﻿OF 
  THE 
  MORAY 
  FIRTH 
  AREA. 
  

  

  255 
  

  

  Although 
  these 
  scales 
  appear 
  quite 
  different 
  from 
  any 
  hitherto 
  

   found 
  in 
  Britain, 
  I 
  cannot 
  distinguish 
  them 
  from 
  certain 
  Russian 
  

   scales, 
  of 
  which 
  there 
  are 
  specimens 
  in 
  the 
  Edinburgh 
  Museum 
  

   from 
  Wenden 
  in 
  Livonia. 
  These 
  scales 
  have 
  been 
  figured 
  and 
  

   described 
  by 
  Rohon 
  1 
  as 
  belonging 
  to 
  Deiidrodus 
  biporcatus, 
  Owen, 
  

   but 
  although 
  two-edged 
  dendrodent 
  ( 
  = 
  Holoptychian) 
  teeth, 
  very 
  

   closely 
  resembling 
  those 
  from 
  Scaat 
  Craig, 
  to 
  which 
  Owen 
  gave 
  

   that 
  name, 
  occur 
  at 
  Wenden 
  in 
  Russia 
  associated 
  with 
  the 
  scales 
  

   in 
  question, 
  and 
  probably 
  belong 
  to 
  the 
  same 
  fish, 
  it 
  is 
  quite 
  

   another 
  thing 
  to 
  identify 
  that 
  fish 
  with 
  the 
  original 
  ' 
  biporcatus 
  1 
  of 
  

   Morayshire, 
  which 
  is, 
  on 
  the 
  other 
  hand, 
  pretty 
  certainly 
  the 
  same 
  

   as 
  Holoptychius 
  giganleus 
  of 
  Agassiz. 
  

  

  Eichwald, 
  however, 
  in 
  1844, 
  2 
  described, 
  and 
  afterwards 
  figured, 
  

   a 
  fragment 
  of 
  a 
  Holoptychian 
  scale 
  from 
  the 
  banks 
  of 
  the 
  Slawiinka, 
  

   under 
  the 
  name 
  of 
  Sclerolepis 
  decwata, 
  which, 
  so 
  far 
  as 
  I 
  can 
  judge 
  

   without 
  seeing 
  the 
  original 
  specimen, 
  belongs 
  to 
  the 
  same 
  species 
  

   as 
  the 
  scales 
  from 
  Wenden, 
  and 
  consequently 
  also 
  to 
  the 
  same 
  as 
  

   those 
  from 
  Nairn. 
  This 
  scale 
  has 
  been 
  referred 
  to 
  Glyptolepis 
  by 
  

   Pander 
  (35, 
  p. 
  63). 
  Eichwald 
  published 
  two 
  figures 
  of 
  this 
  scale, 
  

   one 
  in 
  1846, 
  3 
  another 
  in 
  I860, 
  4 
  of 
  which 
  the 
  former 
  is 
  the 
  one 
  

   that 
  most 
  closely 
  resembles 
  the 
  specimen 
  under 
  consideration, 
  as 
  

   in 
  the 
  latter 
  the 
  larger 
  tubercles 
  are 
  represented 
  as 
  having 
  a 
  little 
  

   tail 
  or 
  ridge 
  running 
  off 
  from 
  them 
  posteriorly. 
  The 
  nature 
  of 
  the 
  

   sculpture, 
  as 
  shown 
  in 
  both 
  figures, 
  nevertheless 
  resembles 
  that 
  

   in 
  the 
  Nairn 
  and 
  Wenden 
  scales 
  so 
  closely 
  that 
  I 
  feel 
  compelled 
  in 
  

   the 
  meantime 
  to 
  refer 
  them 
  to 
  the 
  species 
  decoratus 
  of 
  Eichwald. 
  

  

  Family 
  RHIZODONTIDiE. 
  

  

  Genus 
  POLYPLOCODUS, 
  Pander. 
  

   Polyplocodus 
  leptognathus, 
  ap. 
  nov. 
  

  

  (PI. 
  vii. 
  figs. 
  1 
  and 
  2.) 
  

   Equally 
  rarely 
  with 
  the 
  Holoptychian 
  remains 
  described 
  above, 
  there 
  

   occur 
  in 
  the 
  Kingsteps 
  quarries 
  fragmentary 
  relics 
  of 
  a 
  fish 
  which, 
  

   from 
  the 
  structure 
  of 
  its 
  teeth, 
  clearly 
  belongs 
  to 
  tho 
  Rhizodont 
  

  

  1 
  Jto. 
  Acad. 
  Imp. 
  Set. 
  St. 
  Petersbourg, 
  vol. 
  xxxvi., 
  No. 
  14, 
  1889, 
  p. 
  6, 
  PI. 
  i. 
  

   figs. 
  7, 
  8, 
  PI. 
  ii. 
  figs. 
  13, 
  15, 
  16, 
  17, 
  18, 
  20. 
  

  

  2 
  Bull. 
  Soc. 
  Imp. 
  Nat. 
  Moscow, 
  vol. 
  xvii., 
  1844, 
  p. 
  US 
  

   IbUL 
  vol. 
  xix., 
  1846, 
  PL 
  x. 
  figs. 
  16, 
  17. 
  

  

  4 
  Uthaa 
  Possica, 
  vol. 
  i., 
  1860, 
  PI. 
  lvii., 
  tig. 
  7. 
  

  

  