526 Storer on the 
length. All the upper part of the body, of a gray- 
ish brown color; inferior portion of the sides, sil- 
very; beneath, white. Whole upper portion of the 
head, bony; irregularly marked upon its surface; 
five longitudinal rows of flattened plates, of the same 
structure as the covering of the head, but of a light- 
er color. The largest plates form the dorsal ridge ; 
they are compressed at their sides, and terminate 
above, in strong sharp spines, which are turned 
backwards; radiated lines are indistinctly seen run- 
ning from the centre of these scales to their cir- 
cumference ; this row is composed of twelve plates ; 
the first are the largest; that at the commence- 
ment of the dorsal fin, by far the smallest ; between 
the dorsal and caudal fins, are situated 4 plates; 
two quite small, just back of the dorsal, forming a 
pair; next to these, a much larger one; and lastly, 
an elongated one at the commencement of the cau- 
dal fin. A second row of scales commences just 
back of the operculum, situated where the lateral 
line is usually observed, and is continued to the 
base of the tail; these plates, 28 in number, are 
placed obliquely ; they are narrowed to a point at 
their extremities, widened in their centres, and like 
the former are crowned by a spine, from the base 
of which radii diverge; the plates at the poste- 
rior extremity of the body, much the smaller. Be- 
neath this row commences just back of the ven- 
trals a third row of plates, larger than those of the 
last row, eight in number, placed vertically. 
The whole surface of the body not occupied by 
the plates, granulated throughout. Head flattened 
