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Presented to the

UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO
LIBRARY
by the

ONTARIO LEGISLATIVE
LIBRARY

1980

C=

Digitized by the Internet Archive
in 2008 with funding from
Microsoft Corporation

http://www.archive.org/details/ediblefishescrusOOogiluoft

Published by Authority of the New South Wales Commissioners
for the World’s Columbian Exposition, Chicago, 1893.

FpipLe FIsues AND CRUSTACEANS

OF

mee SOUTH WALES.

PoeeuUGLAS, OGILBY.

wee EUS TRA Troms:

SYDNEY: CHARLES POTTER, GOVERNMENT PRINTER.
1893.
122 43—93 (a) [3s.]

INT EODUIC TION.

THE present volume must not be considered otherwise than as
an instalment of a much larger and more important work, which
it is intended shall include within its scope the entire fishing
industries of the Colony, and which it is hoped will be completed
within a few years.

For the proper production of a work, dealing exhaustively with
the edible fishes of New South Wales, a much longer time would
be necessary than was available for the preparation of this volume ;
and that for several reasons, the chief of which are, that the number
of species to be included under that category would have to be
raised from 93 as here described to about double that number, and
that the life history of almost every species and the distribution of
many would have to be worked out by personal observation, which
would necessitate a considerable amount of both coastal and inland
travel.

The almost total want of reliable evidence on this latter subject,
and the apathy and ignorance of those who are brought in daily
contact with our food fishes, as forming their means of livelihood,
has greatly impeded the author in his endeavor to place before the
public as full an account as possible of all such points in connection
with the habits of the selected species as would be interesting and
useful, and in none has so much difficulty been experienced in
obtaining information as in that which concerns the most important
function of their lives—the continuation of their species. So little
interest has been taken in this subject by those whose means of
livelihood depend so closely on it, that there are but few, even of
our most abundant fishes, of which the date of spawning is known,
while as for the more difficult questions, such as the localities
where the ova are deposited, the attachment to foreign substances
or the flotation of the ova, and the length of time which elapses
before the young fish emerges therefrom, absolutely nothing is
known.

With regard to the distribution of the fishes found on our coast
New South Wales enjoys.a geographical position, which is unique
‘among these colonies, and makes its fish-fauna in some -respects
even more interesting than that ofits neighbors either to the north
or the south, for, whereas that of Queensland is enriched by
numerous tropical forms, and those of Victoria and Tasmania by

2

RE

li INTRODUCTION.

the fishes peculiar to the colder waters of the temperate zone, we
from our position combine both faunas, many tropical forms, such as
Lutianus and Cherops, finding their way to the Sydney market
from our northern fishing stations, while southern forms, such as
Sebastes and Pseudophycis, occur as far up our coast as the Port
Jackson District. The author has had great difficulty in ascer-
taining even approximately the respective northerly or southerly
range of such forms, the absence of local lists and of reliable
correspondents proving a serious drawback.

Where only a limited number of species were allowed it became
necessary for the author to confine himself to such species as
occurred in the Sydney market in greater or less abundance during
the preparation of the present work, and, except in the case of our
freshwater food fishes which were not obtainable by that means,
this arrangement has been strictly adhered to ; several well known
and excellent fishes have, therefore, been unavoidably omitted,
among which may be mentioned the Hairtail (77zch7wrus), Dory
‘Zeus), River Catfish (Cofzdoglants), Giant Herrings (JZcgalofps,
Chanos, and £lops), Conger (Conger), and Silver Eel (AZurenesox).

The synonymy has also been a source of much trouble and
anxiety to the author; it has, nevertheless, been made as full as
circumstances permitted, but there was not sufficient time to go
thoroughly into the subject, which is rendered doubly difficult by
the careless manner in which some Australian writers describe
their supposed new species; in the case of large genera many
of these descriptions are equally applicable to half a dozen well
known species,

J. DOUGLAS OGILBY.

Sydney, July, 1893.

Edible Fishes of New South Wales.

Class.—PISCES.

Fisues are cold-blooded Vertebrate Animals, which are almost exclusively
adapted for an aquatic existence; which almost invariably respire by means
of specialized organs, known as gills or branchie, these being persistent
throughout life and the functional agents by which the oxygen is dissolved
from the surrounding water ; which have the limbs for the most part modified
into paired fins—the pectorals taking the place of the mammalian arm, the
ventrals that of the lower limb—supplemented by unpaired fins—the dorsal,
anal, and caudal—situated on the median axis of the body, and chiefly used
for the purposes of keeping the body erect and as organs of progression, the
latter function being in most fishes wholly confined to the caudal; which
have the heart divided into two cavities, one auricle and one ventricle only ;
and which are scaleless, partially or wholly scaled, or protected by osseous
plates.

: Fishes are for the most part oviparous ; some, however, are ovoviviparous,
both methods being not uncommonly present in members of the same family ;
for instance, our familiar Blenniid genus Cristiceps is strictly ovoviviparous,
while the equally common allied genus Petroscirtes is as strictly oviparous.

Subclass I.—TELEOSTEI.

Skeleton osseous. Brain distinct. Skull possessing cranial bones. Ver-
tebre completely formed: the vertebral column bony, or with a bony plate
posteriorly, diphycercal, or homocercal. Branchie free: the water dis-
charged through asingle aperture, which is protected by a bony gilleover.
Branchiostegal rays present. Heart with a non-contractile bulbus arteri-
osus, having a pair of proximal valves. Optic nerves decussating. Intes-
tines without spiral valve.

Order —ACANTHOPTERYGII.

Part of the dorsal, anal, and ventral fins unarticulated, forming spines.
Hypopharyngeal bones generally separated. Airbladder, when present,
without pneumatic duct in the adult.

In several families of Acanthopterygian Fishes no true spines are present.
Among the families which are included in the New South Wales fauna, the
Trichonotide with Hemerocetes and the Gobiesocide with Diplocrepis, both
containing small species of no commercial value, may be mentioned as typical
of this modification.

Refering to this, Giinther (Study of Fishes, p. 874) remarks :—“ The
Acanthopterygians do not form a perfectly natural group, some heteroge-
neous elements being mixed up with it; neither are the characters by which

A

2 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

it is cireumscribed absolutely distinctive. In some forms (certain Blen-
niids) the structure of the fins is almost the same as in Anacanths.” And
“the presence or absence of a pneumatic duct”—to the airbladder—‘ loses
much of its yalue as a taxonomic character, when we consider that probably
in all fishes a communication between the pharynx and the airbladder exists
at an early stage of development.”

Family I—PERCIDA.

Branchiostegals six or seven: pseudobranchie generally present (rudi-
mentary in Lates). Body oblong or oblong-ovate, rarely elevated or
eylindrical. Eyes lateral. Opercles strongly denticulated or spiniferous.
Mouth in front of the snout, with lateral cleft, which is horizontal or slightly
oblique. Teeth in the jaws villiform, with or without canines: present or
absent on the vomer, palatines,and tongue. Dorsal fins generally separated :
ventrals thoracic. Scales ctenid or cyclid, small or of moderate size. Lateral
line continuous. Airbladder present or absent, simple. Pyloric appendages
in small numbers.

Geographical distribution —Carnivorous fishes, inhabiting chiefly the fresh
waters and estuaries of both hemispheres; a few species marine, but never
wandering far from land, nor descending beyond a moderate depth.

Genus I.—PERCALATES.

Lates, part. Ginther, Ann. Nat. Hist. (3) 1863, xi. p. 114.
Percalates, Rms. & Ogl. Proc. Linn. Soc. N. 8. Wales (2), 1887, ii. p. 182.

Branchiostegals six: pseudobranchie present. Body oblong-ovate and
somewhat compressed. Opercle with two spines: preopercle serrated on
the vertical limb, denticulated on the angle andlowerlimb: preorbital serrated.
Villiform teeth on the jaws, vomer, and palatines: tongue smooth. One dorsal
fin, deeply notched, with nine spines: the anal with three. Scales moderate,
ctenid, absent on the upper surface of the head : bases of the vertical* fins
scaly. Airbladder large. Pyloric appendages in small numbers.

Geographical distribution.—South-eastern and southern coasts of Aus-
tralia; northern Tasmania.

PERCALATES COLONORUM.

Lates colonorum, Guth. Aun. Nat. Hist. (3) 1863, xi. p. 114; Casteln. Proc. -

Zool. Soc. Vict. 1872, i. p. 43, and Proc. Linn. Soc. N. 8S. Wales, i.
p. 365; McCoy, Prodr. Zool. Vict. dec. 1. pl. 14; Macleay, Catal.
Austr. Fish.i. p. 4; Woods, Fisher. N.S. Wales, p. 31, pl.i; Johnston,
Proc. Roy. Soc. Tas. 1882, pp. 59, 110.

Dules novem-aculeatus, Steindach. SB. Ak, Wien, 1866, liii. p. 428, pl. ii. fig. 1.

Lates similis, Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. 1872, i. p. 44; Macleay, Catal.
Austr. Fish. i. p. 5.

Lates antarcticus, Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. 1872, i. p. 44; Macleay,
Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 5.

Lates victoria, Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. 1872, i. p. 45; Macleay, Catal.
Austr. Fish. i. p. 5.

Lates teri Casteln. Res. Fish. Austr. p. 5, 1875; Macleay, Catal. Austr.
Fish. i. p. 6.

Lates ramsayi, Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 6, 1881.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 33

Perch.
Plate I.

B. vi. D.9 (8-10)/ 10 (9-11). A. 3/7-9. V. 1/5. P. 14-16. C.17. L. lat. 48-55.
LL. tr. 8-9/17-21. Cee. pyl. 10. Vert. 11/14.

Length of head 3°33-4:00, of caudal fin 4°75-5:25, height of body 2°75-
3°50 in the total length. Diameter of eye 3°66-4°75 in the length of the
head, and 0°75-1°20 in that of the snout: interorbital space slightly convex,
from 1:00-1:25 in the diameter of the eye. Nostrils close together, the
posterior the larger. Upper profile of head concave, with two longitudinal
ridges between the eyes. Lower jaw the longer. Cleft of mouth wide and
oblique, the maxilla extending to beneath the middle or somewhat beyond
the middle of the orbit. Preorbital denticulated on its lower margin, which
is sinuous: vertical limb of preopercle slightly concave and finely serrated :
angle and lower limb with a variable number of strong spines, those on the
latter directed downwards and generally forwards: opercle with two divergent
spines, the lower much the longer and more acute, not seldom subdivided at
the tip into two or more points: posttemporal with from four to six strong
teeth, which become obsolete with age: clavicular bones with or without
serrature. Teeth villiform in the jaws, palatines, and vomer, forming on the
latter a subcrescentic band; tongue smooth. The dorsal ecmmences a little
behind the base of the pectoral and ends opposite to the middle anal ray ;
the spinous and rayed portions are subequal in height; the spines are
strong, the fourth the longest, four times as long as the first, and from 2:00-
2°66 in the length of the head; the length of the base of the rayed dorsal is
normally from 1:40-1°60 in that of the spinous; the last spine is one third
longer than that which precedes it: the anal commences beneath the third or
fourth dorsal ray ; the third spine is the longest, 3 00-3'66 in the length of
the head, and much shorter than the anterior rays, which are equal in length
to those of the dorsal: the ventral reaches almost to the vent; its length is
from 1°55-1°70 in that of the head, and the spine is equal to the third or fifth
dorsal spines: pectoral small and rounded, reaching to beneath the sixteenth
or seventeenth scale of the lateral line, 1:75-2:00 in the length of the head:
caudal emarginate, the pedicle much compressed, its least height 2°50-3:00 in
the height of the body. Cheeks and opercles, except the outer limb of the
preopercle, and a small patch on the temporal region scaly, those behind the
inner preopercular margin much the smallest; rest of the head naked.
Lateral line slightly sinuous and rising anteriorly, thence almost straight
below the spinous dorsal, behind which it descends with a gentle curve to the
free tail, along the middle of which it is straight. Airbladder large.

Colors.—U pper surfaces olive green, the head very dark ; sides and lower
surfaces gray washed with yellow: all the fins dark green.

A few words are necessary here with regard to the forms of the Australian
Perch described as new by Castelnau and Macleay, the types of all of which
are missing. In 1872the former created three new species to which he gave
the names Lates similis, L. antarcticus, and LZ. victorie ; to these, between
the above date and 1881, he added a fourth species, L. curtus, from the
Richmond River. In 1876 Alleyne and Macleay described, under the name
Pseudolates cavifrons, a North Australian fish, and in the follewing year the
jatter author redescribed the same species as Lates darwiniensis ; these two
names may be at once dismissed from consideration as being mere synonyms
of the widely distributed Z. calcarifer, as an examination of the type
specimens at once reveals. JFinally in 1881 Macleay described a L. ramsayi

4 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

EEE ESSE EEE

from a single specimen taken in a freshwater pool near Parramatta, the
type of which is also missing. We have, therefore, in the restricted genus
Percalates no less than five supposititious species, excluding the original
P. colonorum, all described from a similar and somewhat limited area on
what appears to be insufficient grounds; that none of the later writers on
Australian fishes (Johnston, Catalogue of Tasmanian Fishes, 1882; McCoy,
loe. cit. IS78, and Lucas, Census of Victorian Fishes, 1889), except the author
(Catalogue of New South Wales Fishes, 1885), venture an opinion on their
specific identity or otherwise, is, it must be conceded, a most unsatisfactory
state of affairs, and merits, therefore, a more extended inquiry than is usually
necessary in such cases.

In LZ. similis the characters relied on for its separation from the type
species are absurdly inadequate; these are the shorter snout, which is
‘“sensibly less than the diameter of the eye” ; with the majority of fishes the
comparatiye size of the eye to the head and to the snout varies with the age of
the individual, the young fish having that organ much larger proportionately
than the adult ; as I have shown above the great variation existing between
ihe comparative measurements of the eye and the snout in twenty five
specimens of indubitable P. colonorum ranging from Adelaide to the Rich-
mond River, it is manifest that the stress laid upon this character is altogether
inisleading, and must be regarded as valueless; the coarser denticulations of
the preopercle are also a sign of immaturity, and as such unreliable; in the
large series which has passed through our hands specimens have in rare
instances oceurred in which the teeth of the lower preopercular limb were
directed absolutely downwards; neither this character nor that of the
omission of one of the dorsal rays can, therefore, be taken as a valid reason
for separating L. similis from Giinther’s well known species.

It is unnecessary to go at any length into the question of the validity of
L. antarcticus,since, with two exceptions,a comparison of Castelnan’s deserip-
tion with that given above will show that no characters are given, which
are not equally common to P. colonorum. These are the increased number
of branchiostegal rays which is stated to be seven in this species as against
six which the examination of numerous specimens has shown to be the
normal number in P. colonorum as here and elsewhere stated, and also
recorded by Professor McCoy. I do not, however, attach any importance
to this seeming discrepancy, since it is probable that that number is merely
copied from the generic description of Lates given by Giinther (Catalogue
of Fishes, i. p. 67) and which is correct of that genus as restricted to the
two species DL. niloticus and L. calcarifer; it may be further pointed out
that in few, if any, of his other descriptions of new genera or species does
Castelnau take any notice of this important point: the second exception,
namely the coloration, is not of sufficient importance to justify the retention
of L. antarticus as a distinct form, and this name also must, therefore, sink
into a synonym of the typieal species ; further on (p. 5) the author will have
occasion to refer to a form which, by a casual observer, would at once be set
down as distinct, but which, scientifically examined, is easily seen to be no
more than a local variety of the common Australian Perch due to the
greatly changed conditions under which it exists; this form may possibly be
the L. antarcticus of Castelnau, though, if so, it is difficult to say why he
should especially designate it the ‘ Sea Perch.”

Of L. victoria it is needless to say more than that no rational person is
likely to believe that the substitution of a four pointed for a single pointed
spine on the opercle is by itself sufficient to constitute a species.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 5

In Castelnau’s last form, Z. curtus, it is only necessary to point out that
no reliance can be placed on the depth of the type specimen as indicative of
even a variety; the proportion of height to length is given by him as
1: 3:33, but examples from Port Stephens, Shoalhaven, Shellharbor, and
Ulladulla, examined by the writer in preparation of this work, ranged as low
as from 1: 2°75 to 1: 3°50; this character, therefore, having been proved
invalid, and there being no other on which to rely, it follows that L. curtus
must be merged in P. colonorum.

Nothing then remains but to conser the claims of Macleay’s ZL. ramsayi,
and a very cursory glance at the description suffices to show that no claims
to specific recognition can be with justice urged in its behalf. Stress seems
to have been laid by its author on the fact of this, to him, unique example
having been provided with ten dorsal spines and seven anal rays; variations
such as these are, as has been shown above, by no means so uncommon as
is generally supposed, though the coincidence of their occurrence in the same
individual is no doubt much more rare ; in no other character does Macleay’s
diagnosis differ from that of individual specimens of our common Perch,
and it, therefore, with the preceding four, must be relegated to the list of
useless synonyms. The fact of its having been taken in a landlocked
waterhole doubtless had some effect on its external appearance and thus
helped to deceive its describer.

Mention was made above of a variety of the common Perch which differed
greatly in outward appearance from the ordinary form; so far these fishes
have been sent to the Australian Museum only from the pools in the Suowy
River, immediately below the Falls, but without doubt other rivers, both of
this and the sister Colony, will, now that notice is drawn to the form, be
found to have evolved under similar circumstances a similar variety. The
differences, between it and the common market fish, which present themselves
at a casual glance are the much more elongated habit, the proportionately
longer and more powerful fins, and, though this is a much less important
characteristic, the brilliant silvery color of the fish; a moment’s thought,
however, will suggest that these differences, however important they may at
first sight appear, are only to be expected in fishes living under conditions
which differ so greatly from those under which the species normally exists,
for, being practically forced to inhabit rapidly running waters, subject to
sudden, severe, and periodical floods, caused for the most part by the melting
of the snow on Kosciusko and the neighboring Ranges, it is patent that their
changed surroundings and conditions of life would induce a change in the
direction indicated.

To Mr. A. M. N. Rose, of Campbelltown, we are indebted for the knowledge
of this well marked form, that gentleman having forwarded at our request
two specimens, the first taken at Christmas, the second late in the autumn,
to the Australian Museum; neither of these fishes showed the slightest
traces of spawning, though, if they breed in the river, it is incredible that
the season selected for the deposition of its ova by a fish notoriously fond of
warm sheltered spots, should be other than one of the two seasons during
which our informant forwarded them. Mr. Rose, however, is of opinion that
these fishes do not breed, at least not in the river, and he bases his opinion on
the facts, certified to us by him, and through him to us by other residents
of the district, that the examples caught vary but little in size, the average
length being from fourteen to eighteen inches, that no young fish have ever
been observed, that no matter at what season of the year they are captured
no milt or roe is present, that they are always in fine condition, and finally
that they infinitely excel the estuary Perch in flavor.

6 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

The obvious inference is that certain individuals having made their
way into the Snowy River at its embouchure into the ocean gradually
work upwards and eventually find themselves in the pool below the Falls,
and, being unable to proceed, remain there until captured or swept down by
flood to the estuary again; these latter, having simce their forced return
into calmer and warmer waters, grown sybaritic and fat, may possibly be
Castelnau’s “not very common” J. antarcticus, which he describes as
“ silvery ” and “‘ very savory.”

With a coast line such as that of New South Wales, extending from lat.
28° 13’ S., its northern border at Point Danger, to Jat. 37° 30’ S. on its
southern at Cape Howe, the season or seasons of spawning necessarily vary
ereatly, but with very few species have such extended observations been
recorded as to make the data reliable ; it may, however, be taken for granted
that the periods as a rule occur earlier in our northern and warmer waters
than on our southern seaboard.*

From personal observation of many examples obtained from different
localities between Port Stephens and Ulladulla, the Perch spawn during the
latter half of June and the earlier half of July only. In the Clarence
River District the date, however, is given as July and August.

Their food consists of small fishes and crustaceans, but in one instance
seaweeds and corallines alone were detected. As a table fish they are of
fair quality; and being voracious they give good sport to river anglers,
greedily taking such baits as worms, grubs, prawns, small frogs, &. It
attains to a weight of five pounds at least, and according to Tenison Woods
even reaches seven and a half pounds.

The Perch is common in the rivers and estuaries along the entire coast
line of the colony at least as far north as the Richmond River, but according
to Saville Kent “ does not so far appear to have been met with in Queensland
waters ;’ in Victoria it is abundant, the Gippsland Lakes being especial
strongholds of the species, while in South Australia it extends at least as
far west as the embouchure of the Murray; in Tasmania it appears to be
for the most part confined to the “ fresh and brackish landlocked waters of
the north-east coast’ (Johnston), while in a subsequent paper this author
states that it is “‘confined to Anson’s River,” where it is “ abundant all the
year round.”

Genus II.—_ENOPLOSUS.
Enoplosus, Lacépéde, Hist. Nat. Poiss. iv. p. 541, 1802; Cuv. & Val. Hist.
Nat. Poiss. 1. p. 133, 1828.

Branchiostegals seven: pseudobranchie present. Body elevated and
strongly compressed. . Opercle spineless: preopercle coarsely serrated on
both limbs; the produced angle with strong spines: preorbital denticulated.
Villiform teeth on the jaws, vomer, palatines, and tongue. Two dorsal fins,
the first with eight spines: the anal with three: all the fins, except the
caudal, much elongated. Scales moderate, cyclid: bases of the vertical fins
sealy. Airbladder large. Pyloric appendages in moderate numbers

Geographical distribution —South-eastern coasts of Australia.

ENOPLOSUS ARMATUS.

Chatodon armatus, White, Voy. N. S. Wales, pl. xxxix. fig. 1, 1790.

Enoplosus whitii, Lacép. Hist. Nat. Poiss. iv. p. 541.

Lnoplosus armatus, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. ii. p. 133, pl. xx; Guth.
Catal. Fish. i. p. 81; Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. i. 1872, p. 47;
Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 9; Woods, Fisher. N. S. Wales,
p- 32, pl. ii.

* This remark ig of course intended to apply equally to all our marine or estuarine fishes.

ee

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. a

Old Wife.

By. D8. 1/14-15. A. 3/14-15. V. 1/5. P. 138-14. C._,17. L: lat. 56-60.
L. tr. 14/36—40. Coe. pyl. 15. Vert. 10/17.

Length of head 3°50-4:00, of caudal fin 3°80-4'00, height of body 2°40-
2°66 in the total length. Diameter of eye 3:25-3°60 in the length of the
head: snout short, its length from 1:10-1'40 in the diameter of the eye:
interorbital space flat, with a deep median groove, 1:50-2:00 in the same.
Nostrils moderately close together, simple, the anterior round, the posterior
oval and slightly the larger. Upper profile of head very concave. Lower jaw
the longer. Cleft of mouth small and oblique, the maxilla extending a little
beyond the anterior margin of the orbit. Preorbital with five or six strong
teeth, tbe posterior one much the stoutest and pointed directly backwards :
preopercle with both limbs strongly serrated, and with the angle much pro-
duced, bearing two spines, the upper of which is the strongest, curved, and
directed upwards and backwards. Teeth in the jaws villiform with an outer
enlarged series anteriorly ; those on the yomer in a subtriangular patch; on
the palatines in an elevated arcuate band; tongue with a median band.
The dorsal commences above the posterior angle of the base of the pectoral
and ends above the tenth or eleventh anal ray; the three anterior spines
are short and correspond diversely to the last three; the fourth is strong
and greatly elevated, its length from one tenth to one third longer than that
of the head, and from 1:33-2:00 in that of the first ray which is a little
longer than the second, and more than twice as long as the fourth, the third
being intermediate, and the remainder short; the length of the base of the
first dorsal is from 1:15-1°40 in that of the second: the anal commences
beneath the origin of the second dorsal, its spines are strong, the third the
longest, from 1°66-—2°00 in the length of the head, to which the first ray is
equal: the ventral reaches to the third or fourth anal ray, and its length is
equal to or as much as one fourth longer than that of the head: pectoral
pointed, extending as far back as the ventral, and subequal in length to the
head: caudal emarginate with the lobes produced; the least height of its
pedicle equal to the distance between the last anal ray and the origin of the
caudal. Uppersurface of head and preorbital scaleless. Lateral line strongly
curved to beneath the middle dorsal rays.

Colors.—Silvery white, with eight blackish vertical bands, the first from
immediately behind the occiput passing obliquely forwards and downwards
through the eye, and sending two narrow branches along the interorbital
space to the snout; the second from in front of the first dorsal to the base
of the ventral ; the third very broad, beneath the first dorsal, and extending
on to that fin; the fourth narrow, beneath the dorsal interspace; the fifth
broad, between the soft dorsal and the anal, and continued to the extremities
of their elongated rays ; the sixth narrow, from behind the dorsal to the last
anal rays ; the seventh across the caudal pedicle, and the eighth across the
base of the caudal fin.

Nothing is known of the breeding habits of the “ Old Wife,” by which
name this species is exclusively known in Port Jackson, although it is
excessively common there, frequenting wharves and sheltered places, and
probably attaching its ova to the tangle.

Being an excellent little fish for the table it is to be regretted that it does
not appear in the market in greater quantities, this being due to its
preference for rocky localities, where the seine cannot be used.

8 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

E. armatus is abundant in the bays and estuaries of South-eastern
Australia from Moreton Bay to Port Phillip, and, though it has not been so
far recorded, is probably found in similar spots in northern Tasmania. Its
westward range extends at least as far as St. Vincent’s Gulf, from which
locality Castelnau received specimens from Waterhouse. In addition to the
trivial name used here it is known at Melbourne as “ Bastard Dory ” owing
to its shape and the prolongation of the rays of the vertical fins, and
“ Zebra-fish” from its striped appearance. It attains to a length of nine
inches in Port Jackson, but referring to the Melbourne market Castelnau
states that “in winter the specimens are small and do not measure more
than from four to six inches; but in the warm months (December and
January) they are much larger, and some are nearly a foot long.” He
further remarks that these large examples are generally females with well
developed ova; the breeding season, therefore, in the southern Colony would
appear to be the latter part of the summer.

Family II.—_SERRANIDA.

Branchiostegals seven, rarely six or eight: pseudobranchiz present. Body
oblong or ovate. Eyes lateral. Opercles denticulated or spiniferous.
Mouth in front of the snout, with lateral cleft, which is slightly oblique.
Teeth in the jaws villiform, with or without canines: teeth on the vomer
and palatines: absent or present on the tongue. Dorsal fin generally
continuous: ventrals thoracic. Scales ctenid, rarely cyclid, small or of
moderate size. Lateral line continuous. Airbladder present, simple. Pyloric
appendages in small or moderate numbers, or numerous.

Geographical distribution. Carnivorous fishes of tropical and temperate
seas, sometimes ascending rivers.

Genus I.—SERRANUS.

Serranus, sp. Cuvier, Regne Anim.; Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. i1.
p. 210, 1828.

Branchiostegals seven: pseudobranchie present. Body oblong. Eyes
lateral, of moderate size. Opercle with two or three flat spines: preopercle
with its vertical limb more or less serrated, and its horizontal one usually
entire. Teeth villiform, with distinct canines present in both jaws: teeth
on the vomer and palatines : tongue naked. One dorsal fin with from eight
to twelve spines: the anal with three. Scales small, ctenid or eyclid.
Pyloric appendages in large, moderate, or small numbers.

