PISHES -WAI'I'IC. 



75 



takes the liook. Tt does not. usiuilly attain to a lcni;tli '^V(y,iU)r 

 than eijfht or nino inclies. The only three exainples obtained in 

 the trawl were taken h(>tween New(!astle and Port Stephens. 



Fnmihj SERRANID^. 



ACANTHISTTUS, Gill. 



ACANTHISTIUS SERRATUS, C^tvier & Valenciennes. 



WlRRAfl. 



Plectropoma xerratnm, Cuv. k Vak, Hist. Nat. Poiss., ii., 1828, 



p. 399. 

 Plectropoma myyiaster, Steind., Sitzb. K. Akad. Wiss. Wien., liii., 



1866, p. 426, pk i., fig. 3. 



Station 25. 



The only two examples secured were obtained by the trawl in 

 48 fathoms, in the vicinity of a wreck, the anchor-chain and a 

 plank of which were hauled aboard. Although easily caught with 

 the hook and tolerably common, the Wirrah is accounted of little 

 value for tiie table ; it is said to be good only when boiled. It 

 appears to be a very local species, confined to the coast of New 

 South Wales, and more common in the vicinity of Port Jackson 

 than elsewhere. Our specimens were trawled off Newcastle. 



EPINEPHELUS, Bloch. 



EPINEPHELUS SEPTEMFASCIATUS, Thunherg. 



Grey-banded Perch. 



Perca '7-fasciata, Thunb., Yetensk. Akad. Handl. Stockholm, xiv., 



1793, p. 56, pk i. 

 Plectropoma susuki, Temm. & Schleg., Fauna Japon., Pise, 1844, 



p. 11, pk iv., tig. 1. 



Station 51. 



In 1867 tsvo specimens of this fish were sent from Sydney to 

 London. These are, I believe, the only examples previously 

 known from Australia. I am therefoi-e pleased to be able to once 

 more record it from our waters ; it is a fine fish, attaining a length 

 of 1 2 inches. The only example trawled was taken in Shoalhaven 

 Bight in 1 5 fathoms or under. While appai-ently rare in Austra- 

 lian seas, it has a wide distribution, ranging from the tropical 

 Atlantic through the Indian Ocean to the Chinese and Japanese 

 Seas. 



