Mr. J. y. Johnson on new Fishes from Madeira. 63 



length of the fish, is as 1 to 4. It is depressed, unarmed, flat between 

 the eyes, with a longitudinal depression at the nape ; the snout short 

 and rounded ; the cheeks convex and scaly. The round eye is placed 

 high up, so as to take part in the profile ; it is contained four times 

 on the head, and is distant one and one-third of its diameter from 

 the tip of the snout ; the space between the eyes is equal to one 

 diameter. The nostrils are rather small ; at the posterior edge of 

 the anterior one there is a strap-shaped skinny appendage. The 

 mouth is wide, and when open the jaws form a broad oval ; its ante- 

 rior, as well as the tongue, is of a pale-grey colour. The upper 

 border of the mouth is formed by the premaxillary ; the maxillary 

 is broad below, and reaches back to the vertical from the middle of 

 the eye ; the skin covering it is colourless, for when the mouth is 

 closed it slides underneath the skin covering the posterior bones. 

 The under jaw closes inside the upper one. There are scobinate 

 bands of conical teeth in both jaws, those of the outer rows being 

 rather larger. The band of the upper jaw is broader in front than 

 the band of the lower jaw, but it narrows behind. There is a small 

 round patch of similar teeth on the vomer, and also patches on the 

 pharyngeals ; but the palatines and the tongue are unarmed. The 

 tongue is thick, broad, and pointed. 



The gill-openings are large. The edges of the opercle and pre- 

 opercle are rounded ; and the edge of the latter is distinctly visible, 

 not concealed by the skin. The chin carries a barbel. The first dorsal 

 fin is short, having only five rays, of which the first is elongate, its 

 upper part being setaceous ; the length of this ray to the total 

 length of the body is as 1 to 5^. The interval between the two 

 dorsal fins is short. The second dorsal fin has its base about 1 6 times 

 the length of the base of the first, and its highest portion is less than 

 half the length of the first ray of the first dorsal ; it falls about the 

 middle, and then rises again, its termination being prolonged and 

 pointed. The specimen has been wounded in the back during its 

 life, and, though the wound has healed, a few (but probably not 

 more than two or three) of the rays have been carried away. The 

 remaining rays are forty-eight in number. None of the dorsal or 

 anal fins are fleshy, neither are there any scales upon them. The 

 pectoral fins are inserted a little in front of the first dorsal, and 

 rather above the middle of the height ; their apices are pointed, and 

 they are of moderate length, reaching back beyond the commence- 

 ment of the anal fin. The jugular ventral fins are forked, the longer 

 division becoming filiform and reaching back considerably beyond 

 the commencement of the anal fin, and a little beyond the tips of 

 the pectoral fins. These fins are longer than the head, and, compared 

 with the total length of the fish, they are as 1 to 3|. The diiference 

 between the lengths of the two divisions of the ray is to the length 

 of the longer as 1 to 4g. The vent is surrounded by a black ring, 

 and is placed under the fourth ray of the second dorsal fin. The 

 anal fin commences under the seventh or eighth ray of the second 

 dorsal fin. It is highest in front ; at the middle it falls in, and then 

 ends a short distance in front of the second dorsal with an acute 



