940 SURGEON F. DAY ON NEW FISHES OF MADRAS. [NoV. 28, 



Colours. Silvery gvey, becoming dirty white along the abdomen. 

 First dorsal tipped with black ; second dorsal greyish, lightest along 

 its centre. Pectorals, ventrals, and anal yellowish. Caudal tinged 

 with grey. 



I have referred this to Bloch's species, although he gives the 



dorsal formulary as follows :—D. 8 |r^ ; but his engraving shows 

 D. 9 I — , and the first short spine is evidently omitted. This would 

 give D. 10 ! ^, as I find to be the case at Madras. His specimen 

 was received from Tranquebar. 



GOBIUS BREVIFILIS, C. & V. 



B. Iv. D. eji-. p. 17. V. 6. A. 1/9. C. 9. L. 1. 21. 

 L. tr. 12. 



Length of specimens to 4 inches. 



Length of head ], of pectoral i of base of first dorsal nearly i, of 

 base of second dorsal \, of base of anal i, of caudal 4 of the total 

 length. Height of head ^, of body \, of first dorsal \, of second 

 dorsal 4-, of ventral \, of anal ^y- of the total length. 



Eyes. Diameter ^ of length of head ; f of a diameter from end of 

 snout, i- of a diameter apart. 



Body rather compressed ; profile from the snout to above the 

 orbit forming almost one-fourth of a circle. 



Gape of mouth rather wide, and cleft deep, the posterior extre- 

 mity of the maxilla extending to beneath the anterior third of the 

 orbit. Snout obtuse, rounded. Literorbital space very narrow, and 

 slightly concave. Occipital crest indistinct. Posterior limb of prte- 

 operculum almost vertical, and not quite so long as the horizontal 

 one ; angle rounded and entire. 



Teeth in several pointed villiform rows in both jaws ; an external 

 TOW of larger recurved teeth in the anterior third of either jaw. 



Fins. Base of pectoral wide ; all the rays branched, the central 

 ones the longest. The second spine of the first dorsal elongated and 

 filiform, as is also tbe tliird, but not to so great an extent ; inter- 

 spinous membrane moderately emarginate. Kays of the second 

 dorsal fin of about equal height along its whole extent. Eight rows 

 of scales between the posterior extremity of the second dorsal and 

 the base of the caudal. Ventrais united. Anal low, its last ray 

 slightly elongated ; and seven rows of scales between its base and 

 that of the caudal, which last is wedged -shaped, the central rays 

 being the longest. 



Scales finely ctenoid, none on the head. 



Colours. Buff clouded with black ; a large black blotch extending 

 from between the two dorsals to the middle of the body, three more 

 luider or just beyond the second dorsal, and a large black blotch at 

 the root of the tail. First dorsal with two rows of black spots ; 

 second dorsal with three rows. Caudal irregularly spotted, and with 

 a dark margin. Pectorals buff-colour. Ventrals slate-colour. Anal 

 buffy brown, edged with black. 