The Sea Perches frequent the coasts of all temperate and tropical
countries, and sometimes ascend to a great distance up rivers for predatory
purposes, one species having been found as high up the Ganges as the
confines of Nepal; none, however, so far as has been ascertained spawn in
fresh water. About one hundred and fifty species are known, many of
which are most handsomely colored. (Gunther, Study of Fishes, p. 381.)

SERRANUS DAMELI.

Serranus damelii, Gnth. Ann. Nat. Hist. (4) 1876, xvii. p. 891;
Casteln. Proc. Linn. Soc. N. S. Wales, iii. p. 365; Macleay, Proc.
Linn. Soc. N. 8. Wales, viii. p. 254; Woods, Fisher. N. S. Wales,

p: 33.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 9

Black Rock-Cod.
Plate IT.

B. vit. D.11/14. A. 3/8. V.1/5. P.18:C.17. L. 1. 110-122. L.tr. 23/58-61.
Ceee. pyl. num. Vert. 10/14.

Length of head 2°70-3:00, of caudal fin 5:25-5:75, height of body
3°75-420 in the total length. Diameter of eye 5°50-7:00 in the length
of the head, and 1:00-1°66 in that of the snout, which is obtusely rounded :
interorbital space flat, 1:20—1°80 in the diameter of the eye. Upper profile
of head slightly convex. Lower jaw the longer. Cleft of mouth large and a
little oblique; maxilla remiform, extending to beneath the posterior margin of
theeye in immature, to half a diameter behind the eye in adult, examples. Pre-
opercle with a shallow emargination above the angle; the vertical limb
finely serrated, the angle more coarsely so: opercle with three strongspines,
the middle being the longest. Jaws with a pair—rarely two pairs—of
anterior canines; mandible with several series of stout, sharp, cardiform
teeth, the inner row being the larger; maxilla with similar but longer teeth
in front, and an outer enlarged row laterally, inside of which is a band of
minute teeth; vomer with an angular, palatines with a narrow elongate
band of small cardiform teeth. Dorsal spines strong, the third or fourth
the longest, 3°20-3°66 in the length of the head, the others very gradually
decreasing in height to the last; rays subequal, longer than the spines: the
anal commences beneath the anterior dorsal ray, and ends a little in front
of the termination of that fin; the third spine is a little longer than the
second, and is about equal in length to the second dorsal spine; the rays
are considerably longer than those of the dorsal, and about twice as long
as the third spine: length of the ventral about two thirds of the distance
between its origin and_ the vent, and from 2:25-2°60 in the length of the
head: pectorals rounded, their length 1°80-2°00 in the same: caudal
rounded, the least height of the pedicle from 2°50-3:00 in the height of the
body. Scales minute, ctenid, firmly adherent; the vertical fins with a
row between the basal half of the rays; snout, upper half of the pre-
orbital, and the maxilla scaleless. Lateral line following the curvature
of the back.

Colors—Body and fins deep blue black, uniform in the adult: young
examples with or without scattered lighter spots on the sides of the head and
body, and a black spot crossing the caudal pedicle above: spinous dorsal
with a darker, soft dorsal and anal with a lighter submarginal band.

Although well known to be one of the best and highest priced of our
edible fishes, and to be present in large numbers along our coastline at least
as far south as Jervis Bay, absolutely nothing is known as to its habits
during the season of reproduction, nor to the places selected for the deposi-
tion of the ova; this, it is most probable, is upon rocky weed-covered ground
at a moderate depth. They are only taken by line, and being exceedingly
voracious are easily hooked, but from their great strength and the deter-
mination with which they fight for their lives very heavy tackle has to be
employed for their capture. They affect bold rocky coasts and islands only,
and are never found on the sandy beaches.

Fishes, crustaceans, mollusca and radiata, form the greater portion of its
food. Examples weighing up to fifteen pounds are excellent for the table,
but beyond that weight they grow coarser, the very large examples being
almost uneatable.

10 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

The Black Rock-Cod, or Black Sea-Perch as it should more properly be
termed, is found in numbers along the entire coastline of New South
Wales, at least as far south as Jervis Bay, but it has not been recorded from
either Victorian or Tasmanian waters. Northwards its range is not so easily
determinable, but is probably considerable, as it has been recorded from
Normanby Island in the D’Entrecasteaux Group, off the extreme south-
eastern shore of New Guinea, where Goldie obtained it in fresh water,
presuming that Macleay’s identification is correct.

They are abundant at Lord Howe Island where they are much appreciated
by the inhabitants on account of their size and excellence.

In the Sydney market it is now rare to see one weighing so much as
twenty pounds, but as we proceed northwards the size gradually increases.
The district lying between the Macleay and Clarence Rivers has long been
known to be a most prolific ground for the pursuit of this species, and at the
Solitaries, a group of small islands lying about midway between these points
they are reported to have been captured of the weight of a hundred pounds ;
be this as it may a specimen taken at Lord Howe Island measured forty two
inches, and turned the scale at seventy five pounds, while subsequently a
mutilated example was brought to the Australian Museum, Sydney, which
measured no less than fifty four inches, and would probably, when perfect,
have equalled or perhaps exceeded the larger weight.*

Genus II.—PLECTROPOMA.

Plectropoma, Cuvier, Régne. Anim.; Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. i. p.
387, 1828.

Branchiostegals seven: pseudobranchie present. Body oblong. Opercle
with two or three flat spines: preopercle with the vertical limb serrated,
the horizontal limb bearing spinous teeth which are directed forwards.
Teeth villiform, with canines in both jaws: vomer and palatines toothed:
tongue smooth. One dorsal fin, with from seven to thirteen spines: the
anal with three. Scales small or of moderate size, ctenid or cyclid. Pyloric
appendages in small numbers.

Geographical distribution About thirty species, many of which are
brilliantly ornamented, inhabit the seas of tropical and subtropical regions.

PLECTROPOMA ANNULATUM.

Plectropoma annulatum, Gnth. Catal. Fish. i. p. 158, 1859, and Brenchl.
Cruise of the Curagoa, p. 415, pl. xxviii. fig. B.; Casteln. Proc. Linn.
Soc. N. S. Wales, iii. p. 369.

Banded Sea-Perch.

B. vii. D. 10/18. A. 3/7. V. 1/5. P. 15-16. C. 17. L. lat. 46-48. Ty. te.
7/19-21. Vert. 10/17.

Length of head 2°50-2°75, of caudal fin 5:75-6:15, height of body
280-300 in the total length. Diameter of eye 4°33-4°75 in the length
of the head, and equal to or rather more than that of the snout: interorbital

* In the Sydney Morning Herald Mr. Philip Cohen asserted, and, notwithstanding that we pointed out
the vast difference between the two species, reasserted that this fish grows to a weight of three hundred
pounds and upwards ; any student of zoology can tell that the large fish, to which he refers, is the Giant
Perch, Polyprion prognathus, more commonly known as Oligorus gigas.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 11

space concave, owing to the great projection of the supraorbital margin;
its breadth from 1°40—-1°66 in the diameter of the eye. A slight. concavity
on the occiput. Lower jaw the longer. Cleft of mouth wide and oblique;
maxilla triangular, extending to between the middle and the posterior
third of the orbit. Opercle with three spines, the middle the largest,
the upper minute: preopercle rounded, the vertical limb finely serrated ;
a compressed, frequently bicuspid, spine at the angle; horizontal limb
with two spines pointing downwards and forwards: posttemporal and
clavicular bones spiniferous. Teeth in the jaws in villiform bands, with
two or three pairs of canines anteriorly in each, the outer in the upper
jaw being much the strongest; mandible with from one to three pairs of
lateral canines; an angular band of minute teeth on the vomer, and a
narrow elongate band on the palatines. Dorsal spines strong, the first
and last equal in length, the fourth and fifth the longest, 2'25-2°50 in the
length of the head; the membrane very deeply notched; dorsal rays not
nearly so high as the spines; base of soft dorsal 1:15-1:33 in that of the
spinous: the anal commences beneath the first dorsal ray and ends beneath
the fourteenth ; the second spine is very strong and a little longer than the
third, 2°66—2'85 in the length of the head; the rays are slightly longer
than the spines, and much longer than those of the dorsal: ventrals small,
their length about two thirds of the distance between their origin and the
vent, and 2:10-2:50 in that of the head: pectorals rounded and well
developed, reaching to above the anal spines, 1'40-1°55 in the same: caudal
slightly rounded, the least height of its pedicle about two sevenths of the
height of the body. Scales moderate, ctenid, firmly adherent; basal half of
all the fins scaly ; snout and anterior half of preorbital scaleless. Lateral
line approximately following the curvature of the back.

Colors.—Red, deepest above; head with four black bands; the first straight
and short, commencing between the posterior margins of the eyes and
extending backwards along the occiput ; the second slightly curved from the
postero-superior angle of the orbit to the hinder edge of the occiput; the
third arcuate, from behind the middle of the eye to the origin of the dorsal ;
the fourth slightly curved crossing the opercle ; body with six vertical black
bands, the anterior four extending on to the dorsal, and the middle two on
to the anal fin.

Though occurring at all seasons of the year in the Sydney market the
Banded Sea-Perch appears in larger quantities and more regularly during the
warmer months, when they visit Port Jackson and Broken Bay for the
purpose of spawning, retiring during the colder months to deeper water.
They are essentially rock-fishes, and are almost invariably associated with the
Red Rock-Cods (Scorpena), being taken by hook along with them. Their
food is similar to that of the last species, and their flesh is firm, flaky, and
pleasant.

They attain to a length of eight inches.

PLECTROPOMA NIGRORUBRUM.

Plectropoma nigrorubrum, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. ii. p. 402, 1828;
Quoy & Gaim. Voy. Astrolabe, Poiss. p. 659, pl. iv. fig. 1; Guth.
Catal. Fish. i. p. 158; Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 22; Ogilby,
Proce. Linn. Soc. N.S. Wales, x. p. 119.

12 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Cuvier’s Sea-Perch.
B. vii. D. 10/17-18. A. 8/8-9.- V. 1/5. P.-18. ©. 15. L. lat. S5—9ee
L. tr. 6/24-25. Cec. pyl. 8.

Length of head 2°70-2°80, of caudal fin 5:50-5:75, height of body
3°50-3°66 in the total length. Diameter of eye 5:40-6:00 in the length of
the head, and 1:25-1'40 in that of the snout: interorbital space concave, its
breadth 2°33-2°60 in the diameter of the eye. Nostrils small and moderately
distant, the anterior with a low circular rim, which is extended from its
inferior margin to and around the upper margin of the hinder nostril.
Upper profile of head flat. Lower jawthe longer. Cleft of mouth wide and
oblique, the mavilla reaching to beneath the hinder margin of the orbit or
not quite so far. Opercle with three spines, the middle one much the
longest, the upper short, blunt, and concealed beneath the skin: preopercle
rounded, with the vertical limb armed with sharp equal sized denticulations,
the angle and lower limb with three, rarely four, strong teeth directed
forwards and downwards, the anterior of which is the strongest: posttemporal
and clayicular bones spineless. A broad band of villiform teeth in the jaws,
with two or three pairs of small canines anteriorly ; one or two pairs of
lateral canines in the lower jaw; vomerine teeth in an obtusely angular
band; palatines with a narrow curved band. The dorsal commences above
the opercular spine; the first spine is the shortest, less than one third of the
fourth or fifth, which are the longest, from 2°75-3°10 in the length
of the head; the rays are subequal in height to the spines, and the
basal length of the rayed fin is one tenth less than that of the spinous: the
anal commences beneath the second or third dorsal ray, and ends beneath
the thirteenth or fourteenth ; its spines are stronger than those of the dorsal,
the second the strongest and a little longer than the third, its length from
3°75-4-00 in that of the head; the rays are fully twice as long as the
spines, and much longer than those of the dorsal: ventral pointed, the
second ray the longest, three fourths of the distance between its origin and
the vent, and from 2°00-2°20 in the length of the head; the spine is short,
not half the length of the rays: pectoral pointed, the seventh ray the
longest, reaching to the vertical from the vent, and 150-170 in the same:
caudal very slightly rounded, the least height of its pedicle 2°50 in the
height of the body. Soft dorsal with a deep, anal with a low scaly sheath ;
scales on the head very small.

Colors.—Red, clouded above with dusky brown, below with yellow ; body
with five dark transverse bands.

This fish is never common in the Sydney market, but occasionally a few
are to be seen in company with the next species; the only specimen
examined in which the ova were fully developed was caught in the beginning
of August. Their food consists of small fishes, crustaceans, and molluscs,
the former predominating in all those which have been examined hitherto.
Although this fish has been long known from Port Jackson and King
George’s Sound I am not aware of its having been recorded from any inter-
mediate locality.

Ten inches is about the maximum size to which the species attains.

PLECTROPOMA OCELLATUM.
Plectropoma cyanostigma, Gnth. Catal. Fish.i. p. 161 (not Bleeker).
Pleetropoma ocellatum, Gnth. Catal. Fish. i. p. 504, 1859, and Brenchl.
Cruise of the Curacoa, p. 416, pl. xxix.; Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. 1.
p- 23; Woods, Fisher. N. 8. Wales, p. 34.
Plectropoma myriaster, Steindachn. SB. Ak. Wien, 1866, liii. p. 426, pl. i. fig. 3.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 18

Wirrah.

Poe isiis. A. 3/8. V.1/5. P.19-20. C. 17. L. lat. ca. 100) Ti: tr.
23-24/58-60. Coec. pyl. 9. Vert. 10/16.

Length of head 2°80—3-00, of caudal fin 5°66-6:00, height of body 3:00-3:66
in the total length. Eye small, situated high up on the head, its diameter
5°50-5°80 in the length of the head, and 1°50 in that of the snout:
interorbital space slightly convex, its breadth 1:33-1°66 in the diameter
of the eye. Jaws equal. Cleft of mouth wide and oblique, the maxilla
almost reaching to beneath the posterior margin of the orbit. Opercle
with three spines, the middle being the longest, the lower minute: preopercle
rounded, the vertical limb and angle coarsely serrated, the horizontal limb
with three strong teeth pointing forwards and downwards, the posterior one
being the longest. Jaws with a broad band of villiform teeth, and an
outer row of stronger ones, the largest teeth being at the mandibular sym-
physis ; an angular band of small teeth on the vomer, and narrow, elongate
bands on the palatines. The dorsal commences above the operecular spines ;
its spines are strong, the fourth or fifth the longest, rather less than one third
of the length of the head; the rayed dorsal is equal to or higher than the
spinous, and its outer margin is evenly rounded; the length of its base is
1°75 in that of the spinous portion: the anal commences beneath the third
dorsal ray, and does not extend quite so far back as that fin; its outer
margin is rounded, and the rays are rather longer than those of the dorsal ;
the spines are very strong, the second the longest, 3°33-3°75 in the length of
the head: ventrals small, their length 1:10-1°25 in the distance between their
origin and the vent, and from 2:00-2:20 in the length of the head: pectoral
rounded, extending nearly to the vertical from the vent, about 1°75 in the
length of the head: caudal rounded, the least height of its pedicle 3°00-3°25
in the height of the body. Scales small, cyclid, firmly adherent, the soft
dorsal and anal scaly for the greater part of their height; snout, preorbital,
and maxilla scaleless.

Colors.—Rich brown, with a golden tinge on the sides and belly; head
and body with numerous small round blue spots, darkest on the head and
back ; two or three oval blackish spots behind the eye : fins immaculate dark
brown.

The Wirrah, by which name it was known to the Aboriginals of Sydney,
is a common fish in our markets at all seasons ; like its congeners it readily
takes a hook. The contents of the stomachs of those examined by us were
many and various, including small fishes, crustaceans, molluscs, echinoderms,
starfishes, worms, and corallines. As food opinions vary; the late Sir
William Macleay considered them to be “tough and flavorless” ; Tenison
Woods remarks that “the best Wirrah has the flavor and consistency of
leather, which no sauce or cooking can change,” and in connection with this
it may be as well to point out that the fish figured in his work as the
“Wirrah” is a Priacanthus. We, however, have found that a moderate
sized example, of from ten to twelve inches in length, is firm and well
flavored when boiled. It is very tenacious of life.

Originally described from specimens the locality of whose capture was
unknown, its habitat has been generally and vaguely put down as “ Australian
seas.” The coast of New South Wales is, however, the only portion of the
continent from which we are awafe of its having been recorded, and the
neighborhood of Port Jackson appears to be the head quarters of the species.

Though the average length of specimens exposed for sale in our markets is
from eight to twelve inches, larger ones are not uncommon, the largest
measured being just eighteen inches.

14 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Genus III.—_LUTIANUS.
Lutjanus, Bloch, Hist. Nat. Poiss. iv. p. 84, 1797.

Branchiostegals seven: pseudobranchie present. Body oblong-ovate, com-
pressed. Opercle spiniferous: preopercle serrated, with or without a notchon
its vertical margin, intended to receive a knob which is frequently developed
on the interoperele. Jaws, vomer, and palatines with villiform teeth: the
former with anterior canines, largest in the upper jaw, and a lateral series
of strong conical teeth: minute teeth sometimes present on the tongue.
One dorsal fin with from nine to thirteen spines: anal with three. Scales
ctenid, of moderate size: one or two enlarged rows over the nape: cheeks
scaly. Airbladder simple. Pyloric appendages few or absent.

LUTIANUS FULVIFLAMMA.

Sciena fulviflamma, Forsk. Deser. Anim. p. 45, 1775; Gmel. Syst. Nat.
. 1299.

ea nina Bl. Schn. p. 90.

Centropomus hober, Lacép. Hist. Nat. Poiss. iv. p. 255.

Diacope fulviflamma, Cuv. Régne Anim ; Riipp. Atl. Fisch. p. 72, pl. xix. f. 2,
and N. W. Fisch. p. 94; Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. 11. p. 423; Klunz.
Verh. Ges. Wien, 1870, p. 700.

Mesoprion unimaculatus, Quoy & Gaim. Voy. Freycinet, p. 304, and Voy.
Astrolabe, p. 665, pl. v. £.3 ; Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. p. 4A ; Bleek.
Verh. Bat. Gen. xxii. Pere. p- 42.

Mesoprion aurolineatus, Cuy. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. iii. p. 496; Day, Fish.
Malab. p. 14, pl. iii,

Mesoprion russellii, Bleek. Verh. Bat. Gen. xxii. Perc. p. 41; Day, Proe.
Zool. Soc. 1867, p. 701.

Lutjanus notatus, Bleek. Ternate, p. 283.

Genyoroge notata, Cantor, Catal. Malay. Fish. p. 12; Day, Fish. Malab. p. 8
(not Cuv. § Val.)

Mesoprion fulviflamma, Bleek. Amboina, 11. p. 532; Gnth. Catal, Fish. i. p.
201; Day, Fish. Malab. p. 13; Kner, Voy. Novara, Fisch. p. 351.

LIutjanus russellii, Bleek. Atl. Ichthyol. Pere. pl. xxii. f. 2, and Lutjani, p. 76.

Lutjanus unimaculatus, Vaillant, Soe. Phil. Paris, May 28rd, 1874.

Lutjanus fulviflamma, Bleek, Halmaheira. p. 55, and Lutjani, p- GL; Day,
Fish. Ind. p. 42, pl. xii. ff. 5, 6.

Black-spotted Sea-Perch.

B. vii. D. 10/14. A. 3/8. V. 1/5. P. 16. 0.17. L. lat. 47-49. L. tr. 10/20.
Ceec. pyl. 5.

Length of head 3°33-3°50, of caudal fin 4:25-4°50, height of body
3°40-3°50 in the total length. Diameter of eye 3°66-4-00 in the length
of the head, and 1°25 in that of the snout : interorbital space very slightly
convex, 1: G0-1:90 in the diameter of the eye. Nostrils far apart, simple,
oval, subequal; the anterior pierced in the middle of a shallow circular
fossa. Upper profile of head slightly concave. Jawsequal. Cleft of mouth
moderate and a little oblique, the maxilla extending to beneath the middle
of the orbit. Preopercle denticulated, the teeth on the horizontal limb and
angle coarser than those above the notch, which is very shallow: interoper-
cular knob inconspicuous: opercle with two blunt points: posttemporal
with a few short blunt teeth. Jaws with a band of villiform teeth, and an
outer row of curved cardiform teeth, stronger and more numerous in
the lower jaw, in which they grow larger posteriorly ; maxilla with two

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 15

pairs of anterior canines, the outer one on each side very long and
strong; a triangular patch of villiform teeth on the vomer; palatines
with broad bands; tongue with a median longitudinal patch narrowing
posteriorly. The dorsal commences above the base of the pectoral ;
the spinous portion is higher than the rayed, and the length of
the base of the latter is three fourths of that of the former; the spines
are weak, the fourth the longest, three times the length of the first, and
from 2°33-2°66 in the length of the head; the last spine is much shorter
than ihe one preceding it: the anal commences beneath the second dorsal
ray, the second spine is stronger than, but not so long as, the third, whose
height is 3°20 in the length of the head, and two thirds of the anterior rays,
which are much longer than those of the dorsal: the ventral does not quite
reach to the vent ; its outer rays are slightly filamentous, the length of the
first 1°66 in that of the head, and the spine is about equal to the seventh
dorsal spine: pectoral well developed and pointed, reaching to above or
slightly beyond the vent, 1:25-1°40 in the length of the head : caudal slightly
emarginate, the least height of its pedicle 2°75 in the height of the body.
Cheeks, opercles except the outer margin of the preopercle, and a small
stripe on the temporal region scaly ; rest of the head naked: soft portion of
the vertical fins with a low basal scaly sheath, which in the anal is continued
for a short distance between the rays. Lateral line running parallel to the
dorsal profile.

Colors.—Olive brown above, the sides rose color, the lower surfaces
yellowish-white ; a large black oval blotch, covering about eight transverse
series of scales on the lateral line beneath the anterior dorsal rays ; a black
axillary spot; indistinct oblique dusky streaks above and longitudinal
yellowish ones below the lateral line: dorsal fin dusky, with a narrow black
and chestnut margin; caudal pale brown tinged with red; other fins bright

ellow.
z Examples of this fish are very rarely seen in the Sydney markets, and then
only during the winter months, when a few assignments of fishes occasionally
find their way thither from the Richmond and Clarence Districts. They are,
however, tolerably abundant on our northern coastline at least as far south
as the Bellinger, and are, therefore, entitled to a place here.

L. fulviflamma has a very extensive range having been recorded from the
East Coast of Africa and the Seychelles; the Asiatic Coast from the Red
Sea to China; the Malay Archipelago; and the northern portion of
Australia, extending as has been shown as far south as the Bellinger River
on the eastern side of the continent. They attain a length of at least twelve
inches.

Genus IV.—GLAUCOSOMA.

Glaucosoma, Schleg. Faun. Japon. Poiss. p. 62, 1843.

Branchiostegals seven, occasionally eight: pseudobranchie present. Body
oblong-ovate and somewhat compressed. Opercle with one or two incon-
spicuous flattened points: preopercle finely serrated: clavicle denticulated.
Jaws, vomer, and palatines armed with villiform teeth. One dorsal fin with
eight spines: the anal with three. Scales moderate, finely ctenid, adherent ;
the entire head and the bases of the vertical fins scaly.

Geographical distribution —Australian seas to Japan.

GLAUCOSOMA. SCAPULARE.
Glaucosoma scapulare (Ramsay, MS.), Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. iz Pe
334, 1880; Woods, Fisher. N. S. Wales, p. 34.
Glaucosoma biirgeri, Casteln. Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S. Wales, 111. p. 850 (vot
Richardson).

16 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Pearl Perch.
Plate IIT.
Bon: Di 8/il. “ASS/9: VN: 1/5.--P: 16; Gr 27 ai alstvasS las 12/26.

Length of head 3°25, of caudal fin 4°85, height of body 3:15 in the total
length. Diameter of eye 3°80 in the length of the head, and 1:10 in that of
the snout: interorbital space convex, 1:33 in the diameter of the eye.
Nostrils approximate, vertical, oval, the posterior about twice the size of the
anterior. Upper profile of head sinuous. Lower jaw protruding. Cleft of
mouth large and oblique, the maxilla, which extends to beyond the posterior
margin of the orbit, greatly dilated and with the edges sinuous and the
posterior angles rounded. A single flat inconspicuous spine on the opercle:
preopercle finely serrated, the denticles at the angle rather coarser:
supraclavicle enormously developed, forming a strong ovate bony shield:
posttemporal bone concealed. Villiform teeth on the jaws, yomer,
and palatines, the outer row in the former greatly enlarged. ‘The dorsal
fin commences behind the base of the pectoral and terminates above
the third anal ray; the spines are short but strong, the last the longest,
little more than half of the second and longest ray, and 3°75 in the
length of the head; the bases of the spinous and rayed portions of
the fin are subequal: the anal fin commences beneath the fourth dorsal ray ;
the third spine is the longest, not half the length of the anterior ray, and
4°33 in that of the head: the ventral does not nearly reach to the vent, and
its length is 2'20 in the same: the pectoral extends backwards to beneath
the eigthteenth scale of the lateral line and its length is 1°85 in that of
the head: caudal very slightly emarginate, with the angles a little pro-
duced and rounded; the least height of the pedicle one third of the height
of the body. Head entirely scaly; bases of vertical fins enclosed in a sealy
sheath. Lateral line gently curved. Airbladder large.

Colors.—Upper surfaces greenish-brown, with numerous, small, indistinct,
darker spots; sides and below silvery: fins immaculate; a small black
axillary spot: supraclavicle black.

The Pearl Perch, or Epaulette Fish as it is styled in Queensland, is
undoubtedly one of the best food fishes inhabiting the seas of Australia,
but it is unfortunately only obtainable in the markets at very rare intervals,
for, as the greater number are taken by pleasure parties on deep-water reefs
when fishing for Snapper, they do not find their way thither, being too
valuable from a gastronomic point of view to be lightly parted with.
Under these circumstances it is needless to say that absolutely nothing is
known of its habits or economy.

Some confusion exists as to whether the three described species of
Glaucosoma are one and the same species or not. The genus was first
described in the Fauna Japonica (loc. cit.) by Schlegel, who, however,
neglected to give it a specific name; to remedy this Richardson proposed
for the Japanese form the title of G. biirgeri, while to West Australian
examples he allotted the name of G. hebraicum. Giinther considers that’
these two forms are certainly the same, and it, therefore, remains to be seen
whether or not our eastern Australian fish must be included with them. At
present we have thought it best to keep them apart, until further evidence,
one way or the other, shall be forthcoming

The Pearl Perch is a fine handsome fish growing to a length of at least
two feet.

d

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. a iy;

Family I1I—GRYSTIDA.

Branchiostegals five, six, or seven: pseudobranchie present. Body
oblong or elevated. Eyes lateral. Opercles indistinctly serrated, or spini-
ferous, or entire. Mouth in front of the snout, with lateral cleft which is
more or less oblique. Teeth in the jaws villiform or cardiform, without
canines: vomerine, palatine, or lingual teeth present or absent. Dorsal fin
generally continuous (separated in Hwro and Percilia) : ventrals thoracic.
Scales minutely ciliated or cyclid, of moderate size, rarely small. Lateral,
line continuous. Airbladder present, simple. Pyloric appendages in small
moderate, or large numbers.

Geographical distribution.—Fresh waters and seas of tropical and temperate
regions.

Genus I.—OLIGORUS.

Grystes, part. Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. i. p. 58, 1829.
Oligorus, Guth. Catal. Fish. i. p. 251, 1859.

