458 Dr. A. Giinther on new Fishes from Zanzibar. 



the Scombroid group Cyttina. I am well aware that the 

 young of numerous Scombroid and Carangoid fishes are pro- 

 vided with an armature of the head which disappears with 

 age, and I have but little doubt that the appearance of this 

 fish also is different in old individuals ; but I do not think that 

 the osseous plates behind the head disappear ; and they will 

 form the character by which the fish may be recognized at all 

 ages. Having only a single example, 11 millims. long, I must 

 omit the description of several characters, as the dentition, 

 gills, &c. 



Body compressed, suborbicular, the greatest depth being 

 contained once and one-third in the length (without caudal) ; 

 head enormous, the root of the ventral fin being consider- 

 ably nearer to the base of the caudal than to the anterior 

 profile of the head; eye very large, situated nearly in the 

 middle of the depth of the head, and nearer to the end of the 

 snout than to that of the operculum. Mouth extremely small, 

 opposite to the lower part of the eye. The entire head is co- 

 vered by bone; and several of the bones are much enlarged, so 

 as to cover the anterior part of the trunk ; there is an ovate 

 suprascapulary plate covering the back below the first dorsal 

 fin, and a humeral plate between it and the ventral. Both 

 these plates are attached to the skin of the body in their basal 

 portion only. The pr^eopercular angle is much dilated and 

 produced backwards into a very large subtriangular process, 

 which is rounded behind, extending nearly to the anal. 



The remainder of the body is covered by scales, which are of 

 moderate size and much deeper than long. 



There are two dorsal fins ; the first, composed of six spines 

 (which are of moderate strength and short) , is much less deve- 

 loped than the second, which is formed by twenty-two rays. 

 Anal fin corresponding in size and position to the soft dorsal, 

 with twenty rays. Caudal subtruncated. Pectoral moderately 

 developed. Ventrals thoracic, with one spine and five rays. 



Sa la rias Kirk ii. 

 Allied to Salarias tridactylus. 



The height of the body is rather less than the length of the 

 head, which is nearly one-seventh of the total length (without 

 caudal). The single specimen obtained has a triangular crest 

 on the head, tapering into a point ; a very small fringed tentacle 

 above the orbit. The dorsal fin is slightly emarginate, the 

 anterior dorsal spines being as long as the posterior rays ; the 



