24 THE FISH FAUNA OF rImIiSWAEAM ISLAND. 
An examination of the above list shows in a very marked 
manner the prevalence of the so-called " coral fishes," ^ 
i.e., brightly colored fishes — Chcetodon, Platyglossus, Senio- 
chus, Pseudosearus, &c. — which abound round the reefs, and 
feed either on the small delicate marine Invertebrata which 
swarm on the living corals or, if their teeth are adapted 
for the purpose, on the hard calcareous^substance of the 
corals. 
As stated by H^ckel,^ an explanation of the bright 
coloring of the fishes is found in the Darwinian principle 
that " the less the predominant coloring of any creature 
varies from that of its surroundings, the less will it be seen 
by its foes, the more easily can it steal upon lits prey, and 
the more it is fitted for the struggle for existence." 
Conspicuous by their abundance were several species 
belonging to the family Sclerodermi, including Balisfes 
(file fish), whose jaws are armed with teeth well suited for 
breaking off pieces of hard coral, or boring holes into the 
shells of the moUusca, on the soft parts of which they feed. 
The file fishes are said ^ to destroy an immense number 
of mollusks, thus becoming most injurious to the pearl 
fisheries. 
Present, too, in great numbers, were several species of 
the family Grymnodontes : Tetrodons (globe fishes), including 
the beautifully marked little Tetrodon margaritiferus, and 
Diodons, which have a very bad reputation among the natives 
as being very poisonous. 
1 Indicated by an asterisk. 
= A Visit to Cti/hii, 1883, pp. 185-6. 
' Giinther. Stiidi/ of Fishes, 1880, p. 685. 
