OCR Text |
Show 658 DR. A. GUNTHER ON NEW FISHES [Nov. 21, extend to the vent. The least depth of the free portion of the tail is considerably less than its length. Body uniform brownish black, the scales of the lower part of the body lighter in the centre. Fins black ; the lower half of the caudal of a deeper shade than the upper. Feejee Islands. One specimen (no. 280), 8_ inches long, from the Godeffroy Museum. DENTEX RIVULATUS (Riipp.). Gymnocranius rivulatus, Klz. This species is found at the Seychelle Islands ; it is the " Sphce-rodon grandoculus" of Col. Playfair's List of Seychelle Fishes. HISTIOPTERUS LABIOSUS. (Plate LIX.) B. 6. D. 1. A. £. The height of the body is somewhat less than the length of the head, and one third of the total (without caudal). Upper profile of the head concave; snout much produced, the eye being entirely situated in the posterior half of the length of the head. Mouth of moderate width, the angle of the mouth being much nearer to the vertical from the eye than to the end of the snout. Lower jaw slightly the longer ; lips and chin densely covered with short papillae. The teeth are in bands en cardes, and most of those of the sides are very obtuse, molar-like. The scales on the cheeks hidden below the skin. Prreoperculum with the hind margin concave, and with the angle projecting; the angle and lower margin are indistinctly denticulated. Opercles scaleless. Scales very small. Dorsal spines strong, the fourth being the longest; the seventh not much shorter than the first ray. Caudal fin emarginate, with the angles pointed. Pectoral, two thirds as long as the head, with the upper rays longest. Brown, with indistinct blackish longitudinal markings. One specimen, 22 inches long, from South Australia. CH.ETODON MILIARIS (Quoy & Gaim.). D. g. A. J. L. lat. ca. 39. The depth of the scaly part of the body is two thirds of the total length (without caudal). Snout somewhat pointed, short, rather shorter than the eye. The soft dorsal and anal fins obtusely rounded. Body of a nearly uniform olive-colour (in spirits), the scaly sheath of the dorsal fin yellow; each scale with an indistinct violet spot at the base. The ocular band commences in front of the first dorsal spine, is narrower than the orbit, and edged with yellow. It is still narrower below the orbit and also paler, but extends over the interoperculum. Caudal fin without any markings. The soft dorsal and anal with a narrow black and white margin, and slightly powdered with black within the margin. The smaller specimen appears to have had a round blackish spot between the seventh and thirteenth dorsal rays close to the margin of the fin. |