39 
PISCES THORACICI. 
FISHES WHOSE VENTRAL FINS ARE PLACED IMMEDIATELY UNDER THE 
PECTORAL FINS, OR ON THE BREAST. 
ECHENEIS. 
GENERIC. CHARACTER. 
Caput pingue nudum , depressum; supra pla¬ 
num , marginatum, transverse sulcato-ser- 
ratum. Membrana branchiostega radiis x. 
Corpus nudum. 
The head oily, without scales, depressed ; 
flat above, marginated, and furrowed 
transversely with serrated ridges ; ten 
rays in the branchial membrane ; the 
body without scales. 
No. XLIX. 
Echeneis striis capitis viginti quinque, linea elevata in duas partes secundum longitudinem 
divisis ; cauda Integra . 
The Echeneis, with twenty-five transverse striae on the head divided, down the middle 
by a longitudinal raised line; the tail undivided. 
jEcheneis j\ r eiterates, Linn. S.JV. p. 44 6. 
Called by the Natives, Ala Mottah. 
B.x. D. 37. P. 2, 1. V. 6. A. 37, C. 16. 
The body long, roundish, taper, without scales; the skin coriaceous, and somewhat rough, when stroaked 
upwards. 
The head oblong-ovate, broader than the body, flat above, and furnished with a long oval shield, extending 
beyond the hind head, with twenty-five oblique, transverse, curve, rough ridges, divided equally in the middle, 
by a longitudinal ridge. It is by means of this apparatus, that the fish adheres firmly to living as well as to 
inanimate subjects. 
The mouth small, transverse; the under jaw pointed, and considerably longer than the upper; both feel 
like a file, being set thick with minute, sharp, teeth. Tongue small, round, smooth, free. Palate rough. The 
eyes high, orbicular. Nostrils double, small. Opercula gular, oblong, imperfectly divided; most part of the 
branchial membrane exposed. 
The trunk. The back and sides convex; the belly flatfish; the tail small, round. The lateral line conspicuous; 
at first a little curve, afterwards middle, and straight. The anus middle and gaping. 
The Jins. The dorsal and anal opposite, alike in form, and of the same length; they are broadest at the 