Branchiostegals seven : pseudobranchiz little developed. Body oblong and
posteriorly compressed. Opercle with two weak points: preopercle
smooth, or obtusely denticulated: preorbital, posttemporal, and clavicle
entire. Villiform teeth on the jaws, vomer, and palatines: tongue smooth.
One dorsal fin with ten to twelve, normally eleven, spines: the anal with
three. Scales small and cyclid: the entire head scaly: vertical fins with a
deep scaly basal sheath. Airbladder large. Pyloric appendages in small
numbers.

Geographical distribution.—Rivers of Australia,

OLIGORUS MACQUARIENSIS.

Grystes macquariensis, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. ii. p. 58, 1829;
Richards. Voy. Erebus & Terror, Fish. p. 118, pl. li. ff. 8, 9.

Grystes brisbanii, Less. Voy. Coquille, Zool. 11. p. 227.

Grystes peelit, Mitch. Exped. Austr. p. 39, pl. v. f. 1, 1838.

Oligorus macquariensis, Guth. Catal. Fish. i. p. 251, and Study of Fish. p. 392,
f. 164; Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. i. p. 54; Macleay, Catal. Austr.
Fish. i. p. 52, and Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S. Wales, viii. p. 200 ; Woods,
Fisher. N. S. Wales, p. 102, pl. xli.; McCoy, Prodr. Zool. Vict. dec.
ix. pls. 85, 86.

Oligorus mitchelli, Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. i. p. 150; Macleay, Catal.
Austr. Fish. i. p. 58; Woods, Fisher. N. S. Wales, p. 103.

Oligorus gibbiceps, Macleay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S. Wales, x. p. 265

Murray Cod.
Plate VIII.
Be vu. D: 10-12/16-14. A, 3/11-13. V. 1/5. P. 19-20. C. 17. LI.
lat. 75-80. L. tr. 25/4547. Cec. pyl. 4.

Length of head 3°33-3°60, of caudal fin 6:00-7:00, height of body
3°75-4-40 in the total length. Eye small, its diameter from 4°33 in immature
to 7:00 in adult examples in the length of the head, and 1:33-1:75 in that
of the snout, which is rather depressed, broad, and very obtusely rounded:
interorbital space slightly convex, its breadth 1:20-1:40 in the diameter of
the eye. Nostrils separated by a considerable interval, the anterior provided
with a triangular flap, the posterior oval and patent. Upper profile of head
concave. Jaws subequal. Cleft of mouth deep and oblique; the maxilla

B

18 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

reaches to the hinder margin of the eye or even beyond it. Opercle with
two concealed spines, the lower much the longer and more acute. Teeth in
the jaws villiform, with the outer series slightly enlarged ; vomerine teeth
in a triangular, palatine in a lanceolate p: atch. The dorsal fin commences
at a considerable distance behind the base of the pectoral, and extends
backwards a little further than the anal; the spines are strong, the fourth,
fifth, and sixth subequal and longest, 3° 33-3-90 in the length of the head, and
much shorter than the rays ; the last spine is about equal i in height to the
second, and five eighths of the longest spine; the base of the rayed dorsal is
five sevenths of that of the spinous, and its outer margin, as is also that of
the anal, is rounded: the anal fin commences beneath the first or second
dorsal ray ; the spines are short and stout, the third usually a little longer
than the second, its length 4°60-5:00 in that of the head, and 2:00-2°33 in
that of the longest ray: ventral small, the outer ray with a short filament,
its length from 2 3-00—-2-40 in that of the head, and 200-2: 25 in the distance
between its origin and the vent ; the spine is short and weak, equal in length
to the last dorsal spine : pectoral short and rounded, its lensth 2°00-2°33 in
that of the head: caudal rounded, the pedicle deep and strong, its least
height 2°33-2°50 in the height of the body. Scales small and “eyelid, the
vertical fins sealy to about half their height.

Colors.—Olive green above, with numerous small darker spots; below
white or pale yellow: soft dorsal, anal, and caudal fins with or without pale
margins.

Castelnau’s Oligorus mitchelli, which is said to differ from O. macquariensis
in having a much broader head, larger eye, the upper jaw longer than the
lower, the operculum more rounded, the caudal fin a little longer, and the
height of the body much greater, is without doubt identical with the species
above described ; the size of the eye depends entirely on the age and length
of the individual, a specimen six and a half inches in length having the eye
as much as four and one third in the length of the head, while in one of
twenty inches the proportion is one seventh, as given in the British Museum
Catalogue, and in very large and oid examples would doubtless be considerably
less. With regard to the comparative length of the jaws much variation
appears to exist; the authors of the “ Histoire Naturelle des Poissons”
state that the upper jaw is the longer (cest plutét sa machoire supérieure
qui dépasse Vautre), thus agreeing in ths respect with Castelnau ;
Giinther gives the lower jaw as the longer, but in the five specimens
examined in the preparation of the above description, the jaws were abso-
lutely equal, while the figure in the study of fishes shows the upper jaw
distinctly the longer, and may possibly, therefore, have been drawn from a
specimen belonging to Castelnau’s supposed form. The length of the caudal
fin also varies, not only with the age of the fish, being proportionately
shorter in large examples, but also with relation to the conditions surrounding
the individual ; for instance, those residing in lakes or sluggish creeks and
lagunes, would naturally have aless developed caudal fin than those which
habitually dwell in swift flowing streams, where a greater expenditure of

muscular energy would be necessary to keep them in position against the
current. The increased height of the body is obviously due to the condition
of the ovaries, but in no case has a specimen come under our notice in which
the proportion was so large as four times and a half in the length without the
caudal, as mentioned by Castelnau, for presumedly the nermiil proportion ;
such, indeed, is unusual, even w hen the caudal fin is included, and only
occurs in very young or diseased fishes, or immediately after the deposition
of the ova; in a normally developed fifteen inches fish now before us, the

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 19

height of the body is three and two fifths in the length without the caudal,
or almost exactly the same as that given by Castelnau, as distinctive of
O. mitchelli. These four characters may, therefore, be at once set aside as
valueless, while the other two, on which that author relies, namely, the
greater breadth of the head, and the more rounded opercle, are of too trivial
a nature on which to found even a variety. Fresh water fishes, on account
of the diverse character of their surroundings, are much more liable to
variation than those which inhabit an element not so subject to sudden
changes ; greater care should, therefore, be taken in separating on variable
characters forms belonging to the selfsame area of distribution. The loss
of Castelnau’s types of Australian Fishes is most unfortunate, since that
erratic scientist’s descriptions are frequently remarkable for the ingenuity
with which the more important characters are entirely omitted, and trivial
or secondary characters brought forward into prominence.

The Oligorus gibbiceps of Macleay, the type of which—in the Sydney
University Museum—we have been enabled to examine, appears to be merely
a stunted Alpine form of O. macquariensis.

According to Macleay the Murray cod, or as it might with more regard to
correctness be designated the “ Cod-Perch,” is known to the aborigines of the
Murrumbidgee by the name of “ Kookoobul,” while Tenison Woods men-
tions that those of the Lower Murray call it “ Pundy.”

The ova are deposited during the summer months, the statements of trust-
worthy observers varying between November and January even in the same
district. Opinions also vary as to the place selected for the deposition of
the ova, one observer reporting that ‘“‘ he has seen the fish, as he believed,
actually depositing the spawn, one fish, the female doubtless, moving along
the bottom of the water, forming a furrow in the sand with its chin, while
another fish (the male) closely followed in its wake ;”’ another observer, how-
ever, states that he “never saw the fishes spawning, but had often found
what he believed to be the spawn attached to logs, and he affirms that he can
discriminate perfectly between the spawn of the Cod and the other Percid
Fishes of the Murrumbidgee.” (Rep. Roy. Comm.) ; the latter theory is
probably the correct one.

As food this fine species ranks as high as any purely freshwater fish of
either hemisphere, medium-sized examples being more delicate than very
large ones, which are coarse and tasteless. Their voracity is very great, no
living thing, whether beast, bird, reptile, batrachian, fish or crustacean, which
it can overpower, coming amiss to it; for this reason, they are very easily

captured by almost any bait, care being taken to use sufficiently strong tackle,

as the fish is enormously powerful and fights fiercely for liberty.

The true habitat of the Cod is the Murray river and its tributaries, but it
is also found in some of the northern coastal rivers of the Colony, though
whether introduced thereto or not does not seem to be accurately known; but
judging from other Murray Percid fishes whose range is almost or entirely
limited to that river system, such as Ctenolates and Macquaria, it is probable
that such is the case, nevertheless the Murray River system, and that of the
Richmond and Clarence District approximate so closely at their sources that
it is quite possible that during exceptionally heavy floods the fishes of one
system may be able to pass over into the other. The same species is also
found in the Mary River, Queensland. To other localities it has been
introduced with more or less success, as in Lake George, to which it was
transplanted by Sir Terence Murray many years ago, where it has increased
and thriven well, although some twelve years ago it was threatened with
extermination owing to the poisonous water from the Currawang copper

~

20 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

mines being allowed to find its way to the lake. That its introduction to
the Yarra has not been an unmixed blessing is clear from the following
remarks of Prof. MeCoy:—‘ The Cod is now established in the Yarra, but
does not thrive, though its voracity has sensibly diminished the numbers of
several of the native fishes of that river, particularly the Blackfish ( Gadopsis
marmoratus) and the Yarra Herring or Australian Grayling (Prototroctes
marena), which haye now disappeared from the lower parts of the Yarra
altogether.”

This magnificent species attains to a length of nearly five feet, and a
weight of upwards of one hundred pounds.

Genus II.—ARRIPIS.

Centropristes, sp. Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. iii. p. 50, 1829, and vii. p.
451; Richards. Voy. Erebus & Terror, Fish. pp, 29, 117.

Arripis, Jenyns, Zool. Beagle, Fish. p. 18, 1842.

Homodon, Brisout de Barneville, Rev. Zool. 1847, p. 133.

Branchiostegals seven: pseudobranchiew present. Body oblong and but
little compressed. Opercle spiniferous: preopercle serrated. Villiform teeth
on the jaws, vomer, and palatines: tongue smooth. One dorsal fin with nine
flexible spines: the anal with three. Scales moderate, finely ciliated, absent
on the upper surface of the head: vertical fins with a basal scaly sheath.
Airbladder of moderate size, simple. Pylorie appendages in large or
moderate numbers.

Geographical distribution —Seas of Australia, New Zealand, and the
neighboring Islands.

ARRIPIS SALAR.

_Centropristes salar, Richards. Trans. Zool. Soc. ii. p. 78, 1849, and Voy.
Erebus & Terror, Fish. p. 29, pl. xx. ff. 4-6.

Centropristes tasmanicus, Hombr. & Jacq. Voy. Pole Sud, Poiss. p. 40, pl. iv.
hie: A.

Arripis salar, Guth. Catal. Fish. i. p. 253, and Study of Fish. p. 398, fig.
165; McCoy, Prodr. Zool. Vict. dec. il. pls. 16,17; Macleay, Catal.
Austr. Fish. i. p. 51; Woods, Fisher. N.S. Wales, p. 35, pl. v.; Sherrin,
Handb. N.Z. Fish. p. 50.

Arripis truttaceus, Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. i. p. 52; Johnston, Proce.
Roy. Soc. Tas. 1882, pp. 68, 110.

Salmon.
Plate IX.

B. vii. D. 9/15-17. A. 3/10. V. 1/5. P. 16. C. 17. L. lat. 48-52. I. tr.
6/12-13. Cec. pyl. ca. 75. Vert 10/15.

Length of head 433-466, of caudal fin 420-475, lieight of body
3'90-4°60 in the total length. Diameter of eye 3°66—4°33 in the length
of the head: the length of the snout varies with age from a little more than
the diameter of the eye in young to a little less in old examples : interorbital
space slightly convex, from 1:00 in young to 200 in large examples in the
diameter of the eye. Nostrils approximate, separated by a narrow skinny
bridge only, the anterior small and elongate-oval, the posterior oval and
three times as Jarge. Upper profile of head flat or very slightly concave.
Lower jaw the longer. Cleft of mouth oblique and moderately wide, the

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 21

maxilla reaching to beneath the posterior third of the orbit. Preorbital
obsoletely serrated anteriorly: preopercle finely serrated on both limbs:
opercle with two small blunt spines. Jaws with a broad band of villiform
teeth anteriorly, abruptly narrowing on the sides; vomer with a cordiform
patch ; bands on the palatines lanceolate. The dorsal commences above
the eighth or ninth scale of the lateral line; its spines are feeble, the
fourth the longest, its height from 1°75-2°10 in the length of the head,
and longer than any of the rays; the length of the base of the spinous
dorsal is from 1°60-L°80 in that of the soft: the anal commences beneath
the eighth or ninth dorsal ray, and ends on the same plane as the dorsal ;
the third spine is the longest, from 3°50-4°00 in the length of the head ;
the outer margin of the rayed portion is emarginate, owing to the elonga-
tion of the last rays: in large examples the ventrals extend midway
or less than midway to the vent, but in examples under eight inches
in length more than midway; their length is from 1:50-1:70 in that
of the head: pectorals a little smaller than the ventrals, from 1:60-1:75
in the same: caudal deeply forked, the least height of its pedicle seven ninths
of the distance between the last dorsal ray and the origin of the caudal,
and 3°25-3°50 in the height of the body. Upper surface of head and the
orbital ring naked ; a series of five scales on the hinder half of the maxilla ;
cheek scales in five series ; both spinous and soft portions of the dorsal and
anal fins with a deep scaly sheath. Lateral line following the curvature
of the back during its entire length.

Colors.—Upper surfaces green, the head the darkest: young examples
with darker spots: lower surfaces white: fins hyaline.

Common as the Salmon is along the greater part of the coast line of New
South Wales, but little is known as to where or when it breeds; as to the
latter Tenison Woods remarks:—“It is said to commence to spawn in
September on the east coast”; this being taken from Glover's evidence
before the Royal Commission which refers to the Twofold Bay District ; at
Port Macquarie and the Clarence Heads the spawning season is respectively
given as November and October. Assmall fry are frequently washed ashore on
the ocean beaches after heavy weather it is possible that the spawn is buried
in the sand in suitable places.

During the warmer months of the year Salmon make their appearance
along our shores in shoals of marvellous magnitude, and are taken in very
large numbers by the seine, not unfrequently causing a glut in the market ;
at such times the writer has seen fine fresh fishes of from twenty to thirty
inches long, and weighing from six to eight pounds each, sold at the rate of
two shillings per dozen, while many are given away to the poorer classes, no
other possible means of getting rid of them being available. They take a
bait freely and are frequently caught off the ocean beaches among the
breakers, and Sherrin states that in New Zealand they afford good sport to
anglers, as they rise to an artificial fly and are readily taken at sea with
spoon bait.

Halfgrown examples are called “Salmon Trout” and are by no means to
be despised for the table, but the adult fish is dry and rather tasteless, never-
theless from their size and abundance they are of considerable commercial
value; Sherrin considers it “a fairly good fish for preserving in tins.” Care
should be taken to choose only the freshest fishes, as decomposition sets in
very rapidly, and many cases of fish poisoning, some of them even resulting
in death, are said to have been traced to this source. McCoy, however, it
must in justice be said, does not agree with the above theory, stating that he

bo

2 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

has known several instances in which the effects were strongly marked after
eating perfectly fresh examples, caught only an hour or so before cooking.”
Fishes, small swimming crabs, and Spheromide were found in those whose
stomachs were examined.

The Salmon has a wide range throughout the southern portion of the
Australian Region, occurring along the entire southern seaboard of Australia,
and along the New South Wales coast as far north at least as the Clarence
River District, beyond which I have failed to trace it, nor is it even men-
tioned by Saville Kent in his Preliminary Report on the Food Fishes of
Queensland. On all the shores of Tasmania it is “abundant all the year
round” (Johnston), as also it is at Lord Howe, Norfolk, and Raoul Islands.
It is abundant around New Zealand, “avoiding only that portion of the
coast which is washed by the cold south-east current” (Sherrin). The
Maori name for it is “ Kahawai.”

Family IV.—PRISTIPOMATIDAKE.

Branchiostegals five, six, or seven (four only in Chetopterus) : pseudo-
branchiew present or rudimentary. Body oblong or ovate, more rarely
elevated or cylindrical. Eyes lateral, of moderate size. Opercle with or
without spines: preopercle serrated or entire. Mouth in front of the snout,
with variously directed lateral cleft. Teeth in the jaws in villiform bands,
with or without canines, rarely edentulous, with no molar or trenchant
teeth: teeth on the vomer and palatines present or absent, in some genera
deciduous: no lingual teeth. Dorsal fin continuous: ventrals thoracic:
lower rays of pectorals branched. Scales moderate or small, feebly ctenid
or cyclid. Lateral line continuous, not extending on to the caudal fin.
Airbladder present, with or without a median contraction. Pyloric append-
ages in small or moderate numbers (numerous in Ayperoglyphe).

Geographical distribution—Marine and freshwater fishes of tropical and
temperate regions.

Genus I._CTENOLATES.
Ctenolates, Guth. Proc. Zool. Soc. 1871, p. 3820.

Branchiostegals seven: pseudobranchise present. Body oblong-ovate and
somewhat compressed. Opercle with two spines, the lower of which is
frequently subdivided into two or more points: preopercle serrated on the
vertical limb; angle and lower limb with patches of coarser denticles. Teeth
villiform on the jaws, vomer, and palatines: tongue smooth. One dorsal fin,
moderately notched, with ten spines: the anal with three. Scales small,
ctenid, present on the occiput: vertical fins with a basal scaly sheath.
Pyloric appendages in moderate numbers.

Geographical distribution —Murray River and its tributaries; Mary
River, Queensland.

CTENOLATES AMBIGUUS.
Datnia ambiqua, Richards. Voy. Erebus & Terror, Fish. p. 25, pl. xix, 1846.
Dules ambiguus, Guth. Catal. Fish. i. p. 270; Klunz. SB. Ak. Wien, Ixxx.
Abth. i. p. 337, pl. 1. f. 1.
Otenolates macquariensis, Gnth. Proc. Zool. Soc. 1871, p. 390, pl. xxxiii.
Dules auratus, Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soe. Vict.i. p. 55.
Otenolates ambiguus, Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 54; Woods, Fisher,
N.S. Wales, p. 103.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. Ze

Golden Perch.
Plate V.
Pee 10/ 10-11. A. Sia VW. Wo. P. 16-17%, ©. 17. GL. lat, 538-58.
L. tr. 13-14/28-30. Cee. pyl. ca. 11.

Length of head 3-40-8°60, of caudal fin 533-6:20, height of body
3°20-3°66 in the total length. Diameter of eye 4:75-6:00 in the length of
the head, 1:10-1'50 in that of the snout, and 0:90-1:25 in the interorbital
space, which is convex. Nostrils moderately close together, the anterior
circular and closed by a valve, the posterior subpyriform and patent. Upper
profile of head deeply concave. Lower jaw the longer. Cleft of mouth
moderate and oblique; the maxilla reaches to beneath the middle of the
orbit. Preorbital sinuous and serrated on its lower margin: vertical limb of
preopercle serrated, the angle rounded with stronger denticulations, the
horizontal limb with coarse teeth in patches: opercle with two strong spines,
the lower of which is much the longer, and is frequently subdivided’: its
margin below very finely serrated: posttemporal and clavicle with some
strong teeth. Teeth villiform in the jaws; in an obtusely angular band on
the vomer ; palatines with a long narrow band. The dorsal fin commences
above the base of the pectoral, and ends opposite the termination of the
anal; the spines are strong, the fifth the longest, subequal in height to the
rays, from 1:80-2°50 in the length of the head; the last spine is about five
sevenths of the longest spine, and three fourths of the first ray; base of
rayed dorsal 1:33-1'50 in that of the spinous: the anal commences beneath
the second or third dorsal ray; the second spine is the longest and strongest,
not so long as the rays, and from 2:25-3:00 in the length of tie head: ventral
well developed, the filament of the outer ray reaching to or beyond the vent,
its length from 1:33-1:50 in that of the head; the spine is strong, equal in
length to the third dorsal spine: pectoral moderate, rounded posteriorly,
1°60-1°75 in the same: caudal rounded, the least height of the pedicle one
third of the height of the body. Snout, preorbital, upper surface of head to
midway along the occiput, outer edges of the preopercle, and temporal fossa
scaleless; dorsal and anal fins scaly at their bases: there are from eighty two
to eighty five series of scales above the lateral line, which is parallel to the
curvature of the back.

Colors.—Upper surfaces olive green, the sides and lower surfaces golden.

Owing to the difficulty experienced in obtaining perfect* specimens of
our freshwater fishes in a recent state, and the paucity of reliable data on
the subject, original information as to the season of the year in which the
ova are deposited, the localities selected for such deposition, and the means
employed to ensure so far as possible the safety of the ova, whether by
forming a nest in the river bed or by attaching the spawn to aquatic plants,
is not forthcoming.t

The Golden Perch, which is also known to the colonists as the ‘“‘ Yellow-
Belly,” and, according to Macleay is the Aaakaalain of the Aboriginals of
the Murrumbidgee, is abundant in all the rivers and lagunes connected with
the Murray River and its tributaries, while the naturalists attached to the
Challenger Expedition discovered that it was also a resident of the Mary
River, Queensland. As food it is delicious, and it is, therefore, eagerly sought
for both by hook and net.

Large specimens attain a length of at least twenty three inches, and a
weight of nine pounds.

* All the specimens sent to the Sydney markets or consigned direct to dealers in the city are scaled and
cleaned previous to their transmission here.

+ These important considerations in the economy of our freshwater fishes will never be properly under-
stood until a competent officer shall be appointed by the Government to report fully on these and all other
matters connected with the fishes and fisheries of our transmontane river systems.

24: EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Genus II._ MACQU ARIA.

Macquaria, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. v. p. 377, 1830.
Murrayia, Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. 1872, 1. p. 61.
Riverina, Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. 1872, 1. p. 64.

Branchiostegals six: pseudobranchie present. Body oblong-ovate and
somewhat compressed. Head with distinct muciferous channels. Opercle
with two spines, either or both of which may be subdivided into two or more
points: edges of sub- and interopercles finely serrated: preopercle serrated
on the vertical limb, the angle and lower limb with patches of coarser denticles.
Teeth villiform on the jaws and vomer: afew teeth present or absent on the
palatines. One dorsal fin moderately notched, with eleven or twelve spines:
the anal with three. Scales moderate, ctenid, present on the occiput: bases
of vertical fins scaly. Pyloric appendages in small numbers.

Geographical distribution — Murray River system.

MACQUARIA AUSTRALASICA.

Macquaria australasica, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. v. p. 377, pl. exxxi
1830; Less. Voy. Coquille, Zool. ii. p. 194, pl. xiv. f. 1; Gnth. Catal.
Fish. i. p. 286; Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. 1. p. 59.

Dules riverinus, Krefft, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1867, p. 943.

Murrayia guntheri, Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. 1872, 1. p. 61; Macleay,
Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 56.

Murrayia cyprinoides, Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. 1872, 1. p. 62; Macleay,
Catal. Austr. Fish. 1. p. 57.

Murrayia bramoides, Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. 1872, i. p. 63; Macleay,
Catal. Austr. Fish. 1. p. 57.

Murrayia vriverina, Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. 1. p. 58.

Riverina fluviatilis, Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. 1872, 1. p. 64; Macleay,
Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 58.

Macquarie’s Perch.
Plate IV.

B. vi. D. 12-11/11-12. A. 3/8-9. V. 1/5. P. 16. C. 17. L. lat. 47-52. L. tr.
8-9/17-19. Ceee. pyl. 4. Vert. 12/18.

Length of head 3°40—3°70, of caudal fin 5°25-5-70, height of body 3°20-3°66
in the total length. Diameter of eye 3°50—-4'80 in the length of the head,
1:00-1'50 in that of the snout, which is broad and truncate, and 1:00-1:40
in the convex interorbital space. Nostrils distant, the anterior subcireular,
tubular, and pierced on a higher level than the posterior, which is oval and
horizontal. Tip of the snout rounded, thence to between the posterior
margins of the eyes flat or very slightly concave; occiput and anterior
dorsal profile gibbous. Upper jaw a little the longer. Cleft of mouth
rather small, transverse, and oblique, the maxilla reaching to beneath
the posterior nostril. Upper surface of head with regular series of large
pores in pairs, two on the front of the snout, two above the nostrils,
and two inside the supraciliary edge; the median cephalic groove with a
single pore in front and behind; sides of the head with two series, the
upper skirting the suborbital ring, the lower from the chin to the upper
angle of the preopercle. Preorbital serrature almost obsolete in large
examples: vertical limb of preopercle slightly concave, serrated ; the angle
rounded with rather larger teeth; horizontal limb with coarser denticles,
which are generally arranged in groups: opercle with two strong, broad, flat

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 25

spines, subdivided at the tip into from three to ten spinelets, inter- and
suboperenlar margins finely serrated: posttemporal and clavicle with a
variable number of short strong denticulations. Teeth villiform; the jaws
with a narrow band, separated at the symphyses; vomer with a triangular
patch; a minute patch present or absent on the anterior edge of the

alatines; tongue smooth. The dorsal fin commences opposite to or a
little behind the angle of the opercle, and ends slightly in advance of the
termination of the anal; the spines are strong, with the outer portion free,
especially in front; the first is small, about half the height of the second,
which bears the same proportion to the third; the fifth the longest, but
little longer than the fourth or sixth and from 1:75-2:00 in the length of
‘the head; the last spine is equal in height to that which precedes it, and
1:70 in the longest ; the outer margin of the rayed dorsal is strongly convex,
the middle rays being the longest, and equal to the longest spine ; the base
of the soft dorsal is from 1:40-1'50 in that of the spinous: the anal com-
mences beneath the third or fourth dorsal ray; the second spine is the
longest and very strong, equal in length to the eighth dorsal spine, and from
2°33-2°50 in the length of the head and 1:33-1°50 in that of the anterior
rays: ventral fins well developed, with the outer margin rounded ; the first
ray with a moderate filament reaching nearly to the vent, its length 1:25-
1°40 in that of the head; the spine is strong, equal in length to the ninth
dorsal spine: pectorals gently rounded posteriorly, reaching to beneath the
seventeenth to eighteenth scale of the lateral line, its length 1°50-1-75 in
that of the head: caudal slightly rounded, the least height of the pedicle
2°70 in the height of the body. Snout, interorbital space, orbital ring, hinder
limb of the preopercle, and a muciferous fossa surrounding the scaly
occiput, except across the dorsal profile, naked: bases of the vertical fins
scaly: a series of smaller scales extending upwards between the rays.
Lateral line gently curved from beneath the posttemporal bone to opposite
the end of the dorsal fin. Airbladder large and simple.

Colors—Reddish-brown above, shading into yellowish-brown beneath.

The fish which is here described as Macquaria australasica, is undoubtedly
that figured by Lesson in the Voyage of the Coquille, and the great con-
fusion that has arisen over the genus is due to the statement made in the
Histoire Naturelle des Poissons that it is absolutely devoid of teeth (par le
manque absolu de dents). That the fish here figured, the Macquaria of
Cuvier and Valenciennes, and the Murrayia and Riverina of Castelnau are
cne and the same genus admits of no dispute.

Having arrived at this conclusion there only remains to be seen how
many of the five species described by Krefft and Castelnau can be considered
as worthy of recognition. Leaving aside entirely the question of the
dentition—and it must be remembered that since Lesson’s time no edentulous
Percid has been discovered in Australian rivers—the only other important
difference that we find is that Cuvier in his description enumerates the
branchiostegal rays at five, whereas in fifteen specimens personally examined,
varying in length from three and three fourths to twelve and a third inches,
the number was invariably six as given above.

