163 The Philippine Journal of Science im» 



This species is found on coral reefs and along shore and is 

 said to occur from Madagascar to China and the Philippines. 

 Genus PISODONOPHIS Kaup 

 Pisodonophis Kaup, Uebersicht der Aale, Arch, fur Naturg. 22 (1856) 

 47. 

 Much elongated, cylindrical eels with the origin of dorsal 

 above or behind the well-developed pectorals; head of medium 

 size, the pointed snout projecting beyond mouth, the cleft of 

 which reaches below hind border of eye or beyond; eyes small, 

 in the first third or fourth of head; posterior nostrils a slit 

 on inner side of upper lip, below or in advance of front border 

 of eye; anterior nostrils a short tube on edge of snout; teeth 

 blunt, granular, subequal, in several series forming bands ; those 

 on intermaxillary plate in a group next to or separated from 

 the other teeth; gill openings moderate or small, before and 

 somewhat below base of pectorals; lateral line present; anus 

 in or behind middle of length. 



Slender, plainly colored fishes occurring from the Red Sea and 

 Madagascar to Japan, Australia, and Samoa. Kaup's original 

 spelling has been followed. 



Key to the species of Pisodonophis. 



a 1 Origin of dorsal well behind tip of pectorals *• boro. 



a\ Origin of dorsal over middle of pectorals or before P. cancrivorus. 



Pisodonophis boro (Hamilton Buchanan) . 



Ophisurus boro Hamilton Buchanan, Fishes Ganges (1822) 20, 363. 



Pisoodonophis boro Bleeker, Atlas Ichth. Muram. 4 (1864) 62, pi. 20, 

 fig. 3; Weber and Beaufort, Fishes Indo-Austr. Arch. 3 (1916) 

 297, figs. 138, 140, 141. 



Ophichthys boro Gunther, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus. 8 (1870) 77. 

 Depth 32 to 41.5 in length, head 9 to 12.5 in length and 3.2 to 

 3.6 in trunk; head and trunk a little more or less than 1.5 in 

 tail (in my specimens 1.59 and 1.63) ; eye prominent but small, 

 8.8 to 12.5 in head (to 17, Weber and Beaufort), 1.3 to a little 

 more than 2 in snout, which is depressed, projecting much 

 beyond mouth, the tip blunt; tube of anterior nostrils more than 

 half the diameter of eye, the posterior nostrils under front 

 margin of eyes ; mouth wide, extending well beyond eyes, 3.3 to 

 3.5 in head ; the tumid upper lip overlaps upper jaw and inter- 

 maxillary teeth, as in many other Ophichthyidae ; pectorals 4 

 to 4.5 in head ; origin of dorsal more than twice the length of 

 pectoral behind gill opening; both vertical fins very low; teeth 



