THE DRAGONET. 315 



Sordid dragonet Pennant's remarks. 



The head of the sordid dragonet, which, from 

 its strong resemblance to the gemmeous drago- 

 net, has been by some considered the same spe- 

 cies, is considerably more arched than that of 

 the latter, and the first ray of the dorsal fin of 

 the sordid dragonet is only as long as the head 

 of the fish. In the sordid that fin is blackish, 

 and in the gemmeous dragonet it is spotted 

 with yellow and blue. The latter is twelve or 

 fourteen inches in length, but the former never 

 exceeds eight inches, and its colors are less 

 varied. 



" The first dorsal fin of" this fish," says Mr. 

 Pennant, " has four rays, the first setaceous, 

 extending a little higher than the others; the 

 last very short ; the two first rays and webs yel- 

 low, the others black ; the second had ten soft 

 rays, their ends extending beyond the webs, 

 which were pellucid ; the pectoral fins consisted 

 of twenty rays, and were ferruginous, spotted 

 with a deeper cast of the same ; the ventral fins 

 consisted of five broad and much branched rays, 

 like those of the first species ; the anal fin was 

 white, and had ten rays ; the tail had ten rays, 

 bifurcated at their ends, and the ray next the 

 anal fin very short. In color this species is far 

 inferior to the fqrmer, being of a dirty yellow 

 mixed with white dusky spots ; the belly is en- 

 tirely white. Miiller asserts, that it is cinereous, 

 and the tail fin yellow, in some instances adorned 

 with two black stripes. 



2 ii 2 