Comparing the above description, taken from so many specimens of
various ages, it is impossible to avoid coming to the conclusion that
Castelnau’s three species of Murrayia—M. gquentheri, M. cyprinoides, and
M. bramoides—are merely the same species with slight individual variations
unduly magnified, and that they are inseparable from Macquaria australasica.
Castelnau’s type, a half skin wretchedly preserved and measuring over
thirteen inches is in the collection of the Australian Museum, and differs in
no way from our specimens.

26 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

In the type specimen of Krefft’s Dules riverinus, now lying before me,
and which measures a trifle over five inches, the scales of the lateral line
number on the one side forty nine on the other fifty one to the base of the
caudal fin, the difference between these and Kretft’s published numbers
having been caused by that author’s inclusion of the tubular scales on the
eaudal fin. This being so it is manifest that the sole objection to including
this fish with those of Castelnau is removed.

The accidental occurrence of an extra dorsal spine, which is always
accompanied by the loss of a ray, the first ray having in point of fact become
spinate, and the want of palatine teeth, which have been previously shown
to be in all cases either almost or wholly obsolete, being the only differences

which separate Castelnau’s Riverina fluviatilis from the same author's”

Murrayia bramoides, it follows that this too must share the fate of the
others, and sink into a synonym of Macquaria australasica.

Nothing is known as to the breeding habits of this species, but doubtless
they do not materially differ from those of the other Murray Perches ; as to
the season we have only the negative evidence that no signs of spawn were
present in any of a fine series of specimens, netted during October, and
specially forwarded from Yulpa Creek, near Deniliquin, from which place
also Castelnau received some of his specimens.

They are excellent fish for the table, and according to Castelnau are sent
regularly to the Meibourne market, but they are never sent to those of
Sydney. In the specimens examined remains of shells, water beetles, worms,
and entomostraca were detected.

The range of Macquarie’s Perch is limited to the waters of the Murray
River system. They attain a lengthof at least fourteen inches.

Genus III.—_THERAPON.

Therapon, Cuvier, Régne Anim.; Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. ii. p. 125,
1829.

Datnia, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. iii. p. 138.

Pelates, Cuvier, Régne Anim.; Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. iii. p. 145.

Branchiostegals six: pseudobranchie present. Body oblong or oblong-
ovate, compressed. yes of moderate size. Opercle spiniferous: preopercle
and sometimes preorbital serrated. Teeth viluform in both jaws: deciduous
on the vomer and palatine bones. One dorsal fin, more or less deeply
notched, with from ten to thirteen spines: the anal with three. Scales of
moderate or small size. Airbladder divided transversely into two parts,
separated by a constriction. Pyloric appendages in small er moderate
numbers.

Geographical distribution —Coasts and fresh waters of Australia; from
the Malay Archipelago northwards through the Chinese seas to Japan, and
a along the coasts of Asia to the Red Sea; east coast of Africa to
the Cape.

THERAPON QUADRILINEATUS.

Holocentrus quadrilineatus, Bl, pl. eexxxviii. fig. 2, 1797.

Pristipoma serlineatum, Quoy & Gaim. Voy. Uranie, Poiss. p. 320.

Therapon quadrilineatus, Cuy. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. iii. p. 184; Richards
Ichthyol. China, p. 239; Bleek. Pere. p. 51; Guth. Catal. Fish. i. p.
282; Kner, Voy. Novara, Fisch. p. 46; Peters, Mon. Ak. Berl. 1868, p.
256; Day, Fish. Ind. p. 70, pl. xviii. fig. 5.

Therapon xanthurus, Cuy. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. iii. p. 135.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 25-

Pelates quadrilineatus, quinquelineatus, and sexlineatus, Cuv. & Val. Hist.
Nat. Poiss. p. 11. 146; Less. Voy. Coquille, ii. p. 223; Cuv. Régne Anim.
Illus. Poiss. pl. xii. fig. 1; Griff. An. King. Fish. pl. xii. fig. 1.

Helotes polytenia, Bleek. Halmaheira, p. 53, and Atl. Ichthyol. Pere. pl. xiv.
fig. 2; ? Guth. Catal. Fish. i. p. 285.

Therapon cuvieri, Bleek. Timor, p. 211, and Atl. Ichthyol. Perc. pl. xxxvii.
fig.2; Gnth. Catal. Fish. i. p. 282; Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 62.

Therapon sexlineatus, Steindachn. SB. Ak. Wien, li. p. 429.

Trumpeter Perch.

Poe Ie ASO. Vii/5. P.14-(15). C. 1%. LL. lat. 58-65.
L. tr. 13-15/26. Ceec. pyl. 7. Vert. 10/15.

Length of head 4:00-4:25, of caudal fin 5-00-5-25, height of body 3:33-3:66
in the total length. Diameter of eye 3°40-3°75 in the length of the head,
1:25-1:40 in that of the snout, and about equal to the width of the inter-
orbital space, which is convex. Upper profile of head slightly convex.
Upper jaw the longer. Cleft of mouth small and oblique, the maxilla extend-
ing to beneath the posterior nostril. Preorbital serrated on its inferior
margin: yertical limb and posterior third of horizontal limb of preopercle
_ serrated, the denticles being coarsest at the rounded angle: opercle with
two rather weak subequal spines: posttemporal and clavicle coarsely
denticulated. Three or four series of small teeth in the upper jaw, two or
three series in the lower, the outer maxillary row enlarged. The dorsal fin
commences above the base of the pectoral and ends on the same plane as
the termination of the anal; the spines are moderately strong, the fifth
(fourth to sixth) the longest, 2:00-2:50 in the length of the head, and
110-1°25 in that of the longest ray; the base of the rayed portion is from
1‘66-1°75 in that of the spinous: the anal commences beneath the eleventh
or twelfth dorsal spine; the spines are rather weak, the third the longest,
from 2°80-3°40 in the length of the head, and 1°50-1°75 in that of the
longest ray: ventrals not nearly reaching to the vent, their length 1°50-1°75
in that of the head: pectorals short and rounded posteriorly, 1°40-1°66 in
the same: caudal emarginate, the length of the pedicle from 1°25-1°33 in
its height. Upper surface of head, preorbital, and outer margin of preopercle
scaleless.

Colors.—Olive green above, darkest on the head; sides greyish-green ;
belly silvery ; from four to six brown or brownish-orange longitudinal bands;
a dusky blotch on the shoulder present or absent: fins hyaline, the dorsal
with a narrow blackish margin.

The Trumpeter Perch, or as it is frequently but erroneously termed
the “ Mado,”—a name which properly applies to Chetodon strigatus and
Atypichthys strigatus, which fishes are not recognised as distinct by the
ordinary fisherman—is common in the neighborhood of Sydney, and is sent
to market sometimes in considerable quantities in company with Yellowtails
(Caranz trachurus) ; it is also taken with the hook off wharves and jetties,
and is said to be particularly partial to the mouths of drains.

Specimens from Botany Bay examined during February were found to
have the roe fully developed, while in others from the same locality,
captured during the last week of September, it was about half developed ;
others again from Port Jackson showed no signs of breeding at Christmas.

28 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

T. quadrilineatus has a wide range, being found in all the seas of conti-
nental Australia except the extreme southern seaboard, ranging on the east
coast at least as far south as Botany, where it is common ; it is also present
in all the seas of New Guinea and the Malay Archipelago, as well as of
India and China.

The ordinary size of market specimens is from six to nine inches, but
larger examples occasionally occur.

THERAPON ELLIPTICUS.

Datnia elliptica, Richards. Voy. Erebus & Terror, Fish. p. 118, pl. lu.
ff. 4-8, 1846.

Therapon ellipticus, Guth. Catal. Fish. 1. p. 276; Macleay, Catal. Austr.
Fish. i. p. 63.

Therapon richardsonii, Casteln. Proce. Zool. Soc. Vict. 1872,1. p.60; Macleay,
Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 64; Woods, Fisher. N. S. Wales, p. 104.

Therapon niger, Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. i. p. 59; Macleay, Catal.
Austr. Fish, i. p. 65.

Therapon macleayanus, Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N. 8S. Wales, vi. p. 831.

Silver Perch.
Plate VI.
B. vi. D. 12/11-12. A. 3/7-8. V. 1/5. P. 17. C. 17. Ih. lat. 55=60) Ete:
17/31-34.

Length of head 400-433, of caudal fin 5:15-5:50, height of body 3°66-425
in the total length. Diameter of eye 350-450 in the length of the head,
1:00-1'40 in that of the snout, which is moderately pointed, and subequal
to the width of the slightly convex interorbital space. Nostrils moderately
close together, the anterior rounded, tubular, and directed forwards; the
posterior oval and vertical. Occiput slightly concave. Upper jaw the
longer. Cleft of mouth small, transverse, and horizontal; the maxilla reaches
to the posterior nostril. Preorbital finely serrated : preopercle serrated,
the denticulations on the angle and vertical limb coarser than those on the
horizontal limb; the vertical limb slightly concave: opercle with two spines,
the lower the larger and frequently split up into two or more points: post-
temporal and clavicle coarsely denticulated. Teeth in the jaws villiform,
with an enlarged outer row. The dorsai fin commences above the base of
the pectoral, and ends a little behind the anal; the spines are strong, the
fifth or sixth the highest, a little higher than the rays, from 1°70-2°00 in the
length of the head; the last spine is about two thirds of the longest spine
and three fourths of the first ray; the base of the rayed dorsal is from
1-40-1°60 in that of the spinous: the anal commences beneath the second
dorsal ray, the second spine is very strong, equal to or rather higher than
the rays, and from 1°50-1°'75 in the length of the head: ventrals well
developed, not quite reaching to the vent, the second ray the longest and with
a slight filamentary appendage, its length from 1:25-1'40 in that of the
head; the spine is strong equal in length to the last dorsal spine: pectoral
rather short, rounded posteriorly, from 1°50-1°75 in the length of the
head: caudal emarginate, the least height of the pedicle one third of the
height of the body. Scales ctenid: snout, preorbital, interorbital space, and
the outer edges of the preopercle naked: dorsal and anal fins with a basal
scaly sheath. The lateral line follows the dorsal curvature ; it has fifty five
to sixty tubular scales, and there are from eighty five to ninety series of
scales above it between its inception and the base of the caudal.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 29

Colors.—Silvery, the upper surfaces washed with brown, and sometimes
with scattered black spots, which may be present or absent on the vertical
fins.

The “ Silver Perch” or “ Silver Bream” of the colonists is the “ Kooberry”
of the Murrumbidgee Aboriginals.

Although Castelnau’s name richardsonii seems to have been generally
accepted by Australian authors for the eastern form, we fail to see what
characters of sufficient importance are present to authorise its separation
from Richardson’s well known ellipticws, under which name it has, therefore,
been placed here.

Never having seen this fish in a fresh state, I extract the following para-
graph from the Report of the Royal Commission on Fisheries, 1880: ‘The
‘Silver Perch’ or ‘Bream’ (Therapon richardsonit) is the perfection of
fishes, extremely rich and delicate in flavor. It frequents running streams
more than the last mentioned fish, 7.e., Ctenolates ambiguus, which is often
found in lagunes and billabongs, and it affords good sport to the angler. A
full grown fish attains a size of five or six pounds. It is not caught often
with the hook, the very small size of its mouth preventing its taking the
hooks in common use.”

This fish inhabits the Murray River and its tributary streams, and if I am
correct in joining it with Richardson’s species it also occurs in the rivers of
Western Australia, the original type, seventeen inches in length, having
come from thence, while it is noteworthy that a second specimen in the
British Museum was obtained in the Namoi River, a southern tributary of
the Darling.

Genus IV._HISTIOPTERUS.

Histiopterus Schlegel, Faun. Japon. Poiss. p. 86 (1844-46).
Richardsonia, Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. 1872, i. p. 112 (not
Steindachner).

Branchiostegals six: pseudobranchiz present. Body more or less elevated
and strongly compressed. Snout much produced: the anterior profile of the
head deeply concave. Mouth small, situated at the end of the snout.
Preopercle, posttemporal, and clavicle obsoletely serrated. Small teeth in
the jaws: vomer, palatines, and tongue toothless. One dorsal fin with from
seven to nine spines: anal with two or three: some of the spines and rays
more or less produced. Scales small and cyelid.

HISTIOPTERUS LABIOSUS.

Histiopterus labiosus, Guth. Proe. Zool. Soc. 1871, p. 658, pl. lix; Macleay,
Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 74.
Richardsonia insignis, Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soe. Vict. 1872, i. p. 112.

Boar Fish.

Plate VII.
Eeevi Ome (L746 Me 2/9-1s, Vid /5e RP; 17... C. V7. Ti. lat. 94-110
Length of head 3°40-3°60, of caudal fin 5°33-5:40, height of body 3°50-3°60
in the total length. Diameter of eye 5:60-6'40 in the length of the head,
and 3°00-3°33 in that of the snout: interorbital space convex and narrow,
2°25 in the diameter of the eye. Nostrils approximate, elongate-oval, and

30 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

oblique, the posterior the larger. Upper profile of the head to above the
hinder margin of the orbit concave, of the occiput nearly straight. Lower
jaw the longer; the lips, which are thick and fleshy, and the chin densely
covered with short papillae. Cleft of mouth moderate and oblique, the
maxilla extending to beneath the anterior nostril. Opercles sculptured :
preopercle with both margins indistinctly serrated in adult examples, and
with the vertical margin concave and the angle produced : posttemporal and
elavicular bones with obsolete denticulations. Both jaws with bands of
small teeth, those in front being cardiform and slightly curved backwards,
those on the sides granular. The dorsal fin commences above the hinder
margin of the opercular flap ; the three anterior spinesare short, and connected
by alow membrane; the fourth is elongate and strongly compressed, its length
2°55-2°75 in that of the head, and about twice as long as the anterior rays;
the four last spines are provided with more or less elongate filamentary appen-
dages; the length of the spinous dorsal is from 1°75-1'90 in that of the rayed
portion : the anal commences beneath the seventh dorsal ray ; its first spine
is very short, the second very powerful and strongiy compressed, almost or
quite equal in height to the anterior ray, and 2°33-2'55 in the length of the
head : the ventral fin does not quite reach the vent; the spine is strong, com-
pressed, and faleate, almost equalling the adjoining ray, and 1°80—2°10 in the
length of the head; dorsal, anal, and ventral spines deeply striated : pectorals
pointed, reaching as far back as the ventrals, their length 1:50-1'75 in that
of the head: caudal emarginate with the lobes slightly produced ; the least
height of the pedicle one fourth of the height of the body. Body scales
small and deeply imbedded ; opercular bones, except the extreme upper edge
of the opercle, sealeless ; cheeks scaly, the scales almost concealed by the skin.
Anterior portion of lateral line abruptly ascending to beneath the middle of
the spinous dorsal, thence mostly following the curvature of the back, though
in a more or less wavy line to between the terminations of the dorsal and
anal, where it descends as abruptly on to the caudal pedicle. Airbladder
large. Gill-rakers very short and stout.

Colors—Back and sides dull greenish-gray, below lighter, sometimes with
indistinct, darker, longitudinal bands: upper surface of head darker with a
slight metallie gloss: fins violet, the spines dull yellow; the caudal edged
with grayish-green.

Nothing is known of the breeding habits of this fine fish, but as in
specimens examined during the month of June the ova was found to be but
little developed it may be inferred that the sprirg or early summer months
are those selected for shedding the spawn; that this is not deposited in our
shallow bays and estuaries is manifest from the fact that no instances of the
-apture of the young, even in the over uetted bays in the neighborhood of
Sydney, have been recorded, adults only, of from twenty inches upwards,
appearing in the market, these being taken by handlines in deep water,
and that at but rare intervals, owing to the size of the hook used in fishing
for Snapper and other line fish being as arule too large for the comparatively
small mouth of the Boarfish. The baits employed are aiso probably
unsuitable, as the stomachs of those examined by us contained in no case
anything but worms, small crustaceans and shells, and remains of brittle-
stars, all mixed up with large quantities of sand which had evidently been
taken into the csophagus while the fish was engaged in rooting out the
creatures concealed beneath it. The Boarfish is an excellent fish for the
table, and it is much to be regreted that the supply is so inadequate, but
for the reasons given above, and because of the probability that it normally

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. ob

frequents localities having a sandy bottom at a moderate depth, and, there-
fore, but rarely comes into contact with the Snapper fisher, no remedy is
likely to be found until our magnificent stretches of outside sandy grounds
are properly surveyed, and scientifically fished by powerful steam trawlers.

This species is a native of the southern coast of Australia, the first
example described having been obtained on the coast of South Australia,
and extends its range northwards along our own seaboard at least as far
as Cape Hawke, beyond which I have been unable to trace it. Macleay
records it from Tasmania, but Johnston in his more recently published
Catalogue of the fishes of that colony makes no mention of it; itis, however,
certain to occur in Tasmanian seas. A closely allied but very distinct
species— ZH. recurvirostris, Richardson—characterised by an increased number
of dorsal spines, and a broad curved black band extending from the origin of
the dorsal to the end of the anal, occurs there and on the Victorian coast,
but has not as yet been recorded from New South Wales waters, whence,
however, a third easily distinguished species, recently described as 4.
elevatus, Rms. & Ogl., but which is probably the Japanese H. typus, Schleg.,
has been taken on two occasions by the trawl in from thirty five to seventy
fathoms between Botany and Port Hacking Heads; this species may be
easily recognised by the greatly increased number of dorsal and anal rays,
and especially by the great comparative height of the body, which is
contained only: two and a third times in the total length.

Family V.-PRIACANTHIDZ,.

Branchiostegals six!: pseudobranchie present. Body oblong. yes large
and lateral. Opercles finely serrated, the angle spiniferous. Lower jaw
with prominent chin: cleft of the mouth approaching the vertical. Villiform
teeth in the jaws, vomer, and palatines: no canines: tonguesmooth. Dorsal
fin continuous: ventrals thoracic. Seales small, strongly ctenid, rough.
Airbladder present, simple. Pyloric appendages in small numbers.

Geographical distribution—All tropical seas ; on the east coast of Australia
extending its range at least as far southward as Port Jackson.

Genus.—_PRIACANTHUS.
Priacanthus, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. iii. p. 96, 1829.

Branchiostegals six: pseudobranchie present. Body oblong and some-
what compressed. Hye large. Lower jaw prominent. Opercle with an
indistinct point: preopercle serrated on both limbs and with a more or less
prominent and flattened, serrated spine at the angle. Villiform teeth on the
Jaws, vomer, and palatines: tongue smooth. One dorsal fin with nine or
ten spines: anal with three. Scales small and ctenid, extending on to the
snout. Pyloric appendages in small numbers.

Geographical distribution —As in the family. One genus only.

PRIACANTHUS BENMEBARI.

Priacanthus benmebari, Schleg. Faun. 'Japon. Poiss. p. 19, pl. vii. fig. 1;
Krusenstern, p. 53, fig. 2; Richards. [chthyol. China & Japan, p. 237 ;
Guth. Catal. Fish. i. p. 218, and Ann. Nat. Hist. (3) 1867, xx. p. 57;
Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 37; Woods, Fisher. N.S. Wales,
p. 35, pl. iv. (as Wirrah).

32 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Bullseye.
B. vi. D. 10/18. A. 3/14. V. 1/5. P. 18-19. C.-16. TL. lat. 74-82) ieee
12/40-42. Coec. pyl. 11. Vert. 9/18.

Length of head 400-433, of caudal fin 4:75-5:20, height of body
350-400 in the total length. Eye very large, its diameter 2°25-2°50 in
the length of the head: snout short and very obtuse, 1:25-1°75 in the
diameter of the eye: interorbital space very slightly convex, 1°$5—2°20 in the
same. Nostrils approximate, the anterior small, oval, and vertical; the
posterior large, elongate-oval, and oblique. Upper profile of head flat, or
with a very slight concavity. Chin prominent. Cleft of mouth very oblique,
the maxilla reaching to beneath the anterior third of the eye, and greatly
dilated posteriorly: the postorbital portion of the head is only two thirds of
the diameter of the orbit. Preorbital roughened below and above: pre-
opercle finely denticulated on both limbs; its angle obtuse, and bearing a
strong serrated spine, whose length is from 2°80-3'25 in the diameter of the
eye: subopercle with fine denticulations posteriorly: opercle with two weak
spines, the lower being the longer, and with its hinder margin serrated
in patches: clavicle coarsely serrated. Both jaws with a narrow band of
villiform teeth, having the outer series much enlarged; vomerine teeth in an
acutely angular band; on the palatines in a narrow elongate band. The
dorsal commences above the opercle ; the spines are slender, the anterior ones
serrated in front above the membrane; the last is the longest from 2°00-2°25
in the length of the head, and equal in height to the rays, and the base of
the rayed portion is five eighths of that of the spinous; dorsal and anal rays
rough: the anal commences beneath the eighth dorsal spine and ends alittle
behind that fin; its spines are similar to those of the dorsal, the third the
longest, from 2°00-2°50 in the length of the head, and not nearly so long as
the rays: ventral pointed, extending to the origin of the anal, and 1 00-1°20
in the length of the head; the spine is serrated and well developed, much
longer than the last dorsal spine: pectoral short and rounded, not reaching
to above the vent, its length 1°66-1°75 in that of the head: caudal slightly
emarginate, the least height of the pedicle 4°33 in the height of the body.
Lateral line pointing obliquely upwards for a short distance anteriorly,
thence almost straight to the free tail.

Colors—Brick red: dorsal, anal, and ventral fins hyaline, profusely
ornamented with round yellow spots.

Nothing is known of the breeding habits of this species on our coasts, but
from the fact of small specimens having been trawled as far up the Parra-
matta River as Ryde we may infer that these fishes push their way to a
considerable distance up our estuaries before depositing their spawn. They
commence to arrive in Port Jackson as stragglers about the latter end of
November, but are not taken in any numbers until the autumn months when
they appear in moderate shoals in some years, but are totally absent in others,
as tor instance in the preceding year; as these schull fishes show little or no
signs of breeding itis probable that they make only a short stay in the waters
of the harbor and push on with all possible despatch to the closed waters of
the upper reaches, where their presence would remain undetected, and they
would be left to their parental duties unmolested by man. The flesh of the

‘ Bullseye’ is of good quality.

This species was originally described from Japan and it has, therefore, an
extensive range to the south.

Large examples measure as much as twelve inches in length.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 30

Family VI—MULLIDA.

Branchiostegals four: pseudobranchie present. Body rather elongate,
slightly compressed. Profile of head more or less parabolic. Eyes lateral,
of moderate size. Mouth rather small, with lateral cleft. Two erectile
barbels below the chin, belonging to the hyal apparatus, and received
between the rami of the mandible and the opercles. Teeth feeble, variously
placed. Two short dorsal fins, remote from one another, the first with feeble
spines: anal similar to the second dorsal. Scales large, feebly ctenid,
rather deciduous. Airbladder, when. present, simple. Stomach siphonal.
Pyloric appendages few or in moderate numbers.

Geographical distribution.—Seas between the tropics principally ; some
species, however, extending northwards to the Scandinavian and Japanese
coasts, and southwards to those of Tasmania. Much more numerous in the
eastern than in the western hemisphere. Many of the species enter rivers.

Genus.—MULLUS.

Mullus, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 495, 1766; Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. in.
p. 419, 1829. |
One genus only; characters and distribution as in the family.

Synopsis of Australian Subgenera.
Teeth in both jaws, on the vomer, and on the palatines (Hypeneoides).
Teeth in both jaws, and on the vomer ; none on the palate (Hypeneichthys).
Teeth in both jaws in several series; none on the vomer or palate (dZul-
loides).
Teeth in both jaws ina single series; none on the vomer or palate (Hype-
meus).

Only one other Subgenus, the true Mudlus, has been differentiated, the
members of which are found in the Mediterranean and Eastern Atlantic
only. Eleven species belonging to the family are known to occur in
Australian waters, but it may confidently be predicted that this number will
still further be extended when the riches of our intertropical fauna have
been more thoroughly investigated.

MULLUS POROSUS.

Upeneus porosus, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. ili. p. 455, 1829; Less. Voy.
Coquille, Zool. p. 216; Gnth. Ann. Nat. Hist. (3) 1867, xx. p. 59;
Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 105.

Upeneichthys porosus, Guth. Catal. Fish. i. p. 400;? Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc.
Vict. i, 1872, p. 65, and Proc. Linn. Soe. N.S. Wales. iti. p. 371.

Upeneichthys vlamingii, Hector, Trans. N.Z. Inst. ix. p. 465, pl. ix. fig. 5,
and Ann. Nat. Hist. (4) xix. p. 340.

Hypeneus vlamingii, Ogilby, Catal. N.S. Wales Fish. p. 17.

Hypeneus porosus, Ogilby, Catal. N.S. Wales Fish. p. 17.

Upeneoides vlamingit, Sherrin, Handb. N.Z. Fish. p. 81.

Blue-striped Red Mullet.
B. iv. D. 8. 1/8. A. 2/6. V. 1/5. P. 15-16. C. 15. L. lat. 28-80. L. tr. 2/6. Cae.
pyl. 17. Vert. 10/14.
Length of head 340-425, of caudal fin 4°25-5:09, height of body
3°50-4'33 in the total length. Diameter of eye from 3°50 in immature to 5°00
in adult examples in the length of the head, and similarly from 1°40-2°33 in

C

od EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES,

that of the snout: interorbital space convex, 1:00-1°50 in the diameter of
the eye. Upper jaw the longer: breadth of preorbital three fifths of its
height. Barbels well developed, extending to the opercular flap, or even
beyond it in immature examples. Maxilla almost hidden by the preorbital
when the mouth is closed, not dilated posteriorly, reaching to the anterior
margin of the orbit or not quite so far. Upper profile of head rounded, with a
slight concavity on the snout. Preopercle entire: opercle with two weak spines.
Two rows of conical teeth anteriorly in both jaws, one row laterally ;
vomerine teeth in two series, each numbering from four to six; palate
edentulous. Second or third spine of the first dorsal the longest, 1:25-1°60
in the length of the head; rayed dorsal one half the height of the spinous,
but with a slightly longer base: the anal commences beneath the second or
third dorsal ray, its second spine being nearly as long as the first ray: the
ventrals do not quite reach to the vent, and are four fifths of the length of
the head: pectorals short, about equal in length to the ventrals, extending
backwards to the ninth or tenth seale of the lateral line: caudal forked, the
least height of its pedicle somewhat less than the intradorsal space. Scales
in four series between the dorsal fins, in three between the eye and the angle
of the preopercle, and in two on the opercle. Tubes of the lateral line
profusely branched, especially anteriorly.

Colors.—General color carmine, the upper surfaces, especially the head,
with a purple gloss; abdominal region silvery ; cheeks ornamented with
narrow light blue bands: fins immaculate, or with faint silvery spots and
lines.

None of the Red Mullets examined in the preparation of this work showed
any signs of breeding, that is from December to March inclusive, and as
nothing is mentioned on the subject in the report of the Royal Commission,
it may be inferred that nothing is known regarding this important function
so far as our two species are concerned. Writing of the British species
(Mullus barbatus) Dunn (vide Day, Brit. Fish. i. p. 24) states :—They shed
only a little at a time, continuing their spawning probably over a month, and
differing from all other fish I know. They get very fat at this time.” It
would be interesting to ascertain whether our species have the same curious
habit.

