18"^/.] ON A FISH OF THF. GENUS GIRELLA. 393 



5. Description of a little-known Australian Fish of tlie Genus 

 Girella. By J. Douglas-Ogilby, Ichthyol. Dept. Aus- 

 tralian Museum. (Communicated by F. Day, Esq., 

 F.Z.S.) 



[Received March 26, 1887.] 

 Girella cyanea,, Macleay, Descr. Cat. Austr. Fishes, i. p. lOD. 



B. vi. D. 14-15/13. A. 3/11. V. 1/.5. P. 19-20. C. 17. 

 L. lat. 55-56. L. tr. 11-12/26. Csec. pyl. num. Vert. 11/16. 



Length of head 5-5j, of caudal fin A-A-h, height of hody 2|-35 

 in the total length. Eye — 4-4^ diameters in the length of the head, 

 l|-l|in that of the snout, and 1|-1| apart. Interorbital space 

 convex ; upper profile of head ronnded. Upper jaw the longer ; cleft 

 of mouth small and transverse. The maxilla reaches to beneath the 

 posterior nostril. The height of the preorbital is less than its breadth. 

 Opercle with a small flat spine. Vertical limb of preopercle inclining 

 slightly backwards from the angle, very slightly denticulated in the 

 smaller, smooth in the larger example. Teeth — A single row of 

 strong tricuspid teeth in the jaws ; behind these, at some distance, a 

 broad band of less developed but similar teeth. Fms — Dorsal spines 

 of moderate strength, increasing in length to about the seventh, 

 whence there is little or no difference to the last, which is | of the 

 length of the head ; the rays are about equal to the spines in height, 

 but the length of their ba'e is little more than half that of the spinous 

 dor.^al ; the dorsal fin commences above the 7th and ends above the 

 43rd scale of the lateral line ; the anal commences beneath the 

 origin of the soft dorsal, whose rays are not nearly so long as those 

 of the anal, the third spine is much stronger and but little shorter 

 than the highest dorsal spines ; the lower margin of the anal rays 

 is obliquely truncate ; the ventral fin does not extend to the vent ; 

 the pectoral fins are rather less than the length of the head ; caudal 

 fin deeply emarginate, with acute lobes. Scales — moderate, finely 

 ctenoid, firmly adherent, those on the cheeks small and deeply im- 

 bedded ; streaks of small scales between each pair of the dorsal and 

 anal spines and rays. Interorbital space, snout, orbital ring, man- 

 dibular region, and opercular bones (with the exception of a few on 

 the upper edge of the opercle) scaleless. Lateral line — with a long 

 slight curve to beneath the end of the dorsal fin ; its tubes simple. 

 Pseudohranchice — well developed. Gill-rakers — short and stout, num- 

 bering 28 on the outer branchial arch. The abdominal portion of the 

 vertebral column is two thirds of the length of the caudal portion. 

 Colours — Upper parts dark blue, gradually fading to greyish white on 

 the abdominal region ; some scattered yel'ow spots, about three 

 fourths of a scale in size, on the upper half of the body ; these pro- 

 bably disappear with age, since in the larger example they are few 

 in number and faint. Fins blue. Trides brown and yellow. 



This handsome Girella is known to the fishermen alon^; the coast 



