CURIOUS INSTINCT OF THE ARCHER FISHES. 303 



bands of olive black. A line of blue surrounds the orbit; 

 the fins are tinted with olive and yellow, the pectorals 

 sometimes with a delicate rose-color. This fish is about 

 four or five inches in length. A formidable rival in point of 

 beauty, however, is the the One-spotted 3Iesoprion, of the 

 same family, a native of our seas, and as remarkable for the 

 elegance of its form (length about fourteen inches) as the 

 richness and lustre of the coloring. The back, upper part 

 of the head, and cheeks are of a rich steel blue, the lower 

 part of the cheeks and sides of a rich rose-color, and the 

 belly silvery J the whole body is striped with seven or eight 

 bands on a rose-colored ground, and the others are gamboge 

 yellow. The coloring is subject to a considerable variety 

 in tint, from golden orange to silvery. The Golden-tailed 

 Mesoprion is of similar richness. 



What is called the " Scaly-finned " family of fishes is a 

 large one, containing about one hundred and fifty species, 

 most of which, however, frequent the Indian and Polynesian 

 seas, and are conspicuous for their splendid coloring. It 

 has been observed that if the " feathered tribes of the warm 

 regions are bedecked with the most brilliant and gorgeous 

 hues, the neighboring oceans contain myriads of the finny 

 race which in this respect excel them. Upon the'first of 

 three groups of this family especially, nature has most pro- 

 fusely lavished these splendid ornaments. The purple of 

 the iris, the richness of the rose, the azure blue of the sky, 

 the darkest velvet black, and many other hues are seen com- 

 mingled with metallic lustre over the pearly surface of the 

 resplendent group, which, habitually frequenting the rocky 

 shores at no great depth of water, are seen to sport in the 

 sunbeams as if to exhibit to advantage their gorgeous 

 dress. 



In the chapter on "Submarine Scenery,'^ we have described 

 the Ghoetodon (signifying I contain a tooth), one of the most 

 beautiful of this family of fishes. Another animal ranged 