Their food consists of small crustaceans, isopods, worms, molluscs, &e.
As a table fish the European Red Mullet has been noted as a luxury since
the time of the Roman Empire, but though we have frequently eaten both
the species included in this work, having had them cooked in various ways,
we are constrained to class them as, at the best, but second rate fishes ; when
obtained in a perfectly fresh state they are tolerably well flavored, but soft, and
so quickly deteriorate. The Red Mullets rarely take a bait, the principal
means of capturing them being by the trawl and trammel nets, and until these
are in more common use in our seas our markets are not likely to receive
more than an intermittent supply of these fishes, and that only during the
summer months when they come shorewards into the warm waters of our
bays and estuaries.

They are probably common around the greater part of the Australian
coast, but they have not as yet been recorded from the northern or western
shores. They occur along the entire seaboard of New South Wales, and
penetrate rivers as far as the influence of the tide is felt. In Victoria, where
according to Castelnau it is called “ Red Gurnet,” it is “ greatly esteemed,
and realises a high price in the Melbourne fish market”’ (Saville Kent),
while Lucas adds that it is “ not very common,” this being probably due to

:

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 35

inadequate methods of fishing, a remark which also applies to Johnston’s
note regarding Tasmania :—‘‘ Rare. I have not seen any specimens.” Its
range extends eastwards to the shores of New Zealand, where it is known
to the Maoris as “ Pakurakura.”’

The largest specimen observed on our coast measured twelve inches, but a
pair seen in Adelaide approximated to fourteen.

MULLUS SIGNATUS.

Upeneus signatus, Gnth. Ann. Nat. Hist. (3) 1867, xx. p. 59; Macleay,
Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 106.

Hypeneus signatus, Ogilby, Catal. N.S. Wales Fish. p. 17.

Spotted Red Mullet.

Plate XI.

Sees. o/h. A. 2/6. .V. 1/5. P..16. C..15.. Th. Jat. 27-30.
L. tr. 2/6. Vert. 10/14.

Length of head 366-420, of caudal fin 440-5:00, height of body
360-440 in the total length. Diameter of eye from 3°40 in immature to
4:33 in adult examples in the length of the head, and similarly from 1:50-
2°15 in that of the snout: interorbital space convex, from 1:00-1°33 in the
diameter of the eye. Upper jaw the longer; height of preorbital half of its
breadth. Barbels moderately developed, extending a short distance behind
the angle of the preopercle. Maxilla not hidden by the preorbital, dilated
and fan-shaped posteriorly, not quite or oniy just reaching to the anterior
margin of the eye. Upper profile of head rounded, with a slight concavity
on the snout. Preopercle entire: opercle with two weak spines, the lower
the stronger. A single row of small conical teeth in each jaw; vomer
and palate edentulous. Third spine of the first dorsal the longest, 1:-45—
1.75 in the length of the head ; rayed dorsal three fourths of the height of
the spinous, its base about one fourth less than the base of that fin: the
anal commences beneath the second or third dorsal ray, and its posterior
spine is two thirds of the first ray: the ventral fins do not quite reach
to the vent, and are 1:15-1°40 in the length of the head: pectorals equal
in length to the ventrals, extending backwards to the twelfth or thirteenth
seale of the lateral line: caudal forked, the least height of the pedicle equal
to or rather more than the distance betwen the base of the last spine of the
first dorsal and the origin of the second. ‘Two or three series of scales
between the dorsal fins, nine between the rayed dorsal and the caudal, three
between the eye and the angle of the preopercle, and two on the opercle.
Tubes of the lateral line profusely branched, more numerously and con-
spicuously so anteriorly.

Colors.—Red, the upper surfaces clouded with olive brown ; a broad, rather
obscure, dusky band from the opercles to beneath the rayed dorsal; caudal
pedicle with a large black spot extending over its upper surface, and
frequently preceded by a pinkish blotch.

The Spotted Red Mullet is rather more plentiful than 2f porosus in Port
Jackson, and numbers of the young, along with those of other more or less
valuable fishes, are frequently left to decay on our sandy beaches by the
seine fishers. The adults are not so often seen; the remarks made on the
preceding species apply equally to this fish.

36 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Little is known of the range of this species ; the only localities from which
it has been recorded being Port Jackson and Botany Bay ; recently, however,
it has been found to oecur at Lord Howe Island, whence it was brought by
the Australian Museum Expedition of 1888. These specimens were the
largest seen as yet, one of them measuring up to ten inches.

Of the two other species—Hypeneoides tragula and H. vlamingi—mentioned
by Macleay as inhabitants of Port Jackson, the former is very rare, only one
immature specimen, taken with prawns in the Parramatta River, having come
under our notice. As to Mullus vlamingi, the authority for the occurrence
of whichin Port Jackson we are unable to trace, we are inclined to think that
some confusion has arisen between it and JL. porosus, as originally happened
to the writer.

Family VII.—CHATODONTID&.

Branchiostegals six or seven (four in Zanclus): pseudobranchie well
developed. Body elevated and compressed. Eyes lateral and of moderate
size. Mouth situated in front of the snout, generally small, and with a
lateral cleft. Teeth in villiform or setiform bands, without canines or
incisors : palate edentulous in most genera. Soft portion of the dorsal fin
generally of greater extent than the spinous, sometimes considerably more
so: anal with three or four spines, the soft portion similar to that of the
dorsal: the lower pectoral rays branched: ventrals thoracic with one spine
and five rays. Scales cyclid or very finely ciliated, extending to a greater
or less extent over the vertical fins, but occasionally absent from the spinous
portions. Airbladder present and generally simple. Intestines usually
with many conyolutions: stomach cecal. Pyloric appendages in moderate
numbers.

Geographical distribution —Marine carnivorous fishes, mostly of small
size and brilliant coloration, inhabiting tropical and subtropical regions,
chiefly haunting coral reefs, from which habit they have received the name
of “Coral Fishes.” A few species have been recorded from rivers and
estuaries, but they rarely penetrate beyond reach of the tide.

Genus I.—SCATOPHAGUS.

Scatophagus, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. vii. p. 186, 1831.
Cacodoxus, Cantor, Catal. Malay. Fish. p. 163, 1850.

Branchiostegals six : pseudobranchie present. Body elevated and much
compressed. Snout of moderate length. Preopercle without spine. Palate
edentulous. Two dorsals, united at their bases, the first with ten or eleven
spines, and with a recumbent spine directed forwards anteriorly: anal with
four spines: pectorals short. Scales very small, absent on the spinous
portions of the vertical fins. Airbladder simple. Pyloric appendages
numerous.

Geographical distribution. From the east coast of Africa through the seas
of India, China, and the Malay Archipelago to Australia.

SCATOPHAGUS MULTIFASCIATUS.

Scatophagus multifasciatus, Richards. Voy. Erebus & Terror, Fish. p. 57, pl.
xxxy. ff. 4-6; Gnth. Catal. Fish. ii. p. 60; All. & Macl. Proc. Linn. Soe,
N.S. Wales, i. p. 277; Casteln. Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S. Wales, ii. p. 235.
and ii. p. 376; Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 96.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. BT

Butter Fish.
B. vi. D.11.1/16. A. 4/15-16. V.1/5. P.17. ©. 16. Vert. 11/12 or 10/13.

Length of head 4°00-4°33, of caudal fin 4:00-4°50, height of body 2°10-
2°25 in the total length. Diameter of eye 3°80-420 in the length of the
head, 1:25-1°40 in that of the snout, and 1°33-1:75 in the interorbital space,
which is slightly convex. Nostrils approximate, the anterior round and
surrounded by a low raised edge, the posterior oval and a little larger.
Snout in front of the anterior margins of the orbits greatly swollen, the
occiput rising abruptly from the middle of the interorbital space. Upper
jaw a little the longer. Cleft of mouth small and transverse, the maxilla
extending to beneath the anterior nostril, or a litile further. Postero-
inferior angle of preorbital minutely serrated: preopercle rough. Villiform
teeth in the jaws, with an outer enlarged row of tricuspid teeth, the central
cusp being the longest. The dorsal commences above the posterior angle of
the base of the pectoral; the fourth spine is the longest, from 1:20-1°60 in
the length of the head, and subequal to the anterior rays; the first spine is
about athird of the length of the second, which is two fifths of that of the
third: the anal commences beneath the last dorsal spine ; its spines are strong
but short, the first and second the longest, scarcely as long as the second dorsal
spine, and not half the length of the anterior rays; outer margin of rayed
dorsal and anal truncated: the ventral does not reach to the origin of the
anal; its length is 1°33-1°66 in that of the head ; the spine is nearly as long
asthe outer ray and about equals the seventh dorsal spine in length: pec-
torals small and rounded, from 1°66-1'85 in the length of the head: caudal
emarginate, the least height of the pedicle equal in length to the snout.
Lateral line strongly curved to the caudal pedicle.

Colors.—General color silvery; upper surface and sides with six broad
vertical dark green bands, composed of large elongated spots, the interspaces
with bands of smaller, less conspicuous spots; sides of abdomen with two
or three inconspicvous longitudinal bands; lips, occiput, and two intermediate
bands, the anterior between the nostrils and joined mesially to the lips, the
posterior crossing the interorbital space, a narrow band traversing the lower
margin of the cheek, the upper part of the opercle, and the dorsal ridge dark
green; rest of upper surface of the head yellow: dorsal and anal fin rays
yellow, the membranes dark green; caudal yellowish anteriorly, dusky
posteriorly.

During the autumn and summer months this fish appears, often in con-
siderable numbers, from the northern fishing stations which supply the
Sydney market. Asa food fish it cannot be recommended, nevertheless it
commands a ready sale in the market, and is doubtless sold to the
uninitiated, after having been skinned and cooked, as “fried bream.” It is
reported to be a very foul feeder, and this habit has gained for it the generic
name employed by the authors of the Histoire Naturelle des Poissons, which
literally means “excrement eating.” In this connection, not having any
data concerning our own species in which to trust, it may be as well to record
in what estimation its congener S. argus,—a species which is found through-
out the seas of India, China, and the Malay Archipelago, and is common on
the northern coasts of Australia, rare specimens having been recorded even _
as far south as Sydney—is held by other observers as regards its edible
qualities.

Alluding to this latter species Day writes :—‘‘ It enters back waters and
rivers, but is a foul feeder, and so far as I have observed is not in request as
food”; quoting Hamilton Buchanan, he says:—‘ when newly caught itis a fish

38 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

of great beauty, easy digestion, and excellent flavor, but after death it soon
becomes soft and strong tasted”; Cantor states that at Penang “it is eaten
by the natives, though many reject it on account of its reputed disgusting
habits’; while Bennett remarks that in Ceylon “it is generally esteemed,
its flesh partaking of the flavor of trout.”

With such conflicting testimony as to the edible value of these fishes it is
difficult to arrive at a just conclusion, but the probability is that examples
captured in the open sea are wholesome and of good flavor when consumed
fresh.

The Butterfish is plentiful on all the shores of Australia from King
George’s Sound, round West and North Australia, and extending its range
southwards along the eastern coast at least as far as the latitude of
Sydney ; they have not been recorded from Victorian or Tasmanian waters.

Specimens measuring as much as sixteen inches are ocgcasionally scen in
the Sydney market, but the average length is about eight inches. The
greater number of these fishes consigned to the market come from Lake
Macquarie.

Genus I1.—_SCORPIS.

Scorpis, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. viii. p. 245, 1831.

Branchiostegals seven: pseudobranchie present. Body oblong-ovate
and compressed. Snout of moderate length. Preopercle more or less finely
serrated. Jaws with an outer series of enlarged teeth: teeth present on the
vomer and palatines. One dorsal, with nine or ten spines: the anal with
three. Scales small: soft portions of the vertical fins scaly, the spinous
portions with a basal scaly sheath. <Airbladder present. Pyloric appendages
m very large numbers.

Geographical distribution.—Coasts of Australia, New Zealand, and Chili;
Juan Fernandez.

SCORPIS AQUIPINNIS.

Scorpis equipinnis, Richards. Voy. Erebus & Terror, Fish. p. 121, 1846;
Guth. Catal. Fish. 11. p. 64; Casteln. Proc. Linn. Soe. N. 8. Wales, iii.
p. 876; Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 97; Woods, Fisher. N.S.
Wales, p. 37, pl. vi. "

Scorpis boops, Peters, SB. Ak. Berl. 1866, p. 519.

Scorpis lineolata, Kner, Voy. Novara, Fisch. p. 108, pl. v. fig. 3.

Sweep.
Plate X.

B. wii. D. 10/27-28. A. 3/25-27.. V. 1/5. P. 19. C..17. ota 7276:
L. tr. 18-15/31-33. Coec. pyl. num. Vert. 10/15.

Length of head 4:90-5:10, of caudal fin 8°66-3:90, height of body
2°75-3'00 in the total length. Eye moderate, its diameter 3:00-3:40 in
the length of the head, and 1:00-1:25 in the convex interorbital space :
snout short, obtusely rounded, 1°15-1°33 in the diameter of theeye. Nostrils
oval, approximate, the anterior the larger, and on a slightly lower plane
than the posterior. Jaws equal. Cleft of mouth small and oblique; maxilla
triangular, convex behind, extending to a little behind the vertical from the
anterior margin of the orbit. Lower limb and angle of the preopercle
finely serrated, vertical limb rough, but without distinct serrations. Teeth

TOO EEE EE

ee

et ee | ei

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 39

villiform ; jaws with minute teeth forming a broad but short patch in the
upper, and a narrower but much longer band in the lower jaw; the outer
row much enlarged and curved, with their tips yellow. Spinous portion of
dorsal low, the spines, which are moderately strong and acute, increasing
eradually in height to the last, which is three and a quarter to three and a
half times the length of the first, and 2°50-2°75 in that of the head; the
rays grow gradually shorter from the anterior ones, which are from one third
to one fourth longer than the longest spine ; length of base of spinous dorsal
1:75-1°85 in that of the rayed: anal similar in form to the dorsal, com-
mencing beneath the last dorsal spine; its third spine longer than but not
so strong as the second, equal in length to the longest dorsal spine or slightly
shorter: the ventral reaches to the vent, its spine is half the length of the
first ray, which is from 1°85-2:00 in that of the head: pectoral well
developed, rounded, reaching to the vertical from the origin of the anal, and
but little shorter than the head: caudal forked; the least height of its
pedicle 4:50-4:66 in the height of the body. Scales finely ciliated ; the entire
head, except the lips, cireumnasal membrane, and maxilla scaly ; soft por-
tions of the vertical fins clothed with minute scales, spinous portions with a
basal scaly sheath. Lateral line in a long gentle curve, parallel to the dorsal
profile.

Colors.—Silvery blue, darkest above, with a distinct dark blue axillary
spot when alive; dull brown after death.

The Sweep occurs in the Sydney markets in moderate quantities through-
out the year, but is in best condition during the summer and autumn
months. The spawn is deposited in sheltered bays and harbors during the
early winter months, and the young, to the length of three or four inches,
are frequently taken by the trawl and seine in spring and summer. In the
Report of the Royal Commission on Fisheries the following sentence
occurs :—“ It is seldom caught except in the seine, and is probably entirely
a vegetable feeder.” That the conclusion arrived at on this subject by the
Commissioners is erroneous can be substantiated both from the personal
examination of many specimens and from the testimony of Mr. Alexander
Oliver, who states that “he has caught thousands with a live or meat bait.”
Remains of small crustaceans and worms were found in all the specimens
examined by us, and in one example a small cuttle, Octopus granulatus,
Lamarck, was present; in no case was vegetable matter detected in the
intestines. As food it is only moderate, nevertheless it commands a ready
sale in the market at fair prices.

The exact distribution of S. equipinnis is difficult to determine, but
specimens are in the British Museum from Swan River, West Australia, and
King George’s Sound, while, as has been shown, it is abundant on the New
South Wales coast; Lucas, however, omits it from his Census of Victorian
Fishes, as also does Johnston in his Catalogue of Tasmanian Fishes, the
latter, however, including the western S. georgianus, with the remarks, ‘“ Rare.
Not seen.” How far it ranges to the north is also a matter of conjecture,
Alleyne and Macleay having described as new a form, S. vinosa, from
Darnley Island, north-eastern Queensland, which it is to be inferred from
his Preliminary Report on the Food Fishes of that colony Saville Kent
considers worthy of recognition. Its eastwardly distribution extends as far
as Lord Howe Island.

Twelve inches is the maximum size to which the Sweep attains; and it
may be here remarked that a very distinct fish, Girella simplex, goes by the
name of “Sweep” in Tasmania. .

4.0 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Family VIII—SPARIDA.

Branchiostegals five to seven: pseudobranchiw present. Body oblong or
oblong-ovate, compressed. Eyes of moderate size, lateral. Mouth in front
of the snout, with lateral cleft. Bones of the head with a rudimentary
muciferous system. More or less broad and trenchant or conical teeth in
front of the jaws, with or without lateral series of molar teeth: palatines
generally smooth. One dorsal fin formed by a subequally developed
spinous and soft portion: anal with three spines: lower pectoral rays
branched: ventrals thoracic, with one spine and five rays. Lateral line
continuous, not extending along the caudal fin. Scales cyclid or feebly
cetenid.

Geographical distribution.—Seas of temperate and tropical regions ; some
species entering fresh water.

Genus I.—PIMELEPTERUS.

Pimelepterus, (Lacép.) Cuvier, Régne Anim.; Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat.
Poiss. vil. p. 254, 18381.

Branehiostegals seven: pseudobranchie present. Body ovate and but little
compressed. Preopercle with or without serrature. Villiform teeth in the
jaws, with an outer row of strong incisors: vomer, palatines, and tongue with
small teeth. One dorsal fin with eleven spines: anal with three. Scales of
moderate size, the soft portion of the vertical fins scaly. Airbladder divided
posteriorily into two horns, and sometimes notched anteriorly. Pyloric
appendages few or very numerous.

Geographical distribution.—Tropical and subtropical seas, more especially
of the eastern hemisphere.

PIMELEPTERUS SYDNEYANUS.

Pachymetopon grande, Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 106, 1881 (nec Ginth.).
Pimelepterus sydneyanus, Gnth. Ann. Nat. Hist. (5) 1886, xviii. p. 368.
Pimelepterus meridionalis, Ogilby, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1886, p. 539.

Drummer.
Pilate tv

B. vii. D. (1L0)—-11/12 A. 3/10. V. 1/5. P.17. C 17. L. lat. 57-59. Li. tr. 10/19
Ceee. pyl. very num. Vert. 11/15.

Length of head 485-515, of caudal fin 4:25-5:00, height of body
3°00-3°20 in the total length. Eyes moderate, 3°75-4°00 in length of the
head, 1°33-1°75 in that of the obtusely rounded snout, and 1°80-2°30 in the
convex interorbital space. Upper profile of head rather flat, with a trans-
verse rounded protuberance in front of the eyes. Upper jaw rather the
longer. Cleft of mouth small and transverse, the maxilla extending to beneath
the anterior margin of the orbit. Opereular bones entire. A single row of
strong curved tecth in the jaws, the posterior horizontal portion equal in
length to the vertical ; behind these a narrow band of similar but smaller
and non-functional teeth, intended to replace losses in the outer cutting
series ; vomer, palatines, and tongue densely crowded with minute teeth.
Dorsal spines ‘of moderate strength, increasing in height to the sixth and
seventh, which are 1°75-2:10 in the length of the head, and much higher
than the rays: third anal spine the lon cest and strongest; anterior anal rays

—s Ee

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 41

——

equal in length to the highest dorsal spine: pectorals short and rounded, as
long as ora little longer than the ventrals, 1:33-1:50 in the length of the head:
caudal emarginate, the least height of the pedicle two thirds of the distance
between the last dorsal ray and the origin of the caudal. Scales feebly ctenid,
extending on to the frontal protuberance, much larger on the body than on
the head, those below the lateral line larger than those above it; eighteen
scales between the origin of the ventral and the lateral line, and eight
between the latter and the base of the sixth dorsal spine.

Colors.—Dark gray, washed with silver on the lower part of the sides;
upper surface of head darkest: all the fins dark colored : irides golden and
silvery about equally mixed.

The “ Drummer” of the Sydney fishermen,—not of Macleay’s Catalogue,
p- 108, which is a perfectly distinct fish, not distinguished by them from
the ordinary Blackfishes—is not uncommon in Port Jackson and Broken
Bay, and though occasionally a dozen or more may be seen at one time in
the market, this is certainly the exception, not because of the rarity of the
fish, but owing to its habit of frequenting closely the neighborhood of
rocky shores and inlets where the nets in vogue here cannot be used. As
stated by the author in 1886 (loc. cit.), “it is a true rockfish, dwelling in
the crevices and indentations of our rocky shores, where it finds abundant
food and shelter; it is not given to roaming, and is only taken by the
trammel, one end of which is attached to the shore, against which the mesh
must actually lie or else the fish would assuredly pass inside, whence it
happens that this fish is almost always caught within a few feet of the
shore.” So far as I can ascertain it is never known to take a bait.

The breeding season is about midsummer, and the ova is probably deposited
in sheltered spots among weed covered rocks.

As food the Drummer is held in little estimation, and does not readily
command a sale in the market, nevertheless halfgrown examples are quite
equal in flavor to the other herbivorous Sparids.

Either the range of this fish is extraordinarily limited, or the local
naturalists to the northward have failed to recognise this very distinct
species ; to the south no considerable extension of range is to be expected in
a fish of this genus. From three localities only, namely, Port Jackson,
Broken Bay, and Port Stephens have we been enabled to obtain any reliable
record of its occurrence.

The Drummer grows to the length of thirty inches.

Genus II.—GIRELLA.

Girellc, Gray, Ulustr. Ind. Zool. 1830-35.
Melanichthys, Schleg. Faun. Japon. Poiss. p. 75, 1850.
Crenidens, sp. Richards.

Branchiostegals six: pseudobranchie present. Body oblong-ovate and
compressed. Opercle with a small spine; preopercular armature rudi-
mentary or absent. Jaws with one or more series of functional, usually,
tricuspidate incisors, behind which is a pluriserial band of similar but less
developed teeth, destined to replace losses in the former: vomer and
palatines with or without a small patch of similar teeth. One dorsal tin,
with from thirteen to fifteen spines, which are receivable into an incomplete
groove: anal with three spines. Scales of moderate size, finely ctenid :
cheeks, occiput, and upper portion of the opercle scaly: rows of small
scales on. the membranes of the vertical fins. Airbladder bilobed posteri-
orly. Pyloric appendages in large numbers.

42 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Geographical distribution.—Australian, Chinese, and Japanese seas.

As nothing appears to be accurately known as to the place selected for the
deposition of their ova by our herbivorous Sparid fishes, the following remarks,
published by Mr. W. Saville Kent, in Nature (May 8, 1873), on the
breeding habits of the allied genus Cantharus may prove of interest, and
may induce some of our seashore residents to observe more carefully
the time and place of spawning of these and other valuable food fishes of
the Colony. Writing of C. lineatus, which curiously enough goes by the
name of “ Black Bream” on the south coast of England, he remarks con-
cerning examples under his personal observation in the Brighton Aquarium,
that the males, “retiring from the remainder of the shoal, select certain
separate and prescribed areas at the bottom of the tank, where they com-
mence excavating considerable hollows in the sand or shingle by the rapid
and powerful action of the tail and lower portion of the body. A depression
of suitable size having been produced, each male now mounts vigilant guard
over his respective hollow, and vigorously attacks and drives away any other
fish of the same sex that ventures to trespass within the magic circle he has
appropriated to himself. Towards his companion of the opposite sex his
conduct is far different. Many of the latter are now distended with spawn,
and these he endeavors by all the means in his power to lure singly to his
prepared hollow, now discovered to be a true nest or spawning bed, and
there to deposit the myriad ova with which they are laden, which he then
protects and guards with the greatest care.”

GIRELLA TRICUSPIDATA.

Boz tricuspidatus, Quoy & Gaim. Voy. Freyc. Zool. p. 296., 1824.

Oblata tricuspidata, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. vi. p. 372.

Crenidens triglyphus, Richards. Voy. Erebus & Terror, Fish. p. 36, pl. xxv.
fig. 2.

Girella tricuspidata, Gnth. Catal. Fish. i. p. 428; Macleay, Catal. Austr.
Fish. i. p. 107; Woods, Fisher. N. S. Wales, p. 39, pl. vii; Johnston
Proc. Roy. Soc. Tas. 1882, pp. 69, 111.

Melanichthys tricuspidata, Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. 1872, 1. p. 57.

Girella blackii, Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soe. Vict. 11. p. 41.

Blackfish,

Plate XII.
B. vi. D.15/11-12. A.3/11-12. V.1/5. P.16. C.17. 1. lat. 48-68,
L. tr. 10/23-25. Coc. pyl. num. Vert. 11/16.
Length of head 4°50-5:00, of caudal fin 4:75-5:00, height of body 3:00-3°75
in the total length. Diameter of eye 4:00-4:50 in the length of the head,
1°50-1°66 in that of the obtusely rounded snout, and 1°33-1°66 in that of

the interorbital space, which is convex. Upper. profile of the head siightly

convex, much swollen in front of the eyes so as to form a marked concavity
immediately behind the jaws. Upper jawthe longer. Cleft of mouth small
and transverse, the maxilla reaching to or a little beyond the posterior nostril:
the height of the preorbital is four fifths of its breadth. A small flat spine
on the opercle: vertical limb of the preopercle slightly inclined backwards,
and finely denticulated ; lower limb smooth. A pluriserial band of tricuspid
teeth in the jaws, the two outer rows functional, and separated from the

‘
= a Se

eT OLS eT” eo eae es ee ese

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. AS

others by an interspace; a small patch of teeth, similar to the partially
developed postlabial teeth, on the anterior part of the palatines. Dorsal
spines increasing in length to the seventh or eighth, whence there is little or
no difference to the last, which is 2°15—-2°55 in the length of the head; the
rays are subequal to the spines in height ; the base of the rayed portion is
five eighths of that of the spinous: the anal commences beneath the first
dorsal ray and ends opposite the termination of the dorsal, the rays of which
are not nearly so long as those of the anal; the third spine is the longest,
much stronger, and but little shorter than the longest dorsal spine, but not
nearly so strong as the second anal spine: ventrals not extending to the
vent, 1°33-1°60 in the length of the head: pectorals small, 1-25-1-33 in the
same: caudal slightly emarginate, the least height of the pedicle equal to
the distance between the last dorsal ray and the origin of the caudal. Scales
moderate, feebly ctenid, adherent ; cheeks and upper third of opercle scaly,
remainder of head naked: dorsal and anal fins with a basal scaly sheath: a
row of small scales between the rays. Lateral line following the curvature
of the back.

Colors.—Blackish or dark brown above, lighter below; or silvery gray
with a variable number of dark brown transverse bands. ;

This is by far the most common species of Girella sent to the Sydney
market. It is not easy to arrive at any certainty, from published documents,
as to locality made use of for depositing the spawn, but in Mr. Glover’s
report to the Royal Commission he states, writing from Twofold Bay, that
“Bream, black, silver, and red, and the Black-fish . . . . spawn among
weeds, and in deep holes with a muddy bottom”; so far as estuaries and creeks
are concerned this is doubtless correct, but that they also spawn on the outer
beaches is equally certain as the young, measuring from one to three inches,
are to be found in rock pools during the autumn and winter months, As to
the season of shedding the spawn that appears to be indisputably fixed for the
first three months of the year from our own observations in the neighborhood
of Sydney, those of Mr. Glover at Twofold Bay, and those of Mr. Hood
Pegus at the Clarence Heads.

