the coloured side an eye-length behind the upper 

 orbit. 



The dorsal fin begins on the tip of the snout in the form of 

 a few filiform rays, and extends, as does the anal, to the base 

 of the caudal ; the highest rays are half the length of the 

 caudal, which is 5| in the total; all the vertical fin-rays 

 scaleless. No pectoral fins. Ventrals symmetrical, lateral, 

 separated from the origin of the anal by a wide interval. 



Colours in life : — Body and fins on right side very dark 

 olive, with some blackish flecks arranged in five cross series ; 

 on the left side uniformly clouded with blue-black. 



Length 3'8 inches. 



Off Ganjam coast, 33 fathoms ; bottom sand. Otf Viza- 

 gapatam coast, 20 to 25 fathoms ; sand, mud. 



In spirit both sides dull blue-black, the left side being the 

 lighter. 



SyNAPTURA, Cantor. 



Synaptura quagga (Kaup). 



uEsopia qiiagga, Kaup, in Wiegm. Arcbiv, 1858, p. 98. 

 Synaptura quayga, Giinther, Cat. iv. p. 485. 



In the Journ. As. Soc. Beng. vol. Iviii. pt. ii. p. 286, I 

 erroneously stated that this species was to be fountl in 7 to 

 10 fathoms on the cast coast of India. This should have 

 applied to S. zebra (Bloch). S. quagga (Kaup) has been 

 taken by the ' Investigator ' only between 2Q and 'So fathoms. 



