446 Mr. A. B. Woodward on some 



Description. — A series of scales, of which five examples 

 are shown of the natural size in figs. 2-6, belong to the 

 provisionally-named genus Cladocychis, already known by- 

 similar fossils from the Cretaceous of Europe, North America, 

 and Brazil. Though exhibiting much diversity in form and 

 characters, they probably all represent one species, the differ- 

 ences not being greater than such as are commonly explained 

 by differences in state of preservation and original position on 

 the body of the fish. 



The type scale (fig. 2) is nearly as broad as deep, but the 

 state of preservation does not allow the limits of the exposed 

 sector to be determined. Only the fine concentric lines of 

 growth are shown, and remains of the exposed surface exhibit 

 a few large, rounded, flat-bottomed pits, irregularly arranged 

 and mostly well within the marginal area. An equally 

 broad scale (fig. 3), still more imperfect^ belongs to the lateral 

 line. Three much smaller scales are relatively narrow and 

 deep, and all show the limits of the exposed sector. The 

 specimen represented in fig. 4 is a curious impression, with 

 minute points of calcareous matter indicating the position of 

 the original pits ; and there are traces of a few well-spaced 

 short transverse grooves at the hinder margin of the scale, 

 imparting the aspect of an extremely coarse crimping. Fig. 5 

 also represents an impression in which the radiating lines on 

 the covered area are conspicuous, while the pittings on the 

 exposed sector distinctly appear. The small imperfect scale 

 shown in fig. 6 has the tissue itself preserved, and is marked 

 on the exposed sector with grooves and pittings aad on the 

 covered area with radiating lines. 



Specific Determination. — Such fossils are, of course, worth- 

 less for sjiecific determination, and it may even be doubted 

 whether " Cladocyclus '^ is not a refuge for the detached scales 

 of more than one fish already known under another name. 

 Four " species," however, have already been described, 

 namely : C. leioesiensis from the English Chalk *, C. Gardner i 

 from the Brazilian Cretaceous f, C. occidentalis from the 

 Cretaceous ol: Nebraska |, and C. strehleaensis from the Chalk 

 Marl of Saxony §. From all these the Queensland scales now 

 made known appear to differ in their larger more sparsely 

 arranged pittings ; and they may thus, for convenience of 



* L. Agassiz, Poiss. Foss. vol. v. pt. i, (1844) p, 103, pi. xxv.a, 

 figs. 5, 6. 



t L. Agassiz, Edinb. New Phil. Journal, vol. xxx. (1841) p, 83. 



X J. Leidv, "Extinct Vert. Fauna W. Temt." (Rep. U.S. Geol. Surv. 

 1873), p. 288, pi. xvii. figs. 21, 22, pi. xxx. fig. 5. 



§ H. B. Geinitz, Denkschr. Ges. f, Is'aturk. etc.. Presdpn. 1868. p. 43, 

 with figs. 



