[9] REVIEW OF THE LABROID FISHES. 607 



Habitat — Deep waters in the Mediterranean, north to southern 

 England and south to Madeira. 



Etymology: Palloni ; a personal name unexplained by the author. 



This rather rare species is known to us only from descriptions. 

 Judging from published accounts there is not niucli doubt that A. couchi, 

 with 6 anal spines, is an individual variation of A. palloni. 



Genus III.— LABRUS. 



Labrus Artedi, Genera, etc., 1734. (Includes all known Letbridm, and other fishes sup- 

 posed to be related to them.) 



Labrus Linnaeus, Syst. Nat., Ed. x, 1758, 282 (viridis, bimaculatus } turdus, mixius, and 

 many other species, many of them non-labroid). 



Scarus Gronow, Museum IchthyoL, 1764, ii, 8 (uou binominal) (viridis = livens ) 



Labrus Rafinesque, Caratteri, etc., 1810, 36 (restricted to Labroid fishes). 



Labrus Cuvier, Regne Animal, Ed. i, 1817, 261 (Labrus vetula Bloch, and rela- 

 tives). 



Type. — Labrus himaculatus Linnaeus. 



Etymology: Labrus, a name taken by Artedi from Pliny and Ovid, 

 thought by Artedi to be from labrum, lip, on account of the thick lips. The 

 original word is apparently from Xdfipoq, meaning voracious. Rondelet 

 uses the name for the thick-lipped, mullet, Mugil chelo Cuvier. 



This genus, as now restricted, contains about six species, all of them 

 belonging to the seas of Europe. Most of them are gaily colored, and 

 some of tbem show great variations in color in accordance with sex and 

 age. 



ANALYSIS OF SPECIES OF LABRUS. 



a. Scales comparatively large, 39 to 45 in the lateral line; lateral canines large, 



not much smaller than anterior. 



b. Dorsal spiues20 to 21, the soft rays 10 or 11 ; body rather robust, the depth about 



equal to length of head, 3| in length ; snout short, not acute, about 3 in 



head ; eye small, 5 \ in head ; width of scaly part of cheek about equal to 



eye. Color, green or brown, usually much spotted or reticulated with 



, orange red; vertical fins mostly green, variously spotted; paired fins 



orange red. 



c. [Sides without distinct silvery lateral baud; head with curved streaks and 



other markings, but without blue longitudinal stripes; spinous dorsal 



notably lower than soft dorsal.] (Day.) Bekggylta, 4. 



cc. [Sides with a distinct silvery lateral band ; head with longitudinal blue 

 stripes; spinous dorsal comparatively higher. ] (Day.) Otherwise as in 



the preceding, of which it is probably a color variety Comber, 5. 



bb. Dorsal spines, 17 to 19 ; soft rays, 11 to 13. 

 c. Body robust, the depth about equal to length of head, 3^iu body ; snout short, 

 bluntish, barely one-third head ; lips thick; sides of body usually with- 

 out silvery band. 

 d. Coloration nearly plain brown ; the young with a dark blotch qu the opercle 

 and with dark cross-blotches or dark streaks along the rows of scales ; 

 eye small, 6 in head, much narrower than scaly part of cheek ; interor- 

 bital area two-thirds length of snout; dorsal spines low, much lower 

 than the rather high soft rays Livens, 6. 



