OF AUSTRALIA. 73 
in the length of the head ; lower jaw rather longer than the 
upper one. Teeth denticulated on the edge ; prseoperculum 
entire ; operculum extended backwards and rounded. 
Lateral line rounded in front, but extending, being the 
pectorals on a straight line to the centre of the base of the 
caudal. Scales large. 
Dorsal of two rays ; anal of thirteen ; pectorals of fourteen ; 
caudal of nineteen ; the dorsal and anal are high ; the caudal is 
long and pointed ; the central rays being very long, and the 
lateral short. 
The general colour is lilac, marbled with brown ; length 
one inch and two- thirds. 
Nota.— The bad state of the only specimen I have seen, 
leaves some uncertainty about the number of rays of some of 
the fins. 
HETEROSCARUS. 
Upper jaw longer than the lower ; its teeth soldered together, 
and forming a sharp lamina on each side ; on the lower jaw 
they are all soldered together like in Scarus, without the 
medium suture of the upper jaw. Scales large ; fourteen or 
fifteen stiff dorsal spines ; the three first prolonged in form of 
filaments ; head naked, porous ; cheeks covered with scales 
soldered together, and present impressions having the appear- 
ance of pores • operculum with several rows of large scales • 
lateral line continuous. 
The filaments of the dorsal give, particularly to the first 
sort, a great resemblance with Lachnolaimus, but its dentition 
is evidently scaroid, and the disposition of the scales of the 
head make it also very distinct. 
Nota.— I have only one specimen of each sort, and that 
not in a good state, and as I found it impossible to open 
the mouth without entirely destroying the teeth, I was 
obliged to postpone the description of the internal parts of 
the mouth till I obtain other specimens ■ but the characters 
I have enumerated appear quite sufficient to justify the 
establishment of this new genus. 
