19g The Philippine Journal of Science 1923 



old specimens, the inner row larger; young individuals have two 

 rows in front part of jaw only; teeth near symphysis larger 

 than the rest; all teeth in young specimens more or less pointed 

 and recurved, and a few such occur in the jaws of older ones. 



Color in alcohol more or less yellowish, brownish, or whitish 

 with two rows of large, black, irregular, dendritic or stellate 

 spots, one along back and dorsal fin and one along lower half of 

 body, each spot including one to three white or yellow spots ; the 

 spots on lower half often connected by black bands crossing 

 undersurface of body; the spaces between the larger spots 

 thickly sprinkled with fine irregular lines and spots. 



I have examined eight specimens ; one from Guam, three from 

 Leyte, two from Mindoro, and two from Iba, Zambales. 



They range in length from 226 to 440 millimeters. One of 

 those from Leyte is a good example of what often befalls eels, 

 and likewise illustrates their power of regeneration. Its tail 

 is only 31 per cent of the total length and but a trifle more than 

 four-sevenths of the length of the trunk; instead of tapering, 

 at least half of it has evidently been bitten off and healed over, 

 the caudal fin being entirely absent. 



This common and handsome eel is said to be a savage biter 

 and is feared by the fishermen in some regions. In the Visayas 

 it is called hagman or hagmang. It is said to reach a length 

 of 5 feet (about 1.5 meters) . 



This species was obtained by the Challenger Expedition on 

 reefs near Cebu ; it has been recorded by Jordan and Seale from 

 southern Negros, and from Calayan Island, north of Luzon, by 

 Jordan and Richardson. 



It occurs from Madagascar and along the east coast of Africa 

 to the Red Sea, eastward to China, the Philippines, on to Guam 

 and Hawaii, south to Australia, and everywhere throughout the 

 South Sea Islands. 

 Echidna rhodochilus Bleeker. Plate 10, fig. 4. 



Echidna rhodochilus Bleeker, Ned. Tijdschr. Dierk. 1 (1863) 247; 

 Atlas Ichth. Munen. 4 (1864) ty, pi. 23, fig. 4; Weber and Beau- 

 fort, Fishes Indo-Austr. Arch. 3 (1916) 350. 



Depth 16 to 19 in total length, head 10 to 11 (8 to 10, according 

 to Weber and Beaufort) and 3.6 to 4* in trunk (3 to 3.6, Weber 

 and Beaufort) ; head and trunk together one-sixteenth to three- 

 sixteenths shorter than tail ; eye 8.5 to lOf in head and about 1.8 

 in the rather short, blunt, and rounded snout, which is 6 or a 

 little less than 6 in head ; mouth large, reaching far behind eyes, 



