208 



MUG1LID.E. 



forsaken by the tide. This species has, like the other, 

 the habit of escaping from a net by leaping over the head- 

 lines. The length of the specimen was ten inches : the 

 head wide, depressed; eyes one inch apart, and three- 

 eighths of an inch from the angle of the mouth, not con- 

 nected with any membrane ; nostrils close together, and, 

 while the fish is alive, moveable on each contraction of the 

 mouth : a prominent superior maxillary bone, minutely 

 notched at its lower or posterior edge ; upper lip protuberant 

 and fleshy, with a thin margin minutely notched or ciliated ; 

 the lip appears behind as projecting under the maxillary. 

 Carina of the under jaw prominent and square ; edge of the 

 lower lip fine and simple. Body solid, round over the 

 back : pectoral fins high on the side, pointed, rounded 

 below, the first rays short. The first dorsal fin five inches 

 and three-eighths from the snout, the origin of the first 

 three rays approximate, the first ray the longest ; the first 

 two rays of the anal fin short : tail broad, concave ; scales 

 large. Colour of the head and back greenish ; all besides 

 silvery, with six or seven parallel lines along the sides 

 of the same colour as the back." The number of fin-rays 

 are 



D. 4. 9 : P. 14 : V. 1 + 5 : A. 3 + 8 : C. 16. 



The figure of this fish is taken from the Fauna Italica 

 of the Prince of Musignano, who attaches to this species the 

 following specific characters : 



" Head of moderate size, subtruncated in front ; upper 

 lip thickened, under lip very slightly margined ; the de- 

 scending portion of the maxillary bone projecting below the 

 suborbital bone ; the space between the edges of the intcr- 

 opercula very narrow ; the rays of the spiny dorsal fin 

 longer than the half of the depth of the body." 



