1909.1 fishes of the family anabaxtid^. 771 



1. Anabas scandens. 



Perca scandens Daldorff, Trans. Linn. Soc. iii. 1797, p. 62. 



Anthias testiodineus Bloch, Ausl. Fiscli. vi. p. 121, pi. cccxxii. 

 (1795). 



Amjihijyrion testitdineus Schneid. Bloch's Syst. Ichth. p. 204 

 (1801). 



Amphiprion scansor Schneid. t. c. p. 570. 



LiUiaoius tesUido Lacep. Hist. Nat, Poiss. iv. p. 235 (1803). 



Lutianus scandens Lacep. t. c. p. 239. 



Sparus testiodineus Shaw, Zool. iv. p. 471 (1803). 



Sparus scandens Shaw, t. c. p. 475. 



Cojus cobojius Buch. Ham. Fish. Ganges, pp. 98, 370, pi. xiii. 

 fig. 33 (1822). 



Anabas testudineus Cuv. R^gne Anim. ii. p. 310 (1817) ; Bleek. 

 Atl. Ichth. pi. cccxcvi. figs. 2, 3 (1878), and Yerh. Akad. Amst. 

 xix. 1879, p. 7. 



Anabas scandens Cuv. & Yal. Hist. ISTat. Poiss. vii. p. 249, 

 pi. cxciii. (1831) ; Giinth. Cat. Fish. iii. p. 375 (1861) ; Day, Fish. 

 Ind. p. 370, pi. Ixxviii. fig. 3 (1878). 



Anabas spinosus Gray, 111. Ind. Zool. ii. pl. Ixxxix. fig, 1 (1834). 



Anabas variegatus Bleek. ISTat. Tijdschr.lSTed. Ind. ii. 1851, p. 220. 



Anabas 'niacrocephalus Bleek. Nat. Tijdschr. Ned. Ind. vii. 

 1854, p. 430: Giinth. t. c. p. 376. 



Anabas oligolepis Bleek. Nat. Tijdschr. Ned. Ind. viii. 1855, 

 p. 161; Atl. Ichth. pl. cccxcv. fig. 5 (1878), and Yerh. Akad. 

 Amst. xix. 1879, p. 5 ; Giinth. I.e. 



Anabas microcephalus Bleek. Act. Soc. Sci. Ind. Neerl. ii. 1857, 

 No. 7, p. 58 ; Atl. Ichth. pl. cccxcv. fig. 2, and Yerh. Akad. Amst. 

 xix. 1879, p. 10 ; Gunth. t. c. p. 377. 



Anabas trifoliattts Kaup, Arch. f. Nat. 1860, p. 124, pl. vi, fig. A. 



Dorsal with XYI-XIX 7-11 rays; anal with IX-XI 8-12. 

 27 to 32 scales in a longitudinal series. Greenish olive ; usually 

 two dark stripes from the eye to the opercles ; sides of the body 

 sometimes with dark cross-bands, sometimes with longitudinal 

 stripes ; often a blackish spot, which may be ocellated, at the 

 base of the caudal fin ; markings disappearing with age, the 

 adults uniform or nearly so. 



JIab. India ; Ceylon ; Malay Peninsula and Archipelago, to 

 the Philippines, Celebes, Amboina, and Halmahera. 



Giinther in 1861 recognized four species, A. scandens, niacro- 

 cephalus, oligolepis, and microcephalus. Bleeker in 1879 united 

 macrocephalus with scandens and expressed doubt as to the 

 validity of tmcrocephalus. These three supposed species were 

 based only on differences in form and proportions, but A. oligolepis 

 was said to difier in the fewer scales, 27 instead of 30 to 32. 

 Day (Fish. India, p. 370) gave it as his opinion that a regular 

 gradation existed between these numbers. I find the number of 

 scales varies considerably, but I am unable to recognize more 

 than one species after examination of a large series of specimens. 

 Proc. Zool. Soc— 1909, No. LIIL 53 



