OCR Text |
Show 1867.] MR. F. DAY ON INDIAN FISHES. 559 head \, of body ^, of hard dorsal y1^, of ventral \i, of anal T\ of the total length. Eyes circular ; diameter f of length of head, 11 diameter apart, 24} diameters from end of snout. Jaws of equal length. Cleft of mouth extends two-thirds the distance to beneath the anterior margin of the orbit. Preopercle entire ; posterior limb nearly vertical and slightly emarginate, angle rounded. Opercle with two very dull points. Sub- and inter-opercles entire. Five rows of scales on the opercle, none on the cheeks. Teeth. Anteriorly in both jaws some canines, with several rows of conical ones posterior to them, and molars with rounded crowns in the posterior part of the jaws. No teeth on vomer or palate. Fins. Dorsal spines moderately strong, extending over three-fifths of the base of the fin ; third and fourth spines the longest; a fleshy sheath, thickest posteriorly, runs along the base of the fin. Third anal spine the longest. Caudal lunated. Colours. Olivaceous brown, becoming lighter on the abdomen; the centre of each scale having a cerulean-blue spot, which, reaching almost across it, forms blue lines in the direction taken by the rows of the scales. Pectoral flesh-coloured, with the base of the second, a wide undivided ray, of bright blue. Ventral bluish slate-colour. Dorsal and anal slate-coloured, margined with orange. Caudal bluish. Eyes golden. The whole of the inside of the mouth and fauces bright orange. Hab. Madras. SERIOLICHTHYS LINEOLATUS, sp. nov. B.vii. D. 6 |JL| II. P. 21. V. 1/5. A. A| II. C. 16. L.l. 96. L. tr. 16/28. Length of specimens 1 lf5^ inches. Length of head |-, of base of first dorsal yy, of base of second dorsal ^, of pectoral •$•, of base of anal yy, of caudal | of the total length. Height of head \, of body i;, of dorsal spines -£$, of dorsal rays y\, of ventral ^, of anal rays yy of the total length. Eyes. Transverse diameter slightly the longest, upper margin close to the profile; a narrow adipose lid along either side of the eye. Diameter \ of length of head, 1 diameter apart, 1\ diameter from end of snout. Body elongated and compressed, its greatest height being opposite the origin of the soft dorsal. Head compressed; snout rather produced. Gape of mouth slightly narrow; posterior margin of upper jaw reaches to below the anterior margin of" the orbit, and is partially hidden by the preorbital, which has some elevated stellated ridges along its upper portion. A rather high central longitudinal crest along the summit of the head, and a smaller one passing backwards and slightly inwards from before the anterior margin of the orbit. Nostrils midway between orbit and end of the snout. Vertical limb of praeoperculum entire and directed |