457 



anterior orbital margin. Nostrils large, close together before 

 the eye, the anterior with two fimbriate skinny lobes. Inter- 

 ocular space concave ; the orbital margins breaking the contour 

 of the head, and each forming a blunt tubercle posteriorly. 

 Preorbital smooth. Preoperculum broadly rounded, entire. 

 Operculum with two flat spines. Nape rugose, naked. 



Teeth. — Broad bands of villiform, depressible teeth on 

 each jaw, and a few forming a curved series around the head 

 •of the vomer; palatines toothless. 



Scales. — The greater part of the operculum is covered 

 with small scales; similar but smaller scales extend on to 

 the cheeks almost to the end of the maxillary, leaving a broad 

 area on the opercular border and around the eye naked. 

 Body-scales very small on the nuchal region and back, base 

 of pectoral, breast, and abdominal surface. Lateral line 

 Tunning down from the shoulder to the middle of the body 

 below the anterior dorsal rays, thence straight to the base of 

 the tail. There are about eighteen scales between the pos- 

 terior dorsal spines and the lateral line, excluding the dorsal 

 :sheath. Dorsal and anal sheaths well developed. 



Fins. — First dorsal commencing above the operculum ; 

 the spines increase rapidly in length to the fourth, after which 

 "they become gradually shorter backwards ; the last two spines 

 -are subequal in length. The anterior rays are as long as the 

 highest spines, and the succeeding ones decrease regularly 

 backward, leaving the margin of the fin straight. Anal with 

 three strong spines, the second and third subequal, and the 

 third in close apposition to the first ray, which is thickened 

 and simple ; second ray longest, as long as the ventrals. 

 Pectoral pointed, the longest simple ray reaching beyond the 

 middle of the ventrals, which over-reach the vent. Caudal 

 subtruncate. 



Colour. — Light purplish-brown in alcohol, checkered with 

 well-defined darker markings which subdivide the ground- 

 colour into subquadrangular patches. Head marbled with 

 the same dark colour, and somewhat speckled with light dots^ 

 All the fins are marked with a reticulate, dark nattera, 

 enclosing more or less rounded light spots (McCulloch). 



A small example of this species was obtained by Mr. Lea 

 at Norfolk Island, but the foregoing description is based 

 upon a specimen 218 mm. long in the Australian Museum, 

 from which also the accompanying plate is prepared. It 

 differs from C. marmoratus, Gunther, under which name I 

 have previously recorded it, in having much smaller scales, 

 the cheeks and opercles more densely scaly, and in being 

 zrather more elongate. 



