DENTEX. 
205 
to the species, and even genus. The head is flat on the top, 
and the eyes high on the cheek. Scales on the body and 
gill-covers large. The lateral line passes nearer the back, and 
descends towards the tail. Pectoral fin long and pointed; tad. 
concave; dorsal fin a little expanded at its end; anal fin 
rather short. 
In regard to colour Risso represents it as beautifully varied, 
and in this he is supported by Wdloughhy. He says the 
general hue is silvery, interchanged on the hack with light 
blue, and having blue spots on the sides. In front of the 
head there are waves of golden yellow, sdver, and amethyst; 
the eyes blue, with a golden iris. The dorsal fin a bluish 
yellow; pectorals reddish; caudal a fainter red. Willoughby 
describes the hack as green or yellow, in the large examples 
inclining to purple, dotted over with clouds of blue and dark, 
the colour extending to the sides. At the roots of the hind- 
most rays of the dorsal fin a black spot, as there is also at 
the origin of the pectoral fin. Ventral fins yellow. 
A large example seen by Willoughby was red all over, 
with a shade of purple; but the specimen represented by 
Donovan, which we have figured, is of a more subdued colour 
than is described above, as indeed might be expected from the 
more cloudy skies and lower temperature of the water of our 
more northern regions; for, as we have had repeated opportu- 
nities of remarking, such fishes as wander to us from the 
Mediterranean, are usually destitute of the brilliant tints which 
adorn them in their native seas. 
The fin rays arc differently numbered by difihrent writers; 
but we give them as collected from Risso: — Dorsal eleven 
spinous and twelve soft; anal three spinous and eight soft; 
ventral one spinous and five soft; pectoral fourteen, caudal 
eighteen. 
yront Teeth of Dentex, 
