134 



caudal. Snout shortei' than eye. Lower jaw longer. Silvery band along the 

 side. P. 11. V. 6. D. 11. A. 20. B. 6. 



Plate XVIII., fig. 3, is a careful di-awing of a specimen of this fish caught 

 in the Kakapo Lake, on the West Coast of Otago. It difiers a little from the 

 drawing given in Richardson's work, but from the description there is no 

 doubt of the identity of the fish with this species. 



They swarm in the lakes, and in most of the clear deep streams, migrating 

 at certain seasons ; they are never found possessing the above characters of 

 greater size than 3|- inches in length, and are generally called smelts, from 

 their resemblance to that fish, and also from their having, when fresh, the 

 peculiar strong scent of cucumber. 



They are generally taken for the young of tvi^o other fish, which I will now 

 describe : — 



Retropinna osmeroides, n. sp. 

 jSTative name, Aua."* 



P. 11. Y. 6. D. 11. A. 19. B. 6. Body, without caudal, 3f times 

 length of head. Maxillary prolonged, clavate. Mouth wide, armed with 

 strong teeth. 



Plate XIX., fig. 1, shows this fish of natural size, obtained, in 1863, in the 

 Kaduka River, a tidal stream which leads up from the sea to the Kakapo 

 Lake. It does not appear to present any sufiiciently distinct characters to 

 remove it from the genus Retrojnnna, as above defined, except that the cleft 

 of the mouth is wide and very different in form from that in the other species 

 hitherto placed in that genus. The teeth are also much stronger, and on the 

 vomer are quite as formidable as in the true smelt (Osmerus). The maxillary 

 bone also presents a marked difference, for while in the previous species it is 

 feeble and short, extending only to the eye, in this species it is elongated and 

 terminates in a clavate expansion posterior to the eye ; lower jaw projecting. 



In the external characters, such as fin rays, position of fins, the shiny 

 patch on the cheek and silvery line on the side, the two fishes are the same. 

 The abdominal cavity in both also is lined with a silvery membrane with 

 distinct dots of pigment, and the intestine is straight. 



This fish was seen in October in immense shoals, leaping out of the water 

 in a very lively fashion, and following the tide into all the narrow tributary 

 sti'eams to which the brackish water penetrated. 



All the individuals were alike in size, the length being about 7 inches. 



Retropinna Upohororo, n. sp. 

 Native name, Upokororo. 

 P. 15. V. 6. D. 11. A. 18. B. 6. Body, without caudal, 41 times 

 length of head. Mouth small and tumid, and teeth almost absent, or only in 



* Also applied to Dajcms Forsteri, the Herring of the colonists. 



