192 ACANTHOPTEKYGII. 



Air-vessel — simple. Ceecal appendages — seven or eight, tlie longest equals about 3 diameters of tlie orbit. 

 Scales — ctenoid except on the snout and below the eyes : the base of the soft dorsal fin thickly scaled. 

 Lateral-line — tubes have short branches. Colours — deep gray with a blackish band running along the centre of 

 each row of scales : head glossed with purple : fins deep black. In young specimens the lines along the rows 

 of scales are very faint. 



Habitat. — Seas of India to China, very common at Bombay along the coasts of Sind and Beloochistan. 

 Jerdon observes, " I have only seen this species on the Malabar coast." I have never obtained it either along the 

 Bay of Bengal : the largest specimen I found was 18 inches in length. 



14. Scisena glaucus, Plate XLVI, fig. 2. 

 Scicena Bussumieri, Bay, Fish. Malabar, p. 51, (not Cuv. and Val.) 

 B. vii, D. 10 | ^30, P. 16, V. 1/5, A. f, C. 17, L. 1. w, L. tr. 6/18. 



Length of head 4| to 4f-, of caudal 7\, height of body 4£ in the total length. Eyes — diameter 3| to 4£ 

 in length of head, 1^ diameters from end of snout and also apart. Greatest width of head equals half its length, 

 the height equals its length without the snout. Snout rounded and slightly overhanging the jaws, the upper of 

 which overlaps the lower : the upper jaw at its highest point is not on a level with the lower edge of the orbit. 

 Distance between eye and upper jaw equals 3/4 of a diameter of the orbit. Preopercle with distinct and widely 

 separated denticulations most developed at the angle : opercle with two spines. Shoulder-flap entire. Snout with 

 three pores across its base, and five along its free border which has a distinct lateral lobe. Five open pores 

 below the symphysis of the lower jaw. Teeth — villiform in both jaws, with an outer enlarged-row of somewhat 

 conical ones in the premaxillaries. Fins — dorsal spines moderately strong, the highest equal to If in the height 

 of the body and nearly twice as high as the rays. Pectoral falciform, as long as the head excluding the snout. 

 Ventral reaches 1/2 way to the anal, its outer ray prolonged. Second anal spine rather strong, from 1/2 to 

 2/3 as high as the first ray and equal from 2i to 2-|- in the height of the body, the extent of its base equals 2/9 that 

 of the soft dorsal. Caudal rounded or wedge-shaped. Scales — cycloid on snout, cheeks, and anterior portion of the 

 chest, ctenoid from behind the preopercle on the upjaer surface of the head from above the middle of the eye ; 

 27 rows between snout and base of first dorsal fin. Lateral-line — becomes straight above the middle of the 

 anal fin : tubes with one or two branches on either side. Colours — grayish-green along the back, becoming silvery 

 below, a diffused bluish blotch on the . opercles : a dark spot at base of pectoral, most distinct posteriorly, 

 everywhere fine brown spots. First dorsal nearly black : upper two-thirds of second dorsal dark, due to fine 

 spots, caudal and last half of pectoral grayish from the same cause. 



This species in its proportions closely resembles S. carutta, but may be distinguished by wanting the light 

 tint along the lateral line, by having a much stronger and longer second anal spine, and by most of the scales 

 being ctenoid instead of cycloid. 



Amongst my collection from the Andamans exists a species (?) having a close relationship to S. glaucus, 

 and which may be a variety. It differs in that it has D. 11 | / 8 , L. r. £§. Eyes, diameter 31 in the length of the 

 head, 1 diameter from the end of snout. Scales — cycloid on snout and below the eyes, everywhere else ctenoid. 

 The extra dorsal spine may be an anomaly, but the character of the scales suggests a doubt if the species are the 

 same. Curiously, I have a specimen from Orissa exactly resembling the typical glaucus, except that it has ctenoid 

 scales as in the Andamanese variety. 



Habitat. — Seas of India, very common at Bombay, where it attains a large size. Its air-vessel, which is 

 similar to that of S. sina, is collected at the same places, and the two species have the same native names. 



15. Scisena carutta, Plate XLIV, fig. 1. 



Johiius carutta, Bloch, t. 356 ; Cantor, Catal. p. 66 ; Bleeker, Sciasnoides, p. 48. 



Corvina carutta, Cuv. and Val. v, p. 124 ; Giinther, Catal. ii, p. 302 ; Day, Fish. Malabar, p. 53. 



Comma carouna, Cuv. and Val. 1. c. p. 125. 



B. vii, D. 10 | 3^, P. 17, V. 1/5, A. f , C. 17, L. 1. if, L. tr. 5-6/18. 



Length of head 1/4 to 4§, of caudal 1/7, height of body 1/4 of the total length. Eyes — diameter 1/4 of 

 length of head, 1^ diameters from end of snout and also apart. Greatest width of head equals 2/3 of its length, 

 its height equals its length excluding the snout. Snout inflated overhanging the upper jaw, which slightly 

 overlaps the lower, the maxilla reaches to below the middle of the eye : the distance between the eye and the 

 upper edge of the maxilla equals that of the diameter of the orbit : cleft of mouth nearly horizontal. Preopercle 

 crenulated, more especially along its lower border : opercle with two weak spines. A row of pores across the 

 snout : 5 along the edge of its free border, and a lateral lobe. A central pore beneath the symphysis of the 

 mandible having two more on either side of it. Teeth — villiform "in both jaws, a few of the outer row and in 

 the anterior portion of the premaxillaries being enlarged, somewhat conical but scarcely curved. Fins — dorsal 

 spines weak, the second and third the longest, 1/3 higher than the rays and equal to 1/2 the height of the body. 

 Pectoral as long as the head excluding the snout. Ventral reaches half way to the vent, its outer ray elongated. 

 Second anal spine weak, nearly 2/3 as high as the first ray, and 2/7 to 2/5 of the length of the head. Caudal 

 rhomboidal. _ Scales — mostly cycloid, a few ctenoid at the centre of their free edge between the pectoral fin 

 and lateral-line : the ctenoid portion of the scale is only in a little patch about the middle of its free edge. 

 Those on the head as large as those on the body. Lateral-line— curves gradually until above the end of the anal 

 fin when it becomes straight, its tubes have short branches. Air-vessel — with several lateral branching 



