32-4 Mr. C. T. Regan on the Osteology and 



29 in Panch'ix, 32 or 33 in Fandulus, 34 in Rioulus, -41 ia 

 Lamptichthi/s) . 



The South-American (genera of tliis subfamily are liivulus 

 antl CynolebidS. Tlie North-American species are numerous ; 

 many are marine, and most of them appear to be congeneric 

 with Fundulus heteroclitus\ Lucania and probably Empe- 

 trich(hi/s are related genera. With the exception of the 

 problematical Fundulichthys virescens, the Asiatic species fall 

 into two groups ; in both the short dorsal fin is placed above 

 the posterior end of the rather long anal, but they differ 

 widely in other respects. In the one the pisemaxillaries are 

 fiattish and somewhat produced, protractile, the cleft of the 

 mouth is rather wide, horiz )ntal, almost semicircular, the 

 teeth are in bands, with an outer and a more or less distinct 

 inner series of enlarged teeth, vomerine teeth and pseudo- 

 branchiiB are present, the gill-membranes are not united, and 

 the pectoral fins are placed low. In the other the mouth is 

 small, transverse, not protractile, with the teeth in a single 

 series, sometimes followed by a second series of minute 

 teeth; there are no vomerine teeth or pseudobrancluEe, the 

 gill-membranes are broadly united, and the pectoral fins are 

 placed high. McClelland, in 1839, included one species of 

 each group in his genus Aplocheihis (^Haplochdus) . Valen- 

 ciennes, in 1846, gave the name Fanchax to the first of these 

 groups, and Bleeker afterwards definitely restricted Haplu- 

 cht'lus to the second. Orydas, Jord. & Snyder, is a synonym 

 of IJaplochifus. 



j\lost of the African fishes which have been referred to Hap- 

 lochiltis belong to one or the other of two rather distinct types ; 

 a number of species may be placed in Fanchax, since they 

 differ from the Asiatic species of that genus only in the less 

 produced prsemaxillaries ; JJ. playfairii, sex/asci'atus,fascmtus, 

 senegalensis, chaperi, &c. are species of Fanchax. Several 

 species which have been placed in HapJochilus appsar to be 

 congeneric with llaphchiliclithysspilaxichen ; in tliese pseudo- 

 branchiai and vomerine teeth are ahvays absent, but they are 

 not invariably present in Fanchax. Haplochilichthys resembles 

 Hajylochilus and differs from Fanchax in the high position of 

 the pectoral fins and the united gill-membranes, but has the 

 mouth protractile and the teeth in bands, the outer series 

 enlarged ; II. macrurus, johnstomi, antinorii, myoposce, &c. 

 are species of this genus. Frocatopus is closely related to 

 Haplochilichthys. Most of the African species which have 

 been pla^'ed in Fundulus appear to belong to the genns Notho- 

 hranchius, which differs from Fanchax in having the doreal 

 fin as long as the anal. 