Like most, if not all, herbivorous fishes the Blackfish rapidly deteriorates
in flavor after death, nevertheless when freshly caught it is by no means to
be despised, especially if the contents of the stomach are immediately
removed.

These fishes go in shoals and are chiefly taken for the market by means of
the seine, and Tenison Woods writes “in certain seasons they may be caught
in abundance in shallow water with the line, the only bait being a green con-
fervid weed obtained on wood under sea water.”

The Blackfish is very abundant along the entire coastline of the Colony,
frequenting estuaries, creeks, and tidal rivers, as well as the open sea; it is
also common on the coast of Victoria, where it goes by the names of “‘ Black
Perch” and “ Rock Perch” and, according to Castelnau, is “esteemed as an
article of food.” Speaking of it in Tasmania, Johnston mentions that it is
common, but does not ascend estuaries as far as Chrysophrys australis ; it is
ealled “ Black Bream” in that colony. Of the extent of its range to the
westward we have no certain record, while it is not mentioned by Saville
Kent from the Queensland coast, though there can be little doubt of its
occurrence in the southern waters of that colony at least.

The average length of examples forwarded to the Sydney markets is about
twelve inches, but examples of the length of twenty one are occasionaily
obtainable.

Ad, EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

GIRELLA SIMPLEX.

Crenidens simplex, Richards. Voy. Erebus & Terror, Fish. p. 120., 1846. _

Girella simplex, Gnth. Catal. Fish. i. p. 429; Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish.
i. p. 107; McCoy, Prodr. Zool. Vie. dec. viii. pl. 73; Johnston, Proc.
Roy. Soc. Tas. 1882, pp. 69, 111; Sherrin, Handb. N.Z. Fish. p. 71.

Melanichthys simplex, Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Viet. 1872, i. p. 68.

Girella percoides, Hector, Trans. N. Z. Inst. vii. p. 243, pl. x. f. 6p, and ix. p.
468, pl. viii. f. 6c.

Ludrick,

B.-vi. D. 15-14/12-138. A. 3/12. V. 1/5. P. 17. C. 17. G. lat. 50-552 ebeaie
11/20-24. Coec. pyl. num. Vert. 11/16.

Length of head 4°50-5.00, of caudal fin 4.75, height of body 2°75-3:00 in
the total length. Diameter of eye 3°80-4:00 in the length of the head,
1:49-1°60 in that of the snout, and 1°50 in the convex interorbital space.
Snout convex; occiput almost flat. Upper jaw the longer. Cleft of mouth
small and transverse, the maxilla not quite extending to the posterior nostril.
Opercle with a flat spine, which is sometimes bifid: vertical limb of pre-
opercle straight, but inclining slightly backwards, the rounded angle distinctly
serrated. Jaws with two or three irregular series of compressed incisors,
having the cutting edge entire and moderately broad ; behind them a broad
band of small tricuspid ones; a curved band of minute teeth on the vomer
present or absent; a small pyriform patch on the palatines. Dorsal
spines rather strong, increasing in length to the eighth, which is about 2°66
in the length of the head; rayed dorsal subequal in height to the spinous,
its basal length about half of the base of the same: the anal commences
beneath the last or penultimate dorsal spine ; its rays are much longer than
those of the dorsal, and their outer margin is truncate; the third spine is a
little longer than the second, and 3:20-3:33 in the length of the head:
ventrals not extending to the vent, their length 1°50-1°66 in that of the
head: pectoral moderate, 1:20-1°50 in the same: caudal emarginate, with
moderately pointed lobes. Scales moderate, feebly ctenid, firmly adherent ;
those on the throat smallest and elongate; cheek scales small and deeply
imbedded : streaks of small scales between the dorsal and anal rays, and the
dorsal spines except the first three. Lateral line gently curved to the end
of the dorsal; its tubes simple.

Colors.—Above brown, with a purple tinge, becoming lighter on the
sides ; abdominal region whitish or yellowish: sides of the head and the
pectoral fins yellowish.

This species is not nearly so plentiful as is the preceding, from the dark
variety of which it may usually be distinguished by its generally lighter
colors and from the lighter variety by the absence of bands, which, if present
at any stage of growth, do not appear to be ever persistent, as in its congener,
which it resembles in all respects in habits, &c., and with which it is con-
founded by the fishermen.

It inhabits the entire seaboard of New South Wales and ranges north-
wards along the Queensland coast at least as far as Murray Island. In
Victoria Lucas gives it as an inhabitant of the “Gippsland Lakes,” and as
“not very uncommon in Port Phillip.’ McCoy remarks :—‘ This is one of
the best fishes for the table found in Victoria, but is not well known to the
publie or to the dealers, although abundant in the Gippsland Lakes.”
Further westward we have no record; in Tasmania it is common, and goes

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 45

by the name of “Sweep.” It is also a native of New Zealand waters, where
it is known as the Perch.
The largest example obtained in our market measured twenty three inches.
In order to distinguish it from G. tricuspidata I have adopted the trivial
name “ Ludrick,” which is given to it by the Gippsland Aborigines.

GIRELLA CYANEA.

Girella cyanea, Macleay, Catal. Aust. Fish. i. p. 108, 1881; Ogilby, Proc.
Zool. Soe. 1887, p. 393.

Bluefish.

Bee. 10-14 /12-13. A. 3/11. V. 1/5. P. 19-20. C. 17. L. lat. 54-57.
L. tr. 11/25-28. Cee. pyl. num. Vert. 11/16.

Length of head 4°66-5°33, of caudal fin 4°00-480, height of body
2°75-3°60 in the total length. Diameter of eye 3:75-4:40 in the length of
the head, 1°33-1°75 in that of the snout, and 1°25-1°75 in the convex inter-
orbital space. Upper profile of head slightly convex. Upper jaw the longer.
Cleft of mouth small and transverse, the maxilla reaching to beneath the
posterior nostril: height of preorbital 1:00-1:25 in its length. Opercle with
a flat spinous point, which is sometimes divided: vertical limb of the pre-
opercle inclining slightly backwards, feebly denticulated, except in very old
examples where it is entire; lower limb smooth. A pluriserial band of
tricuspid teeth in the jaws, the outer row strong, compressed, and functional,
separated from the others by an interspace ; small patches of deeply imbedded
teeth, similar to the non-functional incisors teeth, generally present on the
vomer and on the anterior portion of the palatines. Dorsal spines of
moderate strength, increasing in length to about the eighth, whence there is
little or no difference to the last, which is 2°25-2°80 in the length of the head ;
the rays are subequal in height to the spines; base of rayed portion one half
to four sevenths of that of the spinous: the anal commences beneath the
origin of the soft dorsal, and its rays are much longer than those of that fin ;
the third spine is much stronger and but little shorter than the longest
dorsal spines; the outer margin of the anal rays is obliquely truncated:
ventrals not extending to the vent, 1:20-1'40 in the length of the head:
pectorals moderate, 1:00-1:25 in the same: caudal deeply emarginate, with
acute lobes; the least height of the pedicle equal to the distance between
the base of the last dorsal ray and the origin of the caudal. Scales moderate,
feebly ctenid, firmly adherent; those on the throat much smaller and more
oblong in shape; head scales deeply imbedded: dorsal and anal fins with
a basal scaly sheath, and rows of minute scales between the rays and spines,
with the exception of the three anterior dorsal spines. Lateral line with a
long slight curve to the end of the dorsal; its tubes simple.

Colors.—Upper parts bright blue, the body with numerous golden spots,
which decrease in number with age; below pale blue.

The Bluefish is much less common in the Sydney market than either of
the two species of Girella previously mentioned; and it is also noticeable
that all the examples so obtained are very large; they are in all probability
much more abundant than is generally supposed, but being purely ocean
fishes, which do not enter rivers and estuaries for the purpose of spawning,
they do not come within the scope of the ordinary net fishermen, and such
as find their way to the market are taken by the professional line fishermen.
A large female example caught off Botany Heads during the month of

4.6 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

December had the ova ready for extrusion, while another taken off Broken
Bay within a few days was in poor condition and showed unmistakable
signs of having shed its spawn but a short time previously; numerous
examples examined between March and June showed no vestiges of spawn ;
we may, therefore, infer that the breeding season on this part of the coast
is rather earlier than is the case with G. tricuspidata and G. simplex, and
that the ova is deposited at a considerable depth, and, judging from the
habits of the fish, probably in the vicinity of weed-covered rocks.

As referred to above, the Bluefish varies entirely from the Blackfish and
Ludrick in its preference for the open sea; it delights in bold rocky coasts,
and being a strong hardy fish is apparently indifferent to the wildest storms,
a fact to which the configuration of the powerful caudal fin, which differs
ereatly from that of its congeners, probably bears some relationship; this
divergence in habits is best illustrated by studying examples of the three
species confined in the same tank in an aquarium, for while this species will
be found to swim restlessly round and round the tank, the others are content
to move sluggishly about or remain in the same spot with gently moving
fins.

As food this species is much superior to its congeners, and this is easy to
account for, not only because of its residence in the open sea, but also that
it is not purely herbivorous, but apparently prefers a more or less flesh diet ;
for while the Blackfishes are almost invariably found to contain - masses of
green seaweeds, the intestines of the present species rarely contain any
except the calcareous sorts, and these are always mixed with other sub-
stances, such as hydrid zoophytes, boltinias, prawns, squid, and the remains
of fishes, among which were distinguished Yellowtail (Caranx trachurus),
Hardyhead (Atherina pinguis), Whiting (Sillago maculata), and a Flatfish
(Lophonectes gallus).

On the New South Wales coast they have not been recorded elsewhere
than from the limited area comprised between Port Hacking Heads and
those of Broken Bay, but I have little doubt that sooner or later they will
be found in numbers further north. So far as our present knowledge goes
the metropolis of the species is Lord Howe Island, where it is abundant at
all seasons, and forms one of the staple articles of food among the inhabitants,
being used either fresh, salted, or smoked. It is taken principally, if not
altogether, by means of handlines, and grows to about thirty inches in length.

The largest specimen measured by us was over twenty five inches and was
caught off Broken Bay.

Genus III.— PAGRUS.

Pagrus, Cuv. Regne Anim. ; Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. vi. p. 141, 18380.
Chrysophrys, Cuv. Réegne Anim.; Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. vi. p. 81.

aA

Branchiostegals six: pseudobranchie present. Body oblong-ovate and
somewhat compressed. Jaws with an anterior row of conical or compressed
canines, and from two to four lateral rows of rounded molars. A single
dorsal fin, with from eleven to thirteen, rarely elongated, spines, which are
receivable into a groove at their base: the anal with three. Scales of moderate
size, cyclid or finely ctenid: cheeks scaly. Airbladder usually simple, but
sometimes notched or with very short appendages. Pyloric appendages,
when present, in small numbers.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. AT

PAGRUS UNICOLOR.

Chrysophrys unicolor, Quoy & Gaim. Voy. Uranie, p. 209.

Pagrus unicolor, Cuy. & Val. Hist, Nat. Poiss. vi. p. 160; Richards. Ichthyol.
China, p. 242; Gnth. Catal. Fish. i. p. 468; Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc.
Vict. 1872, i. p. 70; Kner, Voy. Novara, Fisch. p. 85; Macleay, Catal.
Austr. Fish. i. p. 116 ; Woods, Fisher. N.S. Wales, p. 39, pl. viii. and
Frontispiece; Johnston, Proc. Zool. Soc. Tas. 1882, pp. 69, 111;
Sherrin, Handb. N. Z. Fish. p. 85.

Pagrus guttulatus, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. vi. p. 160; Less. Voy.
Coquille, Zool. ii. p. 188.

Snapper.
Plate XIII.

Pewee. 12/10) A. 3/8. V. 1/5. P. 15: ©. 17. LD. lat. 54-55. L. tr.
9-10/16-17. Cec. pyl. 4. Vert. 10/14.

Length of head 4:25-4:50, of caudal fin 3:66-4:00, height of body 3-00-
3°33 in the total length. Diameter of eye 3'50-4:00 in the length of the
head, 1:40-1°80 in that of the snout, and 1:00—1°33 in the convex interorbital
space. Nostrils at some distance apart, the anterior small and subcircular,
the posterior much larger, elongate-ovoid, not entering the orbital ring.
Upper jaw a little the longer. Cleft of mouth moderate and slightly oblique,
the maxilla extending to beneath the anterior margin of the orbit or a little
beyond it. Upper profile of head rounded in the young; mature examples
with a conspicuous bony knob on the occiput, which in very old males
attains to an enormous development, and is accompanied by a corresponding
excrescence of smaller size on the snout. <A short, compressed, blunt point
on the opercle. Both jaws with four small canines in front, and with a
lateral row of teeth, the anterior of which are conical, the others molariform ;
inside these are from one to three irregular series of small molars, with two or
three enlarged ones about midway. Dorsal spines rather weak, flexible, the
third, sometimes the fourth, the longest, 1°80-2'10 in the length of the
head ; the last spine about three fifths of the first ray, which is much lower
than the longest spines: the anal commences beneath the anterior dorsal
ray or last dorsal spine, and ends opposite or a little before the last ray; the
third spine is the longest, not much longer but slightly weaker than the
second, and from 2°75-3:15 in the length of the head; the rays are very
little longer than the spines: the ventrals do not reach the vent; the outer
ray is the longest, from 1°30-1'40 in the length of the head; the spine is
long and slender, longer than the highest dorsal spine: pectorals elongate
and faleate, reaching to above the first to fourth anal rays, and from one
tenth to one fifth longer than.the head: caudal forked, the least height of
its pedicle about one fourth of the height of the body. Scales finely ctenid,
in six series between the eye and the angle of the preopercle, and in eight
across the opercle; rest of the head naked. Lateral line curved to about
the anterior third of the spinous dorsal, from thence parallel to the dorsal
profile.

Colors.—Varying with age from silvery red in the young to bright red in
the adult, the upper parts of which, especially the head, are tinted with
brown; the abdominal region is pinkish or silvery ; the body is ornamented
with pale blue spots, which are numerous in the young and entirely disappear
in very old examples.

48 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Owing to no systematic attempt having been made to obtain reliable
evidence on the breeding of even our principal food fishes,—a subject which,
affecting as it assuredly does the food supply and through it the material
welfare of the masses, should long ago have received enlightened attention
from the Government of the C olony —we are still in the same humiliating
position that the Royal Commission of twelve years ago were placed when
they authorised the printing of the following paragraph :—‘ The actual mode
of the deposition or attachment of the spawn has never been observed, and
the same may be said of the date of the first appearance of the young fry,
but there can be little doubt that the deposition takes place in moderately
deep water near the land, and that the young are probably hatched before
the winter season.”

Of the various special reports furnished to the Royal Commission three
only make any attempt to solve the difficulty, and in these the evidence, if
it merits such a title, is contradictory and extremely unsatisfactory ; from
Twofold Bay Mr. Glover reports: —‘ Their time of spawning is in November.
They spawn out on the sandbank. I think they spawn loose on the top of
the sand.”’ Mr. George Mulhall, senr., writing from Broken Bay remarks:—
“Snapper are very prolific with roe in this month (March), but when they
spawn I am unable to say.” And Mr. Wilson, refering to the Newcastle
District, says :—‘‘ This—z.e., the number of very small Snapper present
inshore, where the school fish never appear—leads me to think that Snapper
spawn on the roughest rocks close inshore, and I doubt not that they are
better protected there from their chief enemies, the sharks.” In this
unsatisfactory state this most important subject must of necessity be left at
present.

The Snapper is the premier sporting fish of New South Wales, for though
occasionally captured by deeply sunken nets in Lake Macquarie and else-
where, it is essentially a line fish, and pleasure parties and fishing clubs
frequently set out from Port Jackson to the various sunken reefs, known as
Snapper-grounds, within easy reach of that port, or even charter a steamer
fora week, and make more extended excursions north or south; these fishes
play most determinedly, and being possessed of great strength no little skill
is requisite to safely land a large fish. The following observations from the
pen of the late Mr. Edward Hill aptly describe the capture of an old male :—
“The tugging, jerking motion of the Snapper is unmistakable, and when
he gets his shoulder to the line he goes off with a rapidity that makes the
cord whistle again, either through your fingers or over the boat’s gunwale ;
a steady and continuous strain, no stray ‘line, together with some skill,
enables you to safely land him, at which time you can realize that your
patience, toil, and anxiety are rewarded with a fish from twenty to twenty five
pounds weight, fit to embellish a noble banquet.” The same gentleman
tells us that the bait for these fishes are starfish, squid, mackerel, yellowtail,
mullet, tailors, and a variety of other fishes; the whole of these at particular
time will be readily taken, but when the Snapper appears dainty, mackerel
and squid may tempt him ‘when all others fail.

It was long contended, and the opinion is still held by a few, that there were
three kinds of Snapper, known popularly as ‘‘ Red Bream,” “ Squire,” and
“Snapper” ; these, however, have long been proved to be ‘merely stages in
the growth of the same species, the Red Bream being the young fish of
under a year’s growth, which are extremely numerous in all sheltered
localities along the coast during the summer months, and form the chief
sport of the juvenile population ; the Squire is the half-crown fish up to two
or three years of age, beyond which they have attained to the full dignity of
Snapper.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTIL WALES. 49

In the condensed report of the Royal Commission the following passages
occur :—‘‘ The Snapper is the most valuable of Australian fishes, not for its
superior excellence, for we have many more delicious, but for the abundant
and regular supply which it affords of a very nutritious and wholesome
description of food. It is found on all parts of the Australian coast, but
most abundantly on that of New South Wales. Itis a deepwater fish, found
generally on or near rocky points, or reefs running out for miles from the
coast. Its food is chiefly the mollusea living on the rocks, though the
readiness with which it will snap up bait of the most varied descriptions
indicates tastes of a rather omnivorous character. Like all or most fishes, it
has its periods of migration and accumulation in shoals. The time of the
_ appearance of the ‘School Snapper’ is the early part of summer ; it is then
believed to be at least three years old, the previous stages of its existence
being well known under the names ‘ Red Bream’ at the age of one year and
of ‘Squire’ at two. Ata still greater age the Snapper seems. to cease to
school, and becomes what is known as the ‘Native’ and ‘Rock Native’ a
solitary and sometimes enormously large fish.” According to Tenison
Woods the aboriginal name of these large examples is “ Wollomai.”

Referring to the Melbourne market Castelnau states :—‘“ The Snapper is
one of the largest and handsomest fishes (brought thither). It is found all
the year round, but the specimens caught in the cold months of the year
are generally small; in November and December it becomes much more
abundant, and very large specimens are common.”

On our own coast P. wnicolor is very abundant in all suitable localities,
but its exact range to the northwards has not been determined, and Saville
Kent merely states, alluding apparently to the Sparide of the Brisbane
fishmarket :—“‘ It includes the celebrated Snapper.” Lucas, in his
Victorian ‘‘ Census” gives the locality as “ Port Phillip and off the south
coast.” Johnston, writing on its scarcity in Tasmania, remarks that it “is
seldom seen in the southern waters of Tasmania, even where the reefs, depths
of water, and other conditions seem to be favorable. The north coast of
Tasmania lacks the deep fringing reefs which seem to be the favored resort
of the Snapper.” It occurs in all suitable localities along the southern and
south-western coast line of Australia, but how far to the northward it
extends in West Australian waters is rendered uncertain by the possibility
of the species which occurs at Houtman’s Abrolhos being distinct. The
statement made by so many writers that the Snapper occurs in the seas all
round Australia is certainly erroneous ; those round the southern half of
the continent would be more correct. It occurs both at Lord Howe and
Norfolk Islands, but is said to be uncommon at the former place. Its habits
in New Zealand, where its Maori name is “ Tamure,” differ much from
those which prevail in this Colony as will be seen by the following quotations
from Hector, extracted from Sherrin’s Handbook :—“There are few fishes
better known in the northern parts of the Colony than the Snapper.” “The
Snapper is not frequently reported to occur south of the Kaikoura
Peninsula.” ‘The Snapper frequents shallow water, and is generally caught
with the net in Wellington Harbor, but the natives may often be seen
catching them with a hook and line in the surf on exposed sandy beaches
when the wind is off the shore. In clear shallow bays troops of this fish
may be observed rooting up the shellfish that are buried in the sandy bottom,
and crushing them with their powerfully armed jaws.” Speaking mainly on
the question of fish curing, Mr. M‘Leod stated :—“ I took nineteen hundred
Snapper in one haul in a seine net, and in curing this large quantity there
was not a single loss, although the month of January is the least adapted of

D

50 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

all seasons for fish curing,” while Capt. Robinson remarked :—‘“ I considered
Snapper (cured) equal to Cod, and far superior to Ling’’; that is as ships’
provisions.

The Snapper grows to at least twenty five pounds weight with a length of
thirty inches. Castelnau’s twice repeated statement that it “sometimes
weighs up to fifty pounds” is altogether wrong.

PAGRUS SARBA.

a

Sparus sarba, Forsk. Deser. Anim. p. 31,1775; Gmel. Syst. Nat. p. 1275.

Chrysophrys sarba, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. vi. p. 102; Riipp. N. W.
Fisch. p. 110, pl. xxviii. fig. 1; Gnth. Catal. Fish. i. p. 488 ; Kner. Voy.
Novara, Fisch. p. 88; Day, Fish. Ind. p. 142, pl. xxxiv. fig. 6; Macleay,
Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 118.

Tarwhine.
Plate XIV.

B. -vi. D. 11/12-18. A. 3/11. V. 1/5. P. 15 (14). C. 17. i> lat eSSde
L. tr. 7/14. Coee. pyl. 3. Vert. 10/14.

Length of head 4:00-4:25, of caudal fin 3:35-4:20, height of bedy
2°66-2°80 in the total length. Eye rather large, its diameter 3°70—4'00 in the
length of the head, 1°75-2°00 in that of the rounded snout, and 1°10-1°25 in
that of the very convex interorbitalspace. Nostrils approximate, the anterior
small, oval, and oblique, the posterior elongate and oblique, entering the
orbital ring. Upper jaw the longer. Cleft of mouth moderate, horizontal ;
the maxilla extending to beneath the middle of the orbit or not quite so far.
Upper profile of head parabolic, the preocular swelling but little apparent.
Opercle witha single blunt point. Three pairs of broad cutting teeth in front
of each jaw, behind which are several lateral series—four or five in the upper,
and three or four in the lower jaw—of rounded molars, which gradually
increase in size towards the base of the jaw; posteriorly there is a single
enormously enlarged ovate tooth, situated in the middle line of the series.
Dorsal spines rather weak and flexible, the fourth the longest, 2°15-2°50 in
the length of the head, the last spine two thirds of the longest, and equal to
the first ray: the anal commences beneath the third dorsal ray, and termi-
nates a short distance behind that fin ; the third spine is longer than but not
so strong as the second, and is only two thirds of the length of the longest
dorsal spine: the ventral fins do not nearly reach to the vent; the outer
ray is without rudiment of filament, 1°50-1'66 in the length of the head:
pectorals falciform, extending beyond the origin of the anal fin, one
fourth to one half longer than the head: caudal emarginate, the height of
the pedicle one fourth of that of the body. Scales feebly ctenid, adherent :
snout, preorbital, maxilla, and interorbital space scaleless : dorsal spines set
in a deep groove, the rayed portion and the anal with a broad scaly sheath: a
long narrow scale above the base of the ventral fin, as long as or longer than
the spine. Lateral line forming a long gentle curve to the base of the pedicle,
thence straight.

Colors.—Upper surface of head lead color; preorbital and preopercle
silvery ; cheeks and opercles with a golden tinge; body silvery, each scale
with a broad, median, dull gold bar, forming together longitudinal bands,
which become gradually fainter on the lower part of the sides; generally a

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 51

bright golden band above the base of the ventral: dorsal fin dusky, with a
basal hyaline spot between the rays ; caudal dull yellow, with a broad dusky
terminal band; ventrals golden ; anal with the basal haif silvery, the mar-
ginal half golden.

The generally accepted breeding season of the Tarwhine are the summer
months, but that some at least deposit their ova at a different time is evident
from the fact that specimens forwarded to the Sydney market from Gosford
were found on examination to have the roe more than half developed during
the first week in July. :

They are sent in numbers to the market, chiefly from the northern fishing
stations and command a ready sale. Though not by any means so gooda
fish as P. australis, it is nevertheless, when perfectly fresh and in good con-
dition, a fairly well flavored fish.

The range of P. sarba is very extensive, embracing the greater part of
the Australian coast, thence through the Malayan and Indian Seas westward
to the Red Sea and the Ile de France. It is tolerably common in the neigh-
borhood of Port Jackson, but it is impossible to state definitely how much
further to the southward its range extends. Northwards it rapidly increases
in numbers, and at Brisbane, according to Saville Kent it contributes ex-
tensively to the fish supply; it is abundant along the entire coastline of
Queensland, Southern New Guinea, and Northern Australia, but there is.
no record as to its southerly range on the shores of West Australia.

PAGRUS AUSTRALIS.

Chrysophrys australis, Guth. Catal. Fish. i. p. 494, 1859; Casteln. Proc.
Zool. Soc. Vict. 1872, i. p. 71; McCoy, Prodr. Zool. Vict. dec. i. pl. 4;
Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p.119; Johnston, Proc. Roy. Soe. Tas.
1882, pp. 69, 111.

Chrysophyrs sarba, Casteln. Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S. Wales, iii. p. 373.

Black Bream.

Plate XV.
B. vu. D. 11-12/11-10. A.3/7-9. V.1/5. P,15. C.17. L. lat. 44-47.
L. tr. 5/138-15. Cee. pyl. 3-4. Vert. 10/14.

Length of head 3:60-4:33, of caudal fin 4:25-4:75, height of body
2°66-3°00 in the total length. Eye moderate, its diameter 400-466 in
the length of the head, 1°50-2:00 in that of the rather pointed snout, and
115-1°50 in that of the convex interorbital space. Nostrils separated, the
anterior small, round, and slightly tubular, the posterior a narrow oblique
slit entering the orbital ring. Upper jaw slightly the longer. Cleft of
mouth moderate, horizontal, the maxilla extending to beneath the anterior
third of the orbit. Upper profile of head almost straight, much swollen
above the posterior nostrils. A single blunt spine on the opercle. Three
pairs of curved canines in front of either jaw, behind which are several
series—four to six in the upper and three or four in the lower jaw-- ot
rounded molars, the posterior teeth being the largest; the outer series in
the upper jaw subconical. Dorsal spines strong, the fourth (or fifth) the
longest, 2°00-2'33 in the length of the head, the last spine two thirds of
the longest, and equal to the first ray: the anal commences beneath the
third dorsal ray and terminates at a considerable distance behind the dorsal ;
the second spine is very strong and curved, subequal in length to the longest
dorsal spine: the ventrals do not quite reach to the vent; the outer ray 1s

52, EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

filamentous, 1:25-1:50 in the length of the head: pectorals sickle-shaped,
extending beyond the origin of the anal fin, and one sixth to two fifths
longer than the head: caudal emarginate; the height of the pedicle
3 33-3°66 in that of the body. Scales feebly ctenid, adherent: snout,
preorbital, maxilla, and interorbital space scaleless: dorsal spines set in a
deep groove, the rayed portion and the anal with a basal scaly sheath: a
long narrow seale above the base of the ventral fin. Lateral line sinuous
anteriorly, subsequently following the curvature of the back, frequently with
a slight sinuosity beneath the posterior dorsal rays. Airbladder large.

