1867.] SURGEON F. DAY ON NEW FISHES OF MADRAS. 941 



Apocryftes punctatus, sp. nov. 



B. iv. D. 5/25. p. 15. V. 6. A. 24. C. 15. 



Length of specimens up to 6 inches. 



Length of head i, of pectoral ^, of base of first dorsal yL-, of base 

 of second dorsal f, of base of anal 1, of caudal ^ of the total length. 

 Height of head ^, of body i, of first dorsal i, of second dorsal ^, ot 

 ventral ^, of anal ttV of the total length. 



Eyes elevated, interovbital space concave; \\ diameter from end 

 of snout, nearly 1 diameter apart. 



Gape of mouth wide, cleft deep ; the posterior margin of the 

 maxilla extending to beneath the posterior margin of the orbit. 

 Lower jaw broad, elevated at the symphysis. No crest on the head. 

 Opercles unarmed. On either side of the snout the skin is extended 

 into a slight lobe. 



Teeth in a single row in the lower jaw, directed outwards and 

 curved upwards at their extremities. A single row also in the upper 

 jaw, with four to six canines in the centre, the external of which on 

 either side is the largest. 



Fins. Ventrals united, unattached to abdomen, except at their 

 base ; they arise under the middle of the operculum. Pectoral with 

 a broad fleshy base ; it comir.ences posterior to tiie opercles ; its outer 

 rays are shorter than its central ones, which are tlie longest. The 

 first dorsal consists of elongated, filiform spines, with a deeply emar- 

 ginate interspinous membrane. The distance between the posterior 

 end of the first dorsal and the commencement of the second dorsal 

 equals the length of its base. The first five rays of the second dorsal 

 shorter than the remainder ; its last ray extends as far as the base 

 of the caudal fin. Anal rays all branched and short. Caudal with 

 very short external rays, its central ones being the longest. 



Scales minute over head, and rather smaller in the anterior than 

 in the posterior half of the body. 



Colours. Greenish, with seven or eight black vertical bands de- 

 scending from the back as low as the abdomen, which is of a reddish- 

 brown colour. The whole of the body covered with opaque but 

 bright blue spots, which ^re smaller and rounder on the head and at 

 the base of the pectoral fins. Dorsal fins spotted in the same manner, 

 those on the second dorsal being larger than those on the first. 

 Pectoral orange, with a black edge. Caudal and anal blackish. 

 Ventrals with a purplish tinge. 



This fish climbs up rocks, and even on to pieces of wood; living 

 in shallow estuaries, it is drowned in deep water. On land it pro- 

 gresses rapidly by means of its pectoral fins and tail, and snaps at 

 anything which is placed near it. It is not uncommon. 



Platacanthus maculattjs, sp. nov. 



B. iii. D. 3/27. P. -f . V. 8. A. 3/6. C. 21. 



Length of specimen 2 inches. 



Length of head -^j, of pectoral j\, of base of dorsal \, of base of 



