CHROMIS 29 



Key to the Philippine species of Chromis. 



a\ Dorsal spines 13. 



b\ Caudal peduncle bright yellow, this yellow area separated abruptly 

 from the ground coloration; each caudal lobe without a longitudinal 



band C. xanthurus. 



6*. Caudal peduncle not yellow; each lobe of caudal with a dark longi- 

 tudinal band. 



c 1 . Longitudinal band on caudal fin broad and rather ill defined. 



C. xanthochir. 



c-. Longitudinal band on caudal fin narrow and well marked. 



C. scotochilopterus. 

 a'. Dorsal spines 12. 



d 1 . Spinous dorsal scaly; no bluish streak across preorbital. 



e 1 . Caudal fin with a blackish brown longitudinal stripe on each lobe. 



C. ternatensis. 



e". Caudal fin uniformly whitish C. dimidiatus. 



cf. Spinous dorsal naked; a short bluish streak across preorbital. 



C. caeruleus. 



CHROMIS XANTHURUS Bleeker 



Heliases xanthurus BLEEKER, Nat. Tijd. Ned. Ind. 6 (1854) 107; 



GiiNTHER, Cat. Fishes 4 (1862) 62. 

 Chromis xanthurus BLEEKER, Nat. Verb. Holl. Maats. Wet. 2 (1877) 



159; Atlas Ichth. 9 (1878) pi. 405, fig. 5. 



Dorsal XIII, 10 or 11; anal II, 10 or 11; scales in lateral 

 series 27; with tubules 16 to 18; between lateral line and origin 

 of dorsal 3; between lateral line and vent 9. 



Body ovate, upper and lower profiles equally curved and 

 tapering behind toward end of tail ; deepest part of body at about 

 the middle of ventral, 1:9 to 2 in length; head 3 to 3.4; depth 

 of caudal peduncle 5.9 to 6.5. Interorbital space strongly con- 

 vex, slightly bulging on top of head, rather broad, 2.7 to 2.9 in 

 length of head; eye circular, large, contained 3.1 to 3.5; the 

 short, blunt snout 3.5 to 3.8 in head ; maxillary 2.9 to 3.1, ending 

 posteriorly to almost the front edge of pupil. Mouth very 

 oblique, jaws about equal ; front teeth of lower jaw strong and 

 conical and a series of small ones behind them. Preorbital 

 very narrow, its width at angle of mouth scarcely one-third the 

 diameter of eye; suborbital adnate to cheek; opercle ending in 

 a large flat spine. 



All parts of head scaled. Fourth and last dorsal spines the 

 highest. Soft dorsal and anal pointed along the middle, the 

 former more or less produced into a filament; caudal deeply 

 forked, armed superiorly and inferiorly at its. base with three 

 sharp and prominent spines. 



