75 



only posteriorly finely dentated or somewhat spinous. 

 Ridges on head generally feeble ; cutaneous appen- 

 dages on head and body generally present. Snout 

 stout, more or less curved upward, very short, 

 about equal to postorbital part of head, rising more 

 or less gently to orbital region. Keel on operculum 

 only anteriorly visible, reaching not farther than 

 to its middle. Superior cristae of trunk and tail 

 discontinuous as also the inferior cristae of trunk 

 and tail. Median cristae of trunk and inferior cristae 

 of tail continuous. Intermedial shields (scutella) large ; 

 a praenuchal and a nuchal shield present. Tail 

 equal to or somewhat more or less than twice the 

 length of the trunk. Dorsal short with 17 23 

 rays, its base not elevated, situated on one or two 

 of the last body-rings or on none and on 3 5 tail- 

 rings. Pectorals, anal and caudal present. Eggs 

 rather large, isolated in cutaneous cells on the 

 anterior 14 or 15 rings of the tail; they are late- 

 rally protected by thin cutaneous folds which begin 

 behind anal and converge posteriorly ; they coalesce 

 temporarely in the median line. These skin-folds 

 may contain feebly developed bony plates. 



Distribution: Marine fishes living on coral 

 reefs and in literal water in the indo-pacific region 

 and in the Caribbean Sea. 



Key to the indo-australian species of 

 Micrognathus. 



1. Snout without a median crest; equal to 

 or somewhat shorter than postorbital part 



of head M. brevirostris p. 75. 



2. Snout with a median crest of 4 6 strong 

 teeth ; much shorter than postorbital part 



of head M. mataafae p. 77. 



i. Micrognathus brevirostris (Riipp.). 



Syngnathus brevirostris Riippell, Neue Wirbelthiere. Fische des 

 Rothen Meeres, 1840, p. 144. 



Fig. 33- 

 Micrognathus 



Syngnathrts sundaicus Bleeker, Verh. Batav. Genootsch. XXV. 1853, mataafae 

 Bijdr. Troskieuwige Visschen p. 21. (Jordan & 



Coryihoichthys brevirostris Kaup, Cat. Lophobr. Fish, 1856, p. 28. Scale) X 2 -5' 