Colors.—Upper surface of head dark bluish-gray, lighter between the eyes,
cheeks and opercles gray and gold with a tinge of pink; mandibular region
silvery white; a dark gray arcuate band from the occiput to the origin of
the lateral line; back, olive green; sides, silvery, each scale margined with
dull yellow ; lower surfaces white, tinged with yellow below the base of the
pectorals: dorsal opaque, with a narrow black margin; anal yellow, basally
tinged with pink, and with a broad dark gray median band ; ventrals yellow ;
a black axillary spot; caudal yellowish-brown, with a moderately broad
black marginal band: irides brown and gold.

The evidence elicited before the Royal Commission in connection with the
spawning of the Black Bream is again very conflicting, so much so that the
only conclusion arrived at is stated thus:—“ The schooling season seems to
be summer, but when or where they spawn has not been ascertained.”
From Twofold Bay Mr. Glover distinctly asserts that “ February is the
month for spawning, and the fish spawn among weeds, and in deep holes
with a muddy bottom.” This agrees fairly well as to the date with the
observations of the late Mr. Edward Hill, who, referring probably to the
Sydney District, says:—* These Bream visit our harbors from seaward
periodically during the summer months of February, March, and April, and
are adult fishes, being full roed at the time of their visit; probably they are
migratory for the purpose of spawning.” Writing from the Clarence Heads
Mr. Hocd Pegus states that “ Black Bream spawn in July, and are found in
the river all the year round.” From my own notes I find that of two
specimens examined during the month of August, both having been taken
in the same haul of a seine, one was found to contain ova in a very early
stage of development, while in the other the ova was fully developed, but
exceptionally few in number; during the following month a specimen from
the same locality showed not the faintest trace of spawning, nor did a
specimen from Lake Macquarie captured in October, though in another
example from the same Lake the roe was about half developed ; a specimen,
however, from Wollongong, taken during the same month, had the spawn
ready for extrusion ; lastly a specimen from Shellharbor, taken in December,
scarcely showed any signs of breeding, while the roe was fully developed
in Port Jackson examples purchased at the same time; it would appear,
therefore, that even in fishes from the same locality much diversity occurs
as to the spawning season.

Though oceasionally taken on the outside Snapper-grounds, the favorite
haunts of the Black Bream are the sheltered bays, lakes, and estuaries which
are so frequent on the coast of the Colony; here they are taken by the
seine in enormous numbers, the finest offered for sale in the Sydney
market coming from Lake Macquarie. They are also great favorites with
the amateur line fisher, as when plentiful and in a taking humor they afford
fine sport, the best bait according to Mr. Hill being fresh or a day old
mackerel, or better still the small prawus, popularly known as “ nippers”
(Alpheus edwardsii), which are procurable at low tide among seaweeds. Of

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. aes

their manner of taking a bait that gentleman remarks :—“ They pick it up
and rush off at full tilt (no nibbling with them), and pull hard and sheer
about, with a full determination if possible to get away.” Tenison Woods
also bears witness to their value to the angler in the following words :—* It
affords excellent sport to anglers in Victoria. The author remembers in
January, 1860, catching an-immense quantity with a line in the Glenelg
River, Victoria, where the river was little more than brackish, though not
far from the mouth. The bait used was a small crab, and no sooner was
the line down than the hook was swallowed.” McCoy remarks :—‘ The
Bream is the chief sport of amateur fishermen, who catch great quantities
by rod and line in the brackish water of the mouths of the rivers and creeks
and sea entrances of the Gippsland Lakes, which they enter during the
summer months, spawning there about November and December. They go
down to the sea again about the end of June, when the cold weather comes
on, and may be caught in the sea, commonly about the ends of piers, with
rod and line during the winter months. The bait is usually small fish, or
small shrimps, or worms. ‘The fish is moderately good for the table, except
at spring time, when the flesh becomes flabby and the colors dull.”

The Black Bream is quite as valuable a species as its congener P. wnicolor,
for where that species, from the high prices which it commands in the
market, owing to the limited supply, is of great value to the moneyed classes,,
the present comes in such numbers that the low prices (as prices run in
Sydney) at which it is sold place it within reach of every householder.

It is a wholesome, nutritious, and well flavored fish, and is a general,
favorite with all. The stomachs of a number lately examined contained
small fishes, among which could be detected a Cristiceps and a Sillago,
crustaceans, molluscs such as Limpets, brittle-stars, worms, and Sertularie.

The Black Bream inhabits the coasts of Australia, Tasmania, and southern
New Guinea. On our coast it is very abundant, and ascends rivers as far
as the influence of the tide extends, and sometimes, if not habitually, above
that point. It is also abundant in Victorian waters; refering to that
colony Castelnau says:—‘ This fish is one of the most common in the
Melbourne market throughout all seasons of the year. It is esteemed as
food, but never attains to a large size, the longest specimens being about
twelve inches. The Australian Bream is a sea fish, but often enters the
rivers, and is common in the Lower Yarra and also in the Gippsland Lakes.”
Johnston remarks :—‘ The Silver Bream enters the brackish waters of creeks
and rivers during the summer months in considerable numbers. They
subsist chiefly upon crabs and other hard shelled animals, which abound in
such places. They are supposed to shed their spawn in the brackish shallows
during the months of November and December, returning to the sea before
the close of June.” Specimens are in the South Kensington Museum,
taken in fresh water, from the Harvey River, West Australia, and a skin is
also deposited there from Port Essington.

The average size of this fish may be placed at twelve inches, but much
larger examples are common. The largest personally examined was caught
in Port Jackson, and measured nineteen inches.

Family [X.—CIRRHITIDA.

Branchiostegals normally six, in one genus (Nemadactylus) three: pseudo-
branchiz present. Body oblong or oblong-ovate, compressed. Eyes of
moderate size, lateral. Mouth in front of the snout, with lateral cleft.
Cheeks not cuirassed. Dentition variable, generally consisting of small teeth

54 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

in both jaws, with or without canines: vomerine and palatine teeth present
or absent. One dorsal fin composed of a spinous and a rayed portion of
nearly equal extent: anal with three spines: ventrals thoracic, remote from
the insertion of the pectorals, with one spine and five rays: lower pectoral
rays simple and generally thickened. Scales cyclid: lateral lme continuous.
Airbladder absent or, when present, with many appendages. Pyloric appen-
dages few.

Geographical distribution —Tropical and temperate regions of the Indian
and Pacific Oceans.

Genus IL.—CHIRONEMUS.
Chironemus, Cuy. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. i. p. 78, 1829.

Branchiostegals six: pseudobranchie present. Body oblong and slightly
compressed. Opercle spiniferous: preopercle entire. Small teeth in both
jaws: teeth on the vomer: palate edentulous. One dorsai fin with fourteen
or fifteen spines: the anal with three: the six or seven lower pectoral rays
simple. Scales of moderate size, cyclid. Airbladder wanting. Pyloric
appendages in small numbers.

Geographical distribution Coasts of Australia, Tasmania, and New
Zealand.

CHIRONEMUS MARMORATOUS.

Chironemus marmoratus, Guth. Catal. Fish. 11. p.76; Macleay, Catal. Austr.
Bish. i:p. 120.

Kelpfish.
‘Plate XVII.

B. vi. D. 15/18. (14/19).A. 3/6. V. 1/5. P. 15. C. 15. L. lat. 55—58, L. tr.
11/20. Coec. pyl. 2.

Length of head 3°50—3'75, of caudal fin 533—5'66, height of body
3°90—4'10 in the total length. Eye large and prominent, its diameter
4:50—4'80 in the length of the head, 1°50—1°66 in that of the snout,
which is moderately pointed, and from 0°90—1'10 in the rather deeply
concave interorbital space. Nostrils equal and horizontally oval, the anterior
with a broad multiradiate flap both before and behind. Upper profile of
head rounded. Jaws equal. Cleft of mouth moderate and horizontal, the
maxilla reaching to the anterior margin of the orbit or not quite so far.
Supraorbital margin well developed, terminating in ablunt point: preopercular
margin evenly rounded: opercle with two prominent spinous points. A
broad band of cardiform teeth in the jaws; villiform teeth in a narrower
obtusely angular band on the vomer. ‘The dorsal commences above the
opercular spines; its spines are moderately strong, the sixth, rarely the
fifth, the longest, from 2°25—2-50 in the length of the head ; the height of
the first spine is two sevenths of the longest, and a little shorter than the
penultimate, which is five eighths of the last spine ; the outer margin of the
soft dorsal is obliquely truncated, the anterior rays being equal in height to
the highest spine ; the base of the soft dorsal is five sixths of that of the
spinous: the anal commences beneath the fifth, and ends beneath the eleventh
dorsal ray ; the second spine is equal in length to, but stronger than, the
third, which is from 2°75—800 in the length of the head, and 1°75 in the two
anterior rays, which far execed those of the dorsal in height; the outer
margin of tbe fin is smuous: the ventral commences beneath the eighth

_ yw ten

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 55

dorsal spine, and reaches to the origin of the anal; its spine is subequal in
length to the longest dorsal spine, and 1°50 in the outer ray, which is from
1:50—1°60 in the head: the six lower pectoral rays are simple, the upper
simple ray is the longest in the fin, and about one tenth shorter than the
head ; the postericr margin of the fin is rounded: the caudal is truncated,
the least height of its pedicle one third of the height of the body.

Colors.—Olive green or yellowish-brown, blotched and marbled with rich
dark reddish-brown ; young and halfgrown examples with bright red spots
of moderate size: spinous dorsal dark brown, immaculate; other fins
spotted and speckled with reddish-brown.

The Kelpfish or Marbled Morwong is a true rock fish, and is only caught
by hook and line or by meshing nets set close in along the rocks. They
are said to breed in holes among seaweeds, to which they attach their spawn.
Owing to the difficulties attending their capture they are not sought by the
professional fishermen, and appear, therefore, but rarely in the market;
they are, nevertheless, excellent table fish. Their food consists of small
fishes, crustaceans, molluses, and all such lower forms of life as live among
seaweed.

South of Port Jackson the Kelpfish is common along the New South
Wales coast, but to the northward we are unable to trace its presence beyond
Port Stephens, whence we have seen one example. Of its occurrence in the
Victorian waters, there cannot be the slightest doubt, though Lucas only
gives it on the authority of Castelnau, whose description evidently refers to
a species of Haplodactylus, as the tricuspid teeth, differently shaped
dorsal fin, consumption of seaweeds, &c., abundantly prove. It occurs in
Tasmania; “ caught ocasionally at the mouth of the Derwent” (Johnston).
C. marmoratus was originally described by Giinther from western and north-
eastern Australia, the types having been obtained from Swan River and
Darnley Island. A single example from Lord Howe Island is in the
Australian Museum.

The Kelpfish attains a length of fourteen inches.

Genus II.—CHILODACTYLUS.

Chilodactylus, Cuvier, Régne Anim.; Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. v. p. 356,
1830.

Branchiostegals six (or five?) : pseudobranchie present. Body oblong or
oblong-ovate, more or less compressed. Opercular bones entire. Teeth in
the jaws in villiform bands, with or without an outer enlarged series: vomer
and palate edentulous. One dorsal fin with numerous spines: anal of
moderate length or rather short: one simple pectoral ray more or less
produced beyond the rest of the fin. Scales of moderate size, cyclid;
cheeks scaly. Airbladder large, and frequently multilobate. Pyloric
appendages few.

Geographical distribution.
and Pacific Oceans.

CHILODACTYLUS CARPONEMUS.

Sparus carponemus, Parkinson. |

Chilodactylus carponemus, Cuy. & Val. v. p. 862, pl. exxvili. ; Richards. Proc.
Zool. Soc. 1850, p. 61, and Ann. Nat. Hist. (2) 1851, vil. p. 277 ; Guth.
Catal. Fish. ii. p. 78 ; Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 122; McCoy,
Prodr. Zool. Vict. dec. xviii. pls. 178, 174. e ;

Chilodactylus morwong, Rms. and Ogl. Proc. Linn. Soc. N. S. Wales (2) 1.
p. 879.

Tropical and subtropical parts of the Indian

56 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Morwong.
Plate XVIII.

B. vi. D. 17-19/26-30. A. 3/15-17. V. 1/5. P. 15. C. 17. L. lat. 55=59)
L. tr. 7/18. Coec pyl. 2.- Vert. 15/20.

Length of head 3°85-4:20, of caudal fin 4°33-4-70, height of body
3°20-3'40 in the total length. Eye large and prominent, its diameter
400-500 in the length of the head, 2:00-2°66 in that of the snout, and from
0°90-1:25 in the convex interorbital space. Nostrils equal, subcireular, the
anterior with a broad, simple, lanceolate flap on its hinder margin. Upper
profile of head sinuous, the forehead swollen. Lips thick and fleshy.
Upper jaw the longer. Cleft of mouth small and transverse, the maxilla
not reaching to the anterior nostril. Jaws with a band of villiform teeth,
and an outer series of enlarged conical ones. The dorsal fin commences
above the upper angle of the opercle; the spines are moderately strong,
the sixth or seventh the longest, 2‘90-3:20 in the length of the head;
the first spine is the shortest, about two fifths of the sixth, and the
last is shorter than the one preceding it, about equal to the second,
and a little shorter than the first ray; all the rays short; the basal
length of the rayed portion is about six sevenths of that of the spinous: the
anal fin commences beneath the third to fifth dorsal ray, and ends beneath
the twentieth ; the spines are short but very strong, the second the longest,
540-575 in the length of the head, and one fifth of the first ray ; anterior
rays much longer than the median ones, but considerably shorter than the
last three, which are abruptly elongated : the ventral commences beneath the

eighth dorsal spine, and reaches to or within a fractional distance of the —

vent; its spine is moderately strong and considerably longer than the
highest dorsal spine; the outer ray is the longer, its length 1:66-1:75 in
that of the dorsal: the two upper and seven lower pectoral rays simple ; the
second lower simple ray the longest, reaching to between the sixth and
twelfth anal rays; its length is from 2°66-2°90 in the total length, and
about one half longer than the head: caudal deeply forked, the least’ height
of the pedicle 533 in the height of the body. Preorbital naked ; the scales
on the upper profile of the head encroaching on the snout to beyond the
nostrils: vertical fins with a narrow basal sheath covered with several series
of small scales. Lateral line gently curved, entering the caudal pedicle very
near to its upper margin.

Colors.—Above purplish-gray, darkest on the head; each of the scales
with a greenish-golden dark edged spot, forming inconspicuous bands ;
lower part of the sides and the abdominal region silvery; a golden band,
margined above and below by iridescent purple from below the middle of
the eye along the snout. :

Of this, one of the best food fishes of the Colony, nothing whatever is
known of the breeding habits, nor has a single example come under our
notice in which the slightest rudiments of spawn could be detected ; neither

are the young ever found among the débris of the seine nets in the harbor nor -

washed ashore with other fishes on the outer beaches after stormy weather.
They are only caught by parties fishing for Snapper in deep water on the
ocean reefs, and do not, therefore, so often appear in the market as might be
expected ; nevertheless, as many as half a dozen may occasionally be seen
there together. These examples are almost invariably of large size, specimens
of fifteen inches and under being very rare. heir food consists of small
crustaceans, molluscs, polyzoa, &c.

———— ee ee —

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 57

Hither this species is everywhere uncommon or else we have hitherto
failed to ascertain the centre of its distribution. On our own coast it has
been shown to be nowhere common, nor can it be traced further northwards
than the Port Jackson District ; McCoy and Lucas mention it as rare on the
Victorian coast, while Johnston omits it entirely from his Tasmanian list.
It has also been recorded from South Australia and New Zealand, so that it
is known to have a fairly wide distribution, and as, from the facts stated
above, it is evidently not a shore frequenting fish, it is just possible that
extensive fishing grounds, of which we at present know nothing, may lie
between this and the last named Colony, which may prove to be the
metropolis of this valuable fish.

The largest Morwong examined in the Sydney market measured a trifle
over twenty eight inches.

CHILODACTYLUS MACROPTERUS.

Sciena macroptera, Forster.

Cichla macroptera, Bl. Schn. p. 342.

Cheilodactylus macropterus, Richards. Proc. Zool. Soc. 1850, p. 62, and
Ann. Nat. Hist. (2) 1851, vii. p. 278.

Chilodactylus macropterus, Guth. Catal. Fish. p. 78. and Study of Fish. p.
411, f£. 177; Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. 1872, i. p. 74; Macleay,
Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 122 ; Johnston, Proc. Roy. Soc. Tas. 1882, pp.
76, 112; Sherrin, Handb. N. Z. Fish. p. 98.

Jackassfish.

B. vi. D. 17-18/25-27. A. 3/12-15. V 1/5. P. 15. C. 15, L. lat. 538-55. L.
tr. 6/14-17. Coeec. pyl. 3.

Length of head 4:00-4:25, of caudal fin 4:20-4:50, height of body 3:50-3'70
in the total length. Diameter of eye 3°33-3'50 in the length of the head, and
1:30-1:40 in that of the snout: imterorbital space slightly convex, from
1:10-1:20 in the diameter of the eye. Upper profile of the head sinuous.
Lips fleshy. Upper jaw the longer. Cleft of mouth almost horizontal, the
maxilla reaching to the anterior margin of the eye. Jaws with abroad band
of villiform teeth, and an outer series of enlarged conical ones. The dorsal
fin commences above the opercular flap; the spines are moderately strong,
the seventh, rarely the sixth, the longest, 1:90-2:05 in the length of the head,
and much longer than the rays: the anal fin commences beneath the third
or fourth dorsal ray, and terminates beneath the seventeenth to nineteenth ;
the spines are moderate, the second very strong and slightly longer than the
third, from 3°60-3'85 in the length of the head, and three fourths of the
first rays, which are much longer than the median ones; posterior rays but
little elongated: the ventral commences heneath the eighth dorsal spine, and
reaches to within a short distance of, or slightly beyond, the vent ; its spine
is strong, and equal in length to the longest dorsal spine; the outer ray is
the longest, 1°50-1°60 in the length of the head: the two upper and six
lower pectoral rays are simple; the first lower simple ray is the longest,
reaching to the third or fourth anal ray, its length 3°33 in the total length,
and from one fourth to two fifths longer than the head: caudal deeply
forked, the least height of the pedicle 4°75-5:00 in the height of the body.
Cheeks, opercles, and the upper surface of the head to in front of the
anterior nostrils scaly. Lateral line with a very slight curvature, entering
the caudal pedicle near to its upper margin.

58 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Colors.—Silvery, the back washed with purple: a broad purple transverse
band, which becomes inconspicuous with age, from the origin of the dorsal,
across the shoulder and posterior lobe of the opercle, but not reaching the
pectoral fin.

Both the Report of the Royal Commission on Fisheries and Tenison
Woods’ ‘‘Fisheries of New South Wales” are responsible for the confusion
which exists concerning the three very distinct species included in this work ;
these three species are fully recognised as distinct by the professional fisher-
men, not as a rule very discriminating authorities, under the names of
“ Morwong,” “ Jackassfish,’ and “ Carp,” and it is hoped that all such con-
fusion as to the identity of the fishes so named will now be set at rest.

This species is equally as scarce as the preceding in our markets, and like
it is only an accidental capture in an adult state on the Snapper-grounds;
one reason for this immunity from capture is that, not being by habits a
rock leving fish, it does not habitually frequent the ocean reefs, as do the
Snapper and kindred fishes, but prefers a sandy bottom ata moderate depth,
while another reason which might be deduced from the contents of the
stomachs of many specimens of all three species examined, taken in con-
junction with the weak dentition, and especially with the absence of teeth
on the roof of the mouth, leads inevitably to the conclusion that the baits
in use are quite unsuitable to the fishes of this genus.

In a fresh specimen, sent for identification to the Australian Museum
during the month of August, the ova appeared to be about one third
developed, but since other specimens caught during the same and the two
_followmg months showed no symptoms of spawning, we must again acknow-
ledge our inability to fix the date of the performauce of this important
function. Though abundant on the shores of Tasmania and New Zealand
neither Messrs. Johnston or Sherrin refer to this subject ; the former, how-
ever, remarks :—“ It is most probable that the mature fish spawn in five to
six fathoms of water; that, like the Trumpeters (Zatris), the young
immediately after seek the upper shallow banks of estuaries, remaining
there until they are halfgrown, when they again gradually return to the
parent ground, toward the mouth of the estuaries.”

As food in a fresh state they are excellent, and according to the Report of
the Royal Commission they “are equal to Cod or Ling for salting”; this
statement is possibly correct, but needs verifying, since they are too scarce
in this Colony to admit of any practical experiment being attempted, while
in the two above mentioned, where they are abundant, no special industry
of the sort is noted by their historians. As with C. carponemus its food
consists of small molluses and crustaceans, mixed with polyzoa and similiar
minute organisms.

These fishes are usually taken by hook and line, and where plentiful
afford good sport. “In the various bays in the immediate vicinity of
Hobart ” Johnston writes, “the young Silver Perch, seven to eight inches
long, afford ample sport to amateur fishermen. The fish take bait readily—
the mussel, boiled, being a favorite; and during the months of March,
April, and May, it is not uncommon for a party of two or three persons to
catch from ten to twenty dozen in a couple of hours”; and again:—
‘ Although some are caught in nets with the Bastard Trumpeter they are
usually caught by hook and line.” On the same subject Hector writes :—
“Throughout the whole year the Tarakihi may be caught with the hook in
ten to twenty five fathoms water with a sandy bottom.”

The range of this species is considerable; in the British Museum Cata-
logue it is given as “ Australian Seas,” but we have no evidence whatever of

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 59

its occurrence on the northern, western, or south-western shores of the
continent, while the occurrence of a single specimen at Port Essington, as
recorded by Giinther, cannot be regarded, supposing the loeality to be
correct, but as accidental for a fish which is so markedly a denizen of cold
water strata. Of its scarcity on the New South Wales coast it is unneces-
sary to say more than that the high price which both this and the preceding
species command in the Sydney market is ample evidence of the estimation
in which both species are held. Of its abundance or otherwise on the
Victorian coast it is dificult to judge, as Lucas, who does not appear to
know the fish, merely mentions it tersely as found “off South Coast,
Castelnau,” while from the latter author’s words we might infer that it is a
common market fish in Melbourne. In Tasmania the “Silver Perch,” (C.
macropterus) as it is there called is, Johnston writes, “next in importance
to the Trumpeter group as regards quality and supply. . . . ‘The
young are to be caught on the numerous rocky banks, in three to four
fathoms water, in the upper bays of the estuaries, especially in those of the
Derwent. They are in this state found in more or less abundance all the
year round, and are highly esteemed for the breakfast table.” Referring to
New Zealand Hector writes of the Tarahiki, the Maori name for our
Jackassfish :—“ This is a very common fish in the market, and comes into
season in September. Two sizes are generally sold during the spring
months—the smaller ones, three or four to the pound, being the best ; the
flesh of the larger fish, which are three to six pounds weight, being considered
rather tasteless.

Johnston considers that the Silver Perch (C. macropterus) and the Black
Perch (C. aspersus) are merely local varieties of a most variable species, and
from the evidence adduced I see no reason to doubt the correctness of his
surmise. To quote hisown words :—‘ The Black Perch (C. aspersus) is most
probably a mere variety of C. macropterus. The former is found invariably
upon a rocky bottom, and the latter upon a sandy bottom, and the color is,
undoubtedly, the result of the difference in local environment.” ‘The
Black Perch is only distinguished from the Silver by its condition and
quality” ; and, “ Generally the Black Perch is found in deeper water, and
attains a greater size.”

The Jackassfish grows on our coast to a length of at least eighteen inches.

CHILODACTYLUS FUSCUS.
Chilodactylus fuscus, Casteln. Proc. Linn. Soc. N. 8. Wales, 1879, ii.
p- 876; Woods, Fisher. N. S. Wales, p. 46, pls. x. x1.
Chilodactylus annularis, Casteln. Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S. Wales, ui. p. 377.

Carp.
Plate XTX.

Bi vi. D. 17/81-33. A. 3/9-10. V. 1/5. P. 14. C. 15. L. lat. 58-62. L. tr.
8-9/18-19. Coee. pyl. 4. Vert. 14/21.

Length of head 3°75-425, of caudal fin 4°50-5:00, height of body
3°00-3 40 in the total length. Eye large and prominent, 4°00-4'60 in the
length of the head, 1:25-2:00 in that of the snout, and about equal to the
interorbital space, which is almost flat. Upper profile of head concave from
above the posterior half of the eyes. Lips fleshy. Upper jaw the longer; the
maxilla extends to beneath the posterior nostril, or between that and the
eye ; a blunt process in front of the antero-superior margin of the eyes; and
in old examples a similar process anteriorly on the snout. Snout with a

60 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

median and a pair of lateral longitudinal grooves, in the latter of which
the nostrils are pierced; nostrils with a raised skinny margin, the
anterior elongate-oval, oblique, provided posteriorly with a flap, which
entirely conceals its hinder moiety; posterior oval and much smaller; both
nostrils directed backwards. Jaws with a band of villiform teeth, which are
scarcely visible above the gums. The dorsal fin commences above the angle
of the preopercle; the spines are rather weak, longer than the rays, the
fourth or fourth and fifth the longest, 2°50-2:70 in the length of the head;
base of the spinous portion three fourths of that of the soft: the anal com-
mences beneath the eleventh or twelfth dorsal ray, and terminates beneath
the seventeenth to twentieth; the second spine is not so long as but is
stronger than the third, which is from 3:25-3:75 in the length of the head,
and not haif the length of the anterior ray ; outer edge of anal rays truncate
with a posterior rounded margin, the anterior more than twice as long as the
middle dorsal rays: the ventrals commence opposite to the tenth dorsal
spine, and reach to or not quite to the vent, their length being from 150-175
in that of the head: pectoral fins with normally six, sometimes seven, simple
rays, the second the longest, reaching-to or but little beyond the vent, and
equal to, or as much as one fourth longer, than the head: caudal forked,
the least height of its pedicle 4°66 in the height of the body. Snout and
preorbitals naked ; remainder of the head covered with small seales: vertical
fins with a narrow basal scaly sheath. Lateral line gently curved through
out its entire length, entering the caudal pedicle near its dorsal margin.

Colors.—General color of the body bluish-silvery, each scale with a
reddish-brown margin which is much broader above than below; two or .
three oblique silvery bands on the posterior portion of the tail, which are
very conspicuous in immature examples but almost obsolete in adults ; head
reddish-brown; an orange band, broadest in front, round the eye, except on
the supraorbital region; chin and branchiostegals silvery, with a chestnut patch
between them; anterior margin of pectoral region orange: dorsal reddish-
brown, the rays narrowly edged with orange ; anal and ventrals black, with
or without a bluish submarginal band; pectorals pale brown, with a small
axillary spot and the elongate portions of the simple rays red; caudal
reddish-brown basally, deepening almost to black behind, and with a broad
orange posterior margin.

The Australian Carp differs so much from all the other Chilodactyli that
it is difficult to understand how Tenison Woods has so confounded it with
its congeners, as to figure the same species twice under different names.

Notwithstanding that the Carp is found in moderate numbers along our
coast at all seasons of the year, and freely enters our harbors and estuaries,
where it doubtless breeds, since the young are taken there by seine, trawl,
and hook, nothing definite can be learned as to its manner of breeding.
As stated by the Royal Commission, it “is more of a rockfish (than the two
preceding species), being frequently taken in the harbor in nets,” but with
the next sentence “it seems to be only an oceasional visitor” we can by no
means agree; the adults are in fact fairly common on the outside reefs and
rocky shores throughout the year, though apparently in greater numbers
during the warmer months; insuch places they are chiefly caught by hook and
line; they are among the most common as well as the most handsome fishes
to be found in our aquaria. Tenison Woods states that the aboriginal
name is “‘ Bingatti.”

