APPENDIX. 3Q3 



placed almost exactly between the pectoral and the ventral ; it is smaller 

 than the pectoral, and more falcate, but constructed in the same manner ; 

 the spine, however, is much smaller, and not more than one-third the 

 length of its filament : it is serrated only on the outer or front side : this 

 filament extends to the second or adipose dorsal, which is small, some- 

 what hatchet-shaped, and placed so as to terminate in a line with the anal 

 tin ; the vent seems much nearer to the caudal than to the head, but it is 

 exactly central between the two extremities of the fish ; that is, the tip of 

 the snout and that of the tail fin : close before the vent is the ventral, which 

 is small and triangular ; behind the vent, and situated half-way between 

 that and the base of the caudal, is the anal fin, which is longer than the 

 dorsal, and the margin considerably falcated or lunated ; the caudal is deeply 

 forked, the upper lobe always being manifestly longest ; lateral line straight 

 nearest the back, and commencing only beneath the first dorsal. Colour. 

 — The upper parts cinereous blue, the lower silvery white; fins dusky 

 cinereous ; ventral and anal white ; pectoral nearly pale ; the upper cirri 

 are silvered. 



In general shape this has a considerable resemblance to the Silurus Bagne, 

 of Bloch (pi. 365.) ; but the ventral fins are considerably shorter than the 

 pectorals, even on omitting the first ray of the latter ; whereas in Bloch's 

 fish the very reverse of this is delineated : in his the lower fins are red ; in 

 ours white : the dorsal filament, also, is shorter, but this is not of much 

 consequence. Dr. Shaw, who describes the S. bagne from Bloch's figure only, 

 has made a singular mistake in saying, of Bloch's fish, that it has a single in- 

 sulated filament rising from the back, this being nothing more than the end 

 of the other pectoral,which is thus represented in the back ground, or other 

 side of the figure. The formula of the rays, also, are different in almost 

 every instance. Bloch's fish has the following rays : Dorsal 1-8 ; pectoral 

 1-12 ; ventral 8 ; anal 24 ; caudal IS. 



^ILVRVS latieeps. 



Cirri eight ; one pair at the angle of the mouthy one on 

 the upper^ and two on the lower jaw^ the two first 

 pair of equal length; spine of the pectoral fin smooth; 

 anal fin joining the base of the caudal ; head very 

 broad. 



Inhabits India. 



This species so closely resembles the Silurus fossUis of Bloch, that I do 

 not feel confident it is really distinct. Such doubts will always attend de- 

 scriptions too loose for the accuracy now necessary in science. In the figure 

 of Bloch's, however, there is a considerable interval between the end of 

 the anal and the base of the caudal ; but in our fish there is none. The upper 

 pair of cirri are also represented as much shorter than those at the gape; 

 but in this both pair are of equal length : the head is remarkably broad, 

 exceeding, in this respect, our Silurus biserratiis, figured in Hamilton's 

 Gangetic Fishes, pi. 36. f. 46. 



BLENNIUS ornatus. {fig. 125.) 



A simply pointed cirrus over each eye, and a minute 

 palmate membrane at the nostrils ; head with lines 



