ELOPS CAPENSIS. 



jaw. Body covered with moderately large scales, anteriorly and posteriorly 

 slightly rounded, the sides truncate ; the basal half of each scale distinctly 

 marked with a series of delicate and raised radii, which diverge from its cen- 

 tre (vide plate) ; immediately before the dorsal fin the rows of scales are 

 twenty-seven. The humeral plates three in number, very conspicuous, the 

 upper one long, narrow, and reaching from the centre of the back to a little 

 below the division between the operculum and suboperculum, the other two be- 

 tween that and the pectoral fins both on the same level, and the one overlapped 

 by the other, as is distinctly represented in the figure. The lateral line com- 

 mences behind the upper extremity of the operculum, slopes slightly down- 

 wards till it arrives nearly opposite the middle of the dorsal fin, from thence it 

 proceeds in a straight line till its termination, which is a little behind the centre 

 of the caudal fin ; the line, though interrupted, is very distinct, and consists of 

 a series of short grooves, one near the hinder extremity of each of the scales of 

 the row along which it extends, which row is generally the fourteenth or fif- 

 teenth reckoning, the centre row of the back as the first. Fins moderately 

 large, the dorsal and anal ones emarginate posteriorly, and each surrounded 

 at its base with a low membranous sheath, coated with large scales ; the base 

 of the pectoral fins superiorly guarded by a long tapering membranous plate, 

 and inferiorly by a series of broad but comparatively short ones ; the base of 

 the ventral fins inferiorly and superiorly furnished with plates like the pec- 

 toral fins, the last plate of the series on the dorsal aspect of the fin narrow 

 and considerably elongated. Caudal fin deeply forked, with distinct, spinous, 

 rudimentary rays superiorly and inferiorly towards its base, which are flat- 

 tened and closely applied to each other ; the large bony scale at the base of 

 the tail, superiorly and inferiorly, oval and slightly convex. 



Inches. Lines. 

 Distance from the tip of the lower jaw 



to the eye . . . , 1 3 



to the angle of the mouth 2 6 



to the hinder edge of the oper- 

 culum 5 



to the base of the first ray of 



the pectoral fin 5 2 



to the dorsal fin 11 2 



to the ventral fins 11 1 



DIMENSIONS. 



Inches. Lines. 



Distance from the hinder edge of the 

 dorsal fin to the base of the 



tail , 6 9 



from the ventral fins to the 



anal fin 6 1 



Distance between the anal fin and the 



base of the caudal 2 6 



Length of the caudal fin 4 5 



Total length of the fish 26 



Vertical diameter immediately before 



the dorsal fin 3 7 



In young specimens the green colour above the lateral line is scarcely 

 broken. 



In considering this a new species, I have only admitted two species of the genus to have 

 been described, viz. Mops saurus, Bloch, Plate 393 ; and Jinagow, Russell, Plate 179. 



