158 
THE FISHES OF MALABAR. 
Eyes—Diameter \ of length of head, lb diameters from end of snout, 1 diameter apart. 
Body elongated and compressed, snout rather produced, profile rising to the dorsal hut rather 
concave between the snout and the middle of the orbit. Head rather pointed in front. 
Mouth moderately protrusible, lower jaw the longest. Maxilla does not extend as far as 
below the anterior margin of the orbit: lips rather fleshy. Posterior margin of the preopercle 
rather oblique, angle rounded, lower limb horizontal and scarcely more than half the height of the 
vertical one. Opercle irregularly triangular, ending in a soft fleshy termination. Interorbital 
space moderately flat. 
Teeth—Sharp and conical, two or three rather large ones about the centre of the upper jaw. 
A row of rounded teeth posteriorly. Those on each side of the symphysis larger than the 
succeeding seven which gradually decrease in length. Some on the palate. 
Fins—Dorsal and ventral situated on a line, and slightly in advance of the pectoral: the anal 
opposite the end of the pectoral. Dorsal spines slender, the membrane slightly notched, the third 
spine the longest; the rays but little longer than the spines, the last ones rather prolonged. A 
very short interspace exists between the end of the dorsal and the base of the caudal. Pectoral 
rounded. Ventral pointed, its spine weak, and the first ray ending in a filamentous prolonga¬ 
tion. The third anal spine the longest, all are weak, the rays a little longer than the spines, 
and slightly produced. Caudal with a broad base, and a broadly rounded extremity. 
Scales—Large, none on the head. 
Lateral line—In upper fourth of body, and composed of a single tube on each scale having 
four or more smaller ones branching off posteriorly: opposite the ninth or tenth dorsal ray, it 
suddenly bends downwards to the centre of the body, and passes direct to the middle of the caudal. 
Colours—Green, with five or six bars of rather a deep blue, checquered with a deep dull 
reddish purple. A black spot at the base of the pectoral, in front of which there is a vivid 
green mark. Eye of a light coerulean blue, with an inner golden margin round the pupil. Some 
irregular bands of red between the eyes, one passing downwards and forwards to the centre of the 
snout: a line of red passes along the lower margins of the opercle, sub- and preopercles; and 
two or three other irregular lines on the different opercles. The pectoral fin has no markings 
except at its base; on the ventral there is a red streak between the first and second soft rays, and 
in the dorsal an oval yellow spot between each ray, the rest of the fin being reddish margined 
with a lighter tint, and tipped with white. The anal of the same colour as the dorsal. The 
caudal tipped with blue, its angles being orange with a red base, and a lilac band passing across 
the fin from one angle to the other : posterior to this it has a red pavement the same as on the 
body. There is a black spot on the dorsal, between the fifth and sixth rays. 
Habitat—Seas of India, Malaysia, and China. 
Fam. GERRIDiE, Gunther. 
Genus GERRES, Cuvier. 
Catoch^enum, Cantor. 
Diapterus et synistius, Gill. 
Branchiostegals, six: pseudobranchiae. Body compressed, oblong, or elevated. Eyes large, lateral. 
Mouth very protractile downwards. Angle and inferior margin of preopercle toothed or entire. One 
dorsal fin, with the spinous and soft portions equally developed, and having, as well as the anal, a scaly 
sheath along its base. Anal with three—sometimes two—spines, and its soft portion similar to the soft 
