365 



changing strongly with age. The original colour is yellow, 

 ornamented with round, blackish spots, about of the size of 

 the eye, arranged in three irregular, longitudinal series. These 

 spots get a yellow centre (polyophthalmus see fig. 182). Later 

 on they are increasing in size as also their light centre, whilst 

 their periphery gets irregular; still later on they are broken 

 up and the fish is finally brownish gray above, whitish below, 

 covered by an infinite number of very small black spots, 

 whilst the abdomen is generally whitish or covered with a few 

 round or irregular spots. Length 750 mm. 



Habitat: Sumatra (West coast); Java (Batavia, Prigi, Pat- 

 jitan, Wijnkoops Bay!); Island Sailus ketjil!; Celebes (Makassar, 

 Tanawanko, Tombariri, Menado); Reef de Bril near Celebes!; 

 Muaras Reef!; Sanguisiapo (Sulu Archipelago)!; Karakelang 

 Islands (Beo!); Buru; Ambon!; Ceram; Batjan; Ternate; New 

 Guinea (Doreh, Humboldt Bay!); Schouten Island (Mysore); 

 Banda!; Island Roma!; Timor; Rotti!; Sumba!. - - East coast 

 of Africa to Natal, Madagascar, South Arabia to West Pacific 

 Islands, Australia, Philippines, Riu Kiu Islands. 



On reefs and near shore. 



2. Muraena (Gymnothorax) thyrsoidea Rich. 



Muraena thyrsoidea Richardson, Voyage Sulphur Ichth. 1844, p. II I (nee figura I 



tab. 49). Voyage Erebus & Terror, Fish. 1844, p. 91. 



Muraena griseo-badid Richardson, Voyage Erebus & Terror, Fish. 1844, p. 89. 

 Muraena thyrsoidea Cantor, Journ. Asiat. Soc. Bengal XVIII. 1850, p. 1312. 

 Muraena prosopeion Bleeker, Nat. Tijdschr. Ned. Indie IV. 1853, p. 300. - 



Verb. Batav. Gen. XXV. 1853, Muraenoid. p. 73. 

 Thyrsoidea griseo-badia Kaup, Cat. Apodal fish, 1856, p. 74. 

 Thyrsoidea arena fa Kaup, Ibid. p. 85. 



Gymnothorax prosopeion Bleeker, All. Ichth. IV. 1864, p. 88. 

 Gymnothorax thyrsoideus Bleeker, Ibid. p. 103. 

 Muraena thyrsoidea Gunther, Cat. Brit. Mus. VIII. 1870, p. 113. 

 Muraena thyrsoidea Day, Fish. India 4. 1878 1888, p. 672. 

 Muraena tile Scale, Occ. Papers Bishop Mus. I. N. 3, 1901, p. 62 (nee Hamilton 



Buchanan) [cfr. citat. sequ.]. 



Gymnothorax thyrsoideus Jordan & Scale, Bull. Bur. fish. XXV. (1905) 1906, p. 198. 

 Muraena thyrsoidea Gunther, Fische d. Siidsee, Heft IX. 1910, p. 419. 



Height 17 21; head 9 to more than 10, thrice in trunk. 

 Head and body somewhat shorter than tail. Eye 10 n, less 

 than twice shorter than snout, which is obtusely rounded and 

 goes nearly 7 times in length of head. Cleft of mouth reaching 

 far behind eye, horizontal, not closing completely in old 



