ON THE ICHTHYOLOGY OP THE SEAS OF CHINA AND JAPAN. 251 



to this family. Its rays are B. 6 ; D. 20|1 ; A. 15; C. 12; P. 12; V. 2|4, the single soft 

 dorsal ray being considered as anomalous among the Acanthopterygii. 



Macropodus viridi-auratus, Lacep. iii. p. 417. pi. 16. f . 1 ; C. et V. vii. 

 p. 373. 

 Hab. China, Cochin-china. 



Macropodus venustus, C. et V. vii. p. 375. M. ocellalus, Cantor, Ann. 

 Nat. ix. p. 28? "Bad. B. 4; D. 17|8; A. 20|12; C.12; P. 11,; V.l|5." 

 (Cantor.) 

 Hab. Canton (Dussumier). Chusan (Cantor). 



Osphronemus olfax, Commerson ; C. et V. vii. p. 377. Osphroneme gou- 

 rami, Lacep. iii. p. 117. pi. 3. f. 2. Trichopus goramy, Shaw, iv. p. 388. 

 Hab. China. Java. Naturalised in the Isle of France and Cayenne. 



Ophicephalus maculatus, Lacepede (Bostrychus), iii. p. 14-0 et 143 ; 



C. et V. vii. p. 437; Icon. Reeves, 148 et (3. 19; Hardw. 251. Chinese 



name, Sang yu, "Living fish" (Reeves, Birch, Bridgem. Chrest. 121). 



Bad. D. 42 ; A. 1|27 ; C. 22 ; P. 16 ; V. 1|5. (Spec. Camb. Phil. Inst.) 



Height of body one-sixth of total length, and rather more than half the length of the head. 

 Teeth short and densely villiform, or rather finely card-like, with a cluster of longer ones at 

 the symphysis, as in the Serrani. A portion of the dental surface projects forward at the apex 

 of the lower jaw, and the teeth of the exterior row there and at the sides of the jaw are stronger 

 than the rest. The palatine bones are armed with stronger curved teeth, having smaller ones 

 at their bases. Vomerine teeth small. Pharyngeal apparatus an oval cell capable of being 

 closed by various lobes which spring from its borders. Scales ciliated, and strongly marked 

 by curved streaks nearly parallel to their posterior edges. Lateral line interrupted over the 

 anus, and commencing again on the second row of scales beneath, whence it runs straight to the 

 end of the tail. Ground colour yellowish-brown, fading to broccoli-brown and bluish-gray on 

 the belly. Large irregular blackish-brown spots in two or three rows on the sides, and ten 

 or eleven round spots along the base of the dorsal, which becomes dark towards the edge, and 

 in the figure shows obscurely three other rows of dark spots ; these are effaced in the speci- 

 mens. The anal also is dark on its outer half, and shows faintly a series of oblique bars. 

 One blackish-brown stripe passes backwards from the eye along the temporal groove, and 

 dilates on the side of the head and upper edge of the gill-cover ; another crosses the cheek 

 lower down, and passing over the lower border of the operculum, is continued to the base of 

 the pectoral ; the space between these is nearly filled by a paler umber-brown bar, which is 

 bordered by the yellowish-brown ground colour. There are also blackish-brown spots and 

 bars scattered over the nose, top of the head and jaws ; and three imperfect bars on the pec- 

 torals. The caudal in fig. 148 is uniformly dark, with two transverse bars on its scaly base. 

 In figure /3. 19 the basal half of the caudal is straw-yellow, with four dark transverse bars, and 

 the other vertical fins are also lighter with more definite bars. Length of specimen 5^ inches ; 

 length from snout to anus, 2*45 inches; length of head, 1*6 inch; height of body, 0*9 inch. 



There is a diffei-ence in the numbers of the fin-rays in Mr. Reeves's two figures. 



The above description is drawn up of two specimens in the museum of the Cambridge Phi- 

 losophical Institution, which were brought from Canton by the Rev. George Vachell. In the 

 same institution are two rather larger specimens from the same quarter which do not differ in 

 any essential point of structure, but present a series of bright silvery rhomboidal marks be- 

 tween the two principal rows of dark lateral spots, having, with them, a quincuncial arrange- 

 ment. These bright places are not shown in either of Mr. Reeves's figures. There are series 

 of pores in the temporal fossae down the limb of the preoperculum and along the limbs of the 

 lower jaw. The lateral line is interrupted over the anus, but there are as many rows of lines 

 as there are scales, so that the proper continuation of the line is difficult to make out. Length 

 of specimens 6^ and 8£ inches; rays of dorsal, 44 ; of anal, l|28. 



These Ophicephali are carried about the streets of Canton in tubs and are cut in pieces alive 

 for sale. 



Hab. Canton. 



Ophicephalus iris, C. et V. vii. p. 439. 



Described from a Chinese painting brought from Canton by M. Dussumier. An azure- 

 blue spot on the end of the tail. 

 Hab. Canton. 



