P IS C E S A P O D E S . M U R zE N A .
mouth straiglit, very la rg e ; the jaws long, the upper somewhat shorter than the low er; lips thickish. The
teeth numerous, dissimilar: in the fore part o f the under jaw , they were long, lanceolate, reflex, on the sides
straiglit and depressed, in two rows, between which were numerous small granular te eth; in the upper jaw the
teeth smaller, and covered b y the lip. T h e palate also with long awl-form teeth, and two tuberculous rows.
T lie tongue awl-form, smooth, tied.
T h e eyes at tlie base o f the rostrum, large, oval, covered with the skin o f the iiead. A gaping, oval nostril,
near each orbit, and two tubulous at the extremity o f tiie rostrum. T h e branchial membrane had ten
ossicles.
No. X X X V II.
M u r /e n a p in n is p ectoralibus carens; cauda apterygia cuspidata.
T h e M u raE n a w ith o u t p e c to ra l a n d c au d al f in s ; th e ta il te rm in a tin g in a s h a rp p o in t.
Ca lled b y th e N a tiv e s M a n t i B u k a r o P a u m u .
T h e body perfectly round, tapering to a sharp point, smooth, without scales.
T h e bead long, narrow, depressed, projecting into a sharp pointed rostrum. T h e mouth large, lips thin, the
upper ja w longest, both set regularly with teeth. T h e eyes vertical, small; the nostrils on the edge o f the
rostrum tubulous. On the crown behind the eyes, about a dozen o f white punctuli form an arch, with two
parallel lines projecting towards the nose.
T h e trunk round; the tail flattened a little towards the end, terminates in a point, without an y fin. T h e
lateral line straight. T h e anus in the middle.
The_y?«i. T h e dorsal and anal v ery n a rrow ; the first rises near the head, the other close to the an u s : both
are continued to very near the point o f the tail. No pectoral fin.
T lie colour o f the back brownish, with several transverse streaks tending to the lateral l in e ; between which
line and the belly , is a long bluish-gray streak.
T h e length, one foot.
OPHIDIUM.
G E N E R IC C H A R A C T E R .
Caput nudiusculum ; dentes maxillis, palato,
Jaucibus. Membrana branchiostega radiis
v ii. p atula. Corpus ensiforme.
T l ie h e a d w ith o u t scales ; tee th in th e
jaw s , p alate, a n d th ro a t; v ii. ray s in
th e b r a n c h ia l m em b ran e , m o stly e x posed.
T h e b o d y sw o rd -fo rm.
No. XXXVIII.
O ph id iu m capite a n g u in o ; linea laterali lo rica ta ; p inna dorsalis analisque caudali con n a ta ;
cauda lanceolata.
T h e O p h id iu m w ith a sn ak e-lik e h e a d ; th e late ra l lin e ro u g h ; th e d o rsal a n d an a l fins
u n ite d w ith th e c a u d a l ; th e tail lan c eo late .
Called b y th e N a tiv e s T a l a B o n .
T h e body sword-form, smooth, without scales.
T h e head oblong, compressed, pointed, resembling a snake's head. T h e mouth large, straight; lips thick;
jaws elongated, the under shorter considerably than the upper; in both there are long crooked teeth in front,
with a regular row o f straight teeth in the upper jaw, whicli is rough on botli sides like a f i le ; the teeth in the
under jaw are smaller, and almost concealed b y the lip. T h e eyes lateral, more advanced than the corner of
the mouth, large, oval ; nostrils in a groove between the orbit and the nose. T h e rays o f the branchial membrane
numerous, partly covered, but discernible through the thin opercula.
T h e trunk roundish; the b e lly thinner than the b a ck ; the tail somewhat compressed, and terminates in a
very narrow, small, pointed fin. T h e lateral line sloping gen tly from the shoulder, becomes straight a little
beliind the pectoral fin, and runs along tlie middle o f the body and tail; rough, and very conspicuous. The
anus is nearer the head than the caudal fin.
Thu fins. T h e dorsal rises near the head, and is blended with the caudal and anal fins.
T h e colour. T h e back is o f a changeable, darkish golden colour, wliich brightens under the lateral line, and
is strewed with very minute black dots. T h e belly is white.
T h e length o f the subject, one foot nine inclies.