5060 Tue ZooLoGIst—SEPTEMBER, 1876. 
the mouth. The lower jaw has about twenty-nine teeth, equi- 
distant, one-eighth of an inch in length; all teeth much curved 
and inclined backwards. 
Head slender and pointed, one-twelfth the length of the whole 
animal ; jaws elongate, two-thirds the length of the head, equal in 
length. Gape very large. Tongue adherent. Posterior nostrils 
shortly tubular; eye moderately large ; upper and lower jaw are 
bordered by a row of large pores, and there are also six on top of 
snout. Dorsal fin commences before the gill-opening, gradually 
increasing in height until it attains its greatest altitude beyond the 
vent. Both dorsal and anal fins are conspicuous towards the tip 
of the tail, which is considerably compressed. 
The ground colour of the fish is very dark chocolate-brown, 
varied by oval, roundish, or irregular marks of various sizes, and 
tints of pale yellow to deep golden yellow. These spots are very 
swall, and so crowded on the head as to produce merely brown 
with yellowish white markings; towards the snout and over the 
eyes is quite brown. Immediately over and behind the eyes is a 
curious roughing up of the skin, giving the appearance of very 
coarse velvet pile, followed by a darker patch of skin on the top 
of the head. The spots of yellow are again small posteriorly, and 
arranged near the tail so as to have a distinct banded appearance ; 
they are large along the back and middle of the fish, extending on to 
the dorsal fin, but the spots of each fin are complete in themselves, 
and not flowing on to the body. In the larger spots are included 
oval and roundish smaller blackish spots, generally darker than 
the ground colour. The belly is much paler and the spots more 
minute. The corners of the mouth, gill-openings, and folds of the 
throat are black, the latter looking like a series of black lines 
under the mouth and throat. The edges of the dorsal and anal fins 
are marked by a series of light yellow or whitish dots, most 
numerous on the anal; the bases of these fins are also spotted by 
a less dense series. Along the side of each fin is a row of larger 
spots, same in character as on the body, but less bright in colour. 
Individual specimens are very liable to variation both in markings 
and intensity of colour. 
The rays of the two fins are 552 in all, the anal having 220 
and the dorsal 332; rays simple, without joints. Vertebre 141, 
71 of which are abdominal and 70 caudal, Air-bladder about 
1} inch long, oval in shape. 