As food this is one of the best fishes of the Colony, and is obtainable at a
moderate price, but, as is unfortunately the case with so many of our fishes,
there is no special fishery for them, and, except in the case of the immature

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EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 61

examples which frequent the shoal waters of our inlets, they, therefore,
escape capture. The food of those examined consisted of small worms,
finely triturated masses of foraminifera, and small shells, with a single
perfect example of Gena striatula.

This again is one of those species whose range is either very limited, or
the centre of whose distribution has not yet been discovered, the coastline
lying between Lake Macquarie and Shoalhaven being so far the only
locality from which it has been recorded.

- This species should, however, be critically compared with Ohilodactylus
spectabilis, Hutton (—C. allporti, Guth. and C. rubrofasciatus, Casteln.), for
it seems quite probable that they are but color varieties of the same species,
in which case Hutton’s name takes precedence. Should this surmise prove
eorrect its range must be extended to Victorian, Tasmanian, and New
Zealand waters.

Family X.-SCORPAINIDZ.

Branchiostegals five to seven: pseudobranchie present. Body oblong-
ovate, subcylindrical, or compressed. Eye lateral. Cleft of mouth lateral.
Some of the bones of the head armed : suborbital ring articulated with the
preopercle. Teeth in villiform bands. A single dorsal fin in two distinct
portions: anal usually similar to the soft dorsal: ventrals thoracic. Body
with or withoutscales. Airbladder generally present. Pyloric appendages,
when present, few cr in moderate numbers.

Geographical distribution —Almost all seas ; some of the species living in
fresh water.

Genus I.—_SEBASTES.

Sebastes, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. iv. p. 826, 1829.
Pseudosebastes, Sauvage, Nouv. Arch. Mus. (2) 1878, 1. p. 113.

Branchiostegals seven: pseudobranchiew present. Body oblong-ovate and
somewhat compressed. No occipital groove, but usually a few small spines.
Opercle spiniferous : preopercle armed. Villiform teeth on the jaws, vomer,
and generally on the palatine bones. Fins not elongated: one dorsal having

- the spinous and soft portions separated by a more or less deep notch, and

with from twelve to fourteen spines: anal with three: lower pectoral rays
simple: no pectoral appendages. Scales of moderate or small size, extending
forwards to the orbit or even beyond it: no skinny appendages. Airbladder
usually present. Pyloric appendages few or in moderate numbers.

Geographical distribution Inhabitants of almost all seas; not as yet
recorded from the Atlantic shores of tropical America, nor from the east
coast of Africa.

SEBASTES PERCOIDES.

Scorpena percoides, Solander.

Sebastes maculatus, Richards. Trans. Zool. Soe. iil. p. 93 (wot Cuvier, nor
Smith).

Sebastes percoides, Richards. Ann. Nat. Hist. 1842, ix. p. 384, and Voy. Erebus
& Terror, Fish. p. 23, pl. xv. ff. 1, 2; Gnth. Catal. Fish. i. p. 101, and
Study of Fish. p: 412. f. 178; Casteln. Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W. lil,
p. 379; McCoy, Prodr. Zool. Vict. dee. iv. pl. 83 ; Hutton, Trans. N.Z.
Inst. v. pl. vill. f. 14; Macleay Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 129; Woods,
Fisher, N.S. Wales, pl. xiv.; Sherrin, Handb. N.Z. Fish. p. 88.

Sebastes allporti, Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soe. Vict. 1. p. 40.

62 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Red Gurnard Perch.
B. vii. D. 12/12. A. 3/5. V. 1/5. P. 18. C. 13. L. lat 56-65. L. tr. ca. 10/28.

Length of head 2°75--3:10, of caudal fin 4°90-5'40, height of body 3°40-3:°60
in the total length. Width of head at the base of the longest preopercular
spine 1:80-2:00 in its length. Eye large, situated high up on the head, its
diameter 3°15-3°80 in the length of the head: snout short, 1:25-1:50 in the
diameter of the eye: interorbital space concave, narrow, 2°20-2°75 in the
same. Nostrils but little separated, the anterior pierced in a low tube and
with a short tentacle behind, the posterior simple, oval, and vertical. Jaws
equal. Cleft of mouth large and oblique, the maxilla reaching to beneath the
posterior fourth of the orbit. Preorbital with two strong, compressed, blunt
points inferiorly: turbinal bone armed with a strong spine: a rather larger
one on the antero-superior angle of the orbit, and two at the postero-superior
angle: interorbital space with two curved ridges, terminating in spines:
occiput with two divergent ridges terminating in two spines each: three
temporal spines, the anterior pair placed one above the other, the third at
the origin of the lateral line: a low ridge from beneath the eye to the upper
preopercular spine bearing a single spine mesially : preopercle with five strong
spines, the second counting from above the largest : two acute spines on the

opercle. Teeth villiform in the jaws; ina rectangular band on the vomer, and —

in narrow anteriorly curved bands on the palatines. ‘The dorsal commences
above theinner angle of the opercle, its spines are strong and sharp, the third
the longest, 2°00-2°60 in the length of the head, and considerably longer than
the longest rays; the height of the eleventh spine is from 1°25-1'33 in that
of the last, which is 1°25-1'40 in that of the second; the base of the rayed
dorsal is from 1°85-2°00 m that of the spmous, and the last ray is attached
to the tail by a short membrane: the anal commences beneath the second
and ends beneath the tenth dorsal ray; the second anal spine is much the
longest and strongest, equal in length to the sixth dorsal spine, 2°70-3-00
in the length of the head, and much shorter than the rays, the last of which
is not attached by membrane to the tail: ventral pointed, the second ra
the longest, reaching to the vent, and 1°75-1'90 in the length of the head;
its spine equal to the seventh or eighth dorsal spine: seven, sometimes
eight, simple pectoral rays, the branched portion truncate, the simple portion
rounded posteriorly ; upper simple rays the longest, 150-175 jn the length
of the head: caudal rounded, the least height of its pedicle about 3:33-3°66
in the height of the body. Scales rather small, finely ctenid, adherent,
extending on the head to about midway along the interorbital space, and on
to the bases of the soft dorsal and anal fins. Eight series of scales between
the last dorsal spine and the lateral line. Lateral line with a gentle
downward curve along its entire length.

Colors.—Above reddish-orange, gradually shading into the white of the
lower surfaces ; upper part of head dusky owing to numbers of small semi-
coalescent dark specks ; a bluish spot on the inner margin of the opercle ;
sides with four irregular broad dark transverse bands, the two anterior not
reaching to the abdominal profile, and the last of which crosses the base of
the caudal: fins red, the lateral bands generally extending a short way on
to the dorsal and anal; a dusky spot on the pectorals rather below the
centre usually present.

In the Sydney District this species has no vernacular name among the
fishermen and salesmen, by whom, owing to._a general resemblance in
coloration, it is confounded with Plectropoma nigrorubrum ; I have, there-

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EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 63

fore, adopted the name by whichit is known in Victoria. With us it is only
2 found in moderately deep water, in the neighborhood of sunken ocean
reefs, and, consequently, is only occasionally captured, and that by hook and
line alone. Examples brought to the Sydney market during the early
months of summer are well advanced in roe.

Alluding to Victoria McCoy remarks that it is “rather rare”; Johnston,
however, speaking of it in Tasmania, where it is called the “ Rock Gurnard,”
says that it is“ found more abundantly on the northern coasts, is held in
great esteem for the table, and is obtained in the vicinity of George Town
in considerable numbers.”

In New Zealand it is known to the settlers as “Sea Perch,” its Maori
name being “ Pohuiakaroa.” Hector says:—‘‘Itis one of the most fre-
quent and troublesome fishes, caught in a moderate depth of water round
the coast, and especially in rocky waters, being almost worthless as food.”

It does not exceed twelve inches in length on our coast.

Genus IIl.—_SCORPANA.

Scorpena, Artedi, Genera. Pise, p. 47, 1738; Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss.
iy. p. 286, 1829.

Branchiostegals seven: pseudobranchie present. Body ovate and
slightly compressed. Head large, with a naked groove on the occiput, armed
with spines, and bearing skinny flaps. Villiform teeth on the Jaws, vomer,
and palatines. One dorsal fin, more or less deeply notched, with twelve
spines: anal with three spines: pectorals large and rounded, with some of
the lower rays unbranched ; no free pectoral appendages. Scales moderate
or rather small, mixed with more or less numerous skinny appendages.
Airbladder absent. Pyloric appendages in small numbers.

Geographical distribution.—Tropical seas, extending northwards to the
Mediterranean, New York, and Japan, southwards to Tasmania and New
Zealand.

SCORPZANA CRUENTA.

Scorpena cruenta (Solander) Richards. Ann. Nat. Hist. 1542, i. poi:
Guth. Catal. Fish. ii. p. 112; Casteln. Proc. Linn. Soc. N. 8. Wales,
ili. p. 378; Hutton. Trans. N. Z. Inst. v. pl. viii. f. 15; Macleay, Catal.
Austr. Fish. i. p. 180.

Scorpena ergastulorum, Richards. Ann. Nat. Hist. 1842, ixpe 2h

Scorpena militaris, Richards. Voy. Ereb. & Terror, Fish. p. 22, pl. xiv.
i ie

Black-spotted Red Rock-Cod.
Plate XX.

B. vii. D. 12/10. A. 3/5. V. 1/5. P.17. C. 14. L. lat, 20-21. L. tr. 8/15-17.

Length of head 2°80, of caudal fin 4°50, height of body 8°90 in the total
leneth. Width of head at the base of the upper preopercular spines 185 in
its length. Diameter of eye 3°85 in the length of the head, and equal to
that of the short, broad, rounded snout: interorbital space deeply concave,
its width at the median orbital spine 1°85 in the diameter of the eye.
Nostrils separated; the anterior of moderate size, with a low fleshy rim
surrounding it except for a short space in front, and with a well developed

G4 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

fimbriated tentacle behind ; the posterior small and oval, pierced at the base
of the orbital ring. Jaws equal, the lower with a short bony tubercle
below the symphysis. Cleft of mouth wide and a little oblique, the maxilla
reaching to beneath the posterior third of the orbit. Preorbital with from
one to three small spines at the middle of its upper margin, from which
radiate ridges terminating in short stout spines along its inferior margin,
some of which are ornamented with tentacles, that of the last being always
present, long, and fringed, and with a pair of small bilobate tentacles pos-
teriorly: a turbinal spine: one anterior and two posterior supraorbital
spines: a short compressed ridge commences behind the intermayillary pro-
cesses, and ends between the front margins of the eyes: interorbital space
with a low ridge on each side, which is absorbed into a much more pro-
minent ridge rising at the base of the second supraorbital spine, and meeting
at the anterior margin of the vertical groove, which after their junction they
partially divide by a much lower ridge : a strong spine on each side in the
groove, followed by a pair on the occiput in contact with one another: a
temporal ridge consisting of three strong spines, the last of which marks the
origin of the lateral line, and preceded by: a pair of small spines, below which, at
some distance, are a similar pair: a deep naked groove below the eye, bor-
dered inferiorly by astrongly spinate ridge, which terminates in the upper and
longest preopercular spine : preopercle with five spines, which grow gradually
shorter inferiorly: opercle with two divergent ridges traversing its entire
length and ending in strong spines, the upper of which is the longer. A
broad band of cardiform teeth in the jaws, those in the lower being some-
what the stronger; vomerine teeth in an obtusely angular band; one or two
series of incurved teeth on the palate. The dorsal commences above the
middle of the opercle ; its spines are strong and acute, the third the longest,
2°25 in the length of the head ; height of the eleventh spine 1°90 in that of
the last, which is a little shorter than the second, and 1°50 in the height of
the third ; anterior dorsal rays not quite so long as the longest spine; the
base of the rayed portion is 2°00 in that of the s spinous, and the posterior

ray is attached by membrane to the tail: the anal commences beneath the
second dorsal ray, the second spine is the longest and strongest, equal in
length to the fifth dorsal spine, and 2°66 in that of the head; the rays are
longer than those of the dorsal, and the posterior one is not attached by
membrane to the tail: the ventral reaches to the vent, its length being 1°80 in
that of the head; the spine is moderately strong, about equal in length to
the seventh dorsal s spine : the ten lower pectoral rays are simple, the upper one
the longest, but little longer than the last divided ray, and 1°60 in the length
of the head: caudal gently rounded, the least height of the pedicle 4°33 in
the height of the body. Head scaleless. Lateral line with twenty one tubular
scales behind the opercular flap, and with forty four series above it; eight
series between the last dorsal spine and the lateral line.

Colovs.—General color carmine, brightest above; abdominal region
pearly white; a broad transverse pink spot, narrowest mesially, on the
occiput immediately behind the vertical groove ; lower surface of the head
pale red marbled with yellow, with which color the lips are banded ; from
one to three pink tentaculated spots on the lateral line; lower part of the
sides with scattered dark brown spots margined with carmine, most con-
spicuous underneath the pectorals: spinous dorsal bright red with silvery
blotches and stripes, and a black spot on the outer half between the sixth
and tenth spines present or absent; rayed portion with the outer half
profusely marbled with silvery, and generally with a small black spot at the
base of the two last rays, behind which is a pink spot; caudal marbled red

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES, 65

and yellow, with a, frequently V-shaped, row of black spots basally ;
pectorals mottled red, yellow, and silvery, with blackish spots on the upper
half; ventrals and anal yellow, with spots and blotches of carmine.

All our Rock Cods belonging to this family are ground fishes, haunting
the vicinity of weed-covered rocks in more or less shallow water. In such
places they prowl about in search of food, or lie motionless and concealed
among the seaweeds, and here doubtless they deposit their ova.

They are voracious fishes, and readily take a fish or shrimp bait, their
natural food being small fishes, crustaceans, soft molluses, and worms. As
food they vary greatly, somctimes barely meriting the definition “a fair
food fish,” applied to them by the writer in his Catalogue of the Fishes of
New South Wales, 1886; the flesh of others, however, which we have since
tasted was found to be firm, white, flaky, and well flavored.

This species is common along the entire seaboard of New South Wales, and,

according to Saville Kent, extends northwards into Queensland waters, but as

to its extension of range in that direction he gives no clue. It occurs on the.
coast of Victoria according to Macleay, but the naturalists of that colony
give no data as to its abundance or scarcity ; in Tasmanian waters, however,
Johnston states that it is ‘‘ common on a shallow rocky bottom all round the:
coasts and estuaries.”

S. eruenta grows to the length of eighteen inches, but the usual length of
market specimens is under twelve.

SCORPANA BYNOENSIS.

Scorpena bynoensis, Richards. Voy. Erebus and Terror, Fish. p. 22, pl. xiv.
ff. 4-5, 1846; Gnth. Catal. Fish. ii. p. 113, and Study of Fish. p. 414,
f.180; All. and Mael. Proc. Linn. Soe. N. 8. Wales, i. p. 278; Macleay
Proc. Linn. Soc. N. S. Wales ii. p. 353, and Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 131.

Scorpena jacksoniensis, Steindachn. SB. Ak. Wien, lili, 1866, p. 438, pl.
i. f. 2.

Bynoe’s Rock-cod.

Boy, D. 12/9. A. 8/5. V.1/5. P.17. 0.13. L. lat. 22-24. L. tr. 8/15.

Length of head 2°90, of caudal fin 4°40, height of body 3°40 in the total
length. Width of the head at the base of the upper preopercular spines
1:66 in its length. Diameter of eye 4°00 in the length of the head, and 1°10
in that of the broad, rounded snout: interorbital space very deeply concave,
its width at the median supraorbital spine 1°40 in the diameter of the eye.
Nostrils separate; the anterior circular, surrounded by a low fleshy rim,
which is developed behind into a broad simple tentacle; the posterior smaller
and oval, with alow fringed rim. Jaws equal, the symphyseal tubercle of
the lower scarcely developed. Cleft of mouth wide and a little oblique ; the
maxilla reaching to beneath the posterior fourth of the orbit. Preorbitalridged,
with three spines on the lower and one on the posterior margin, that at the
angle with a moderate, pointed, simple tentacle having a basal lobe: an upright
acute turbinal spine: one anterior and two posterior supraorbital spines,
the latter having a narrow, elongate, bifid tentacle between them: upper
part of postorbital ring with a series of small spines: interorbital space
with two inconspicuous ridges, forming posteriorly a rounded junction,
which is surmounted by an elevated skiany flap: vertical groove but
moderately developed, a little broader than long, with a conical spine on
each margin: two compressed spines in contact on the occiput: temporal
ridge as in S. eruenta, but without small spines below the anterior pair: no

E

66 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

groove below the eye: cheek traversed by a spinate ridge terminating at the
upper and longer preopereular spine: preopercle with five spines : “opercle
with two equal spines, the lower of which is preceded by an acute elevated
ridge. Jaws with a band of villiform teeth, the inner series being rather the
largest; vomerine and palatine teeth in a single series, the former obtusely
angular, the latter short. The dorsal commences above the middle of the
operele ; the spines are strong, the anterior ones deeply grooved on their
outer half, the third and fourth the longest, 2°35 in the length of the head ;
height of eleventh spine 1°75 in that of the last, which is equal to the
eighth, much longer than the second, and 1:33 in the longest spmes, which
are equal to the anterior rays ; the base of the rayed portion is 2°00 in that
of the spinous, and the last ray is jomed for about two thirds of its length
by membrane to the tail: the anal commences beneath the last dorsal spine ;
the spines are grooved throughout their entire length, the second is the
longest and strongest, curved, longer than the longest dorsal spines, 2°20 in
the length of the head, but not so long as the rays; the posterior ray is not
attached to the tail: the ventral reaches to or slightly beyond the vent, its
length being 1°75 in that of the head; the spine is moderately strong and
grooved, equal i in length to the sixth dorsal spine: pectoral rounded, the
eleven lower rays simple, the upper of these the longest, 1°50 in the length
of the head: caudal rounded, the least height of the pedicle 3°40 in the
height of the body. Head scaleless ; three series of small scales in front of
the dorsal; body with fine filaments, which are most numerous near the
base of the dorsal fin and on the lateral line. Lateral line with twenty two
to twenty four tubular scales, and forty four to forty six series above it.

Colors.—Upper surface reddish-brown, the brown decreasing on the sides,
the lower surface pale yellow; lower jaw with brown and “pearly spots ;
cheeks with a large dusky pateh ; a narrow black band across the anterior
margin of the snout; lower part of sides with scattered, round, blackish
spots: dorsal fin pale violet with black streaks and a conspicuous pearly
basal spot between the third and fourth spines ; anal silvery with an oblique
black cross band, outside of which it is spotted and tipped with pink;
ventrals pinkish with brownspots; pectorals and caudal, variegated with black.

Bynoe’s Rock Cod and the allied Cardinal Rock Cod (Scorpena
eardinalis) are much less commonly sent to the Sydney market than the
preceding species, They do not attain to the size of S. erwenta, but as they
frequent similar localities, and are taken by similar means, it may be
infered that their habits are also similar.

This species is widely distributed, ranging from north- western Australia,
whence the species was first described, through Torres’ Straits, and down the

east coast, at least as far as Port Jacheon. Tt j is also found on the shores of
New Zealand.

Genus III._CENTROPOGON.
Centropogon, Giinther, Catal. Fish. 11. p. 128, 1860.

Branchiostegals six or seven: pseudobranchie present. Head and body
rather strongly compressed. No groove on the occiput. Preorbital and
preopercle with strong spines: opercle armed. Villiform teeth in the jaws,
vomer, and palatine bones. One dorsal fin with more spines than rays: anal
with three spines: pectoral without simple rays : all the articulated fin rays
branched. Seales present. A narrow cleft behind the fourth gill. Pyloric
appendages in small numbers.

Geographical distribution—Seas of Australia, Malaysia, and India,
entering rivers, and at least one species—C. robustus—having become per-
manently established in fresh water.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH. WALES. 67

CENTROPOGON ROBUSTUS.

Centropagon robustus, Gnth. Catal. Fish. ii. p. 128, 1860, and Ann. Nat.
Hist. (3) 1867, xx. p. 60; Krefft, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1864, p. 182;
Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p.136, and Proc. Linn. Soc. N. S. Wales,
vill. p. 203 ; Woods, Fisher. N. 8S. Wales, p. 48.

Centropogon troschelit, Steindachn, SB. Ak. Wien, 1866, liii. p. 440.

Bulirout.

B. vi. D. 15/9-10. A. 3/5. V.1/5. P. 12. C. 14. L. lat. 88-88. L. tr. 21/50-58.
Ceee. pyl. 4. Vert. 8/14.

Length of head 3:00-3:25, of caudal fin 4°50-5:00, height of body 3°83-
3°66 in the totallength. Width of head at the base of the upper preopercular
spines 2°20 in its length. Diameter of eye 4:10-4:25 in the length of the
head, and a little shorter than that of the snout: interorbital space concave,
its width at the anterior supraorbital spine 1°60-175 in the diameter of the
eye. Nostrils separate, the anterior small and oval, pierced in the summit
of a lower rounded prominence; the posterior circular and much larger,
surrounded by a low rim. Upper surface of the head flat. Lower
jaw very slightly the longer. Cleft of mouth wide and oblique, the
maxilla reaching to beneath the middle of the eye or a little further.
Preorbital with two strong spines, the anterior short and triangular,
the posterior long, thorn-shaped, and very acute, directed backwards
and downwards, erectile at will, and from 1:50-2:00 in the diameter
of the eye: a small sharp turbinal spine: one anterior and two posterior
supraorbital spines, more acute and prominent in small examples: inter-
orbital space with a ridge on each side and a lower median ridge, the latter
bifurcating posteriorly, and forming with the lateral ridges parallel arcuate
ridges on the vertex: a pair of spines on each occipital ridge: a temporal
ridge bearing three strong spines, the last of which marks the origin of the
lateral line: suborbital ridges with a single spine inferiorly above the pre-
orbital spine, and broken up posteriorly into numerous low ramose ridges :
preopereie with five strong spines, the upper the iongest: interopercle with
a low ridge terminating in a hidden spinate point at its upper margin: opercle
with two prominent spines, the margin between them moderately indented,

-and the space between and above them carinated: a strong spie on the

posttemporal and another, pointing upwards and backwards, on the clavicular
bone, which is closely striated. Villiform teeth on the jaws, vomer, and
palatines ; on the latter in a narrow band; vomerine band subcrescentic.
The dorsal commences above the middle of the opercle, its origin being mid-
way between the tip of the snout and the tenth spine; the spines are acute
and moderately strong, the fourth normally the longest, but scarcely differing
in heizht from the third and fifth, 2:25-2°33 in the length of the head;
beyond these the spines grow gradually shorter, the last not being perceptibly
longer than its predecessor, and but very little less than the second; the
first spine is the shortest, 240 in the height of the fourth; the rays are
equal in height to the spines, and their outside contour forms a high and
regular arch ; the last ray is the shortest, and is attached by membrane to
the caudal pedicle by two-thirds of its length ; the basal length of the rayed
portion is from 3°20-3°33 in that of the spinous: the anal commences beneath
the thirteenth or fourteenth dorsal spine, and ends in front of the termina-
tion of the dorsal ; the third spine is a little longer than the second, equal
to the eighth dorsal spine, and 2:50-2°75 in the length of the head; the rays

68 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

are much longer than those of the dorsal, and their outer margin is truncate ;
the last ray is attached to the pedicle by a short membrane: ventral slightly
cuneate, reaching to or beyond the vent; the spine strong, equal in length
to the last anal spine ; the second ray the longest, 1'40-1'50 in the length
of the head; the inner ray firmly attached along half its length to the
abdomen : pectoral rounded, the middle rays the longest, a little longer than
the ventral: caudal rounded, the least height of its pedicle 3 20 in the height
of the body. Head sealeless. Lateral line with from twenty six to thirty
raised tubes.

Colors.—Brown, irregularly marbled with black, which sometimes takes the
form of broad vertical bands, and frequently with yellow spots and blotches ;
a chestnut spot frequently present on the vertex: all the fins mottled with
grey and black ; a large black spot always present in front of the middle of
the spinous dorsal.

The Bullrout deserves a place in this work, firstly because it is as a fact
an edible fish, its flesh being firm and of an excellent flavor, and secondly
because though originally a marine form it has taken to a brackish and
purely fresh water existence, having ascended and colonised many of our
rivers far beyond the influence of the tide ; for instance, they are found in
the Nepean above the falls at Norton’s Basin, which though but a few
feet in height, would prove an insurmountable barrier to such a fish as this ;
they also occur above the weir on the Parramatta River.

So far as our personal knowledge at present goes the range of this species is
limited to the rivers draining the eastern watershed of the colony with their
estuaries, between the Parramatta and the Upper Macleay, from both which
rivers we have handled specimens; the collectors employed by the scientists
of the Challenger Expedition have, however, obtained specimens from the
Mary River, Q., and we may, therefore, conclude that it is distributed
through all the rivers discharging into the seas of eastern Australia.

It is by no means the “very ugly” fish Tenison Woods calls it; on the
contrary, the different shades of yellow and brown and black are generally
so beautifully blended in fresh examples as to make it a strikingly handsome
fish; the fry of an inch long and under are very pretty little fishes, their
colors being bright yellow blotched with dark brown. ‘“‘ There are two
remarkable peculiarities about this fish,” continues Tenison Woods, “ one
is that it emits a loud and harsh grunting noise when it is caught, so
that if by chance it takes a bait, the fisherman knows what he has got
by the noise before he brings his fish to the surface of the water. When
out of the water the noise of the Bullrout is loudest.” If this be correct
it affords a more simple and probable explanation of the vernacular name,
than the suggestion of its being ‘a corruption of some native name”
advanced by that author. The second peculiarity, he says, is “that the
spines about the head are venomous, and inflict most painful stings.” No
doubt any such wound would cause pain, but the state of the sufferer’s
bealth, his nervousness, and his belief in the superstition of its poisonous
qualities are all factors, which must be taken into consideration. Personally
the writer has been “stung” on many occasions, both by the allied Fortescue
—which is Centropogon australis, not Pentaroge marmorata, this latter fish
being so rare in Port Jackson that we have never seen a recent specimen—
and by the British Weever (Trachinus vipera) and never felt any more
inconvenience than would result from a similar stab of a knife. The fact is
the wound is merely a deeply punctured and viciously inflicted one, without
any venomous properties whatever.

They attain to a length of nine inches.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 69

Family XI.—BERYCIDE.

Branchiostegals normally eight, in one genus (Polymixia) four. Body
oblong or rather elevated, compressed. yes large, except in Melamphaés,
lateral. Cleft of mouth lateral, oblique. Opercular bones more or less
armed. Villiform teeth in both jaws: present or absent on the yomer and
palatine bones. Ventral fins thoracic, with more that five rays, except in
Monocentris. Scales normally ctenid; bony in Monocentris, absent in
Anoplogaster, and cyclid in Melamphaés.

Geographical distribution.—Tropical and temperate seas.

Genus.—BERYX.
Beryx, Cuv. Regne Anim.; Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat Poiss. iii. p. 226, 1829.

Branchiostegals normally eight, exceptionally seven or nine: pseudo-
branchie present. Eyes large. Snout short, with oblique cleft of mouth and
prominent chin. Body short and rather elevated, compressed. Opercular
bones serrated: preopercle without elongated spine at the angle. Villiform
teeth in both jaws, on the vomer, and on the palatine bones. One dorsal fin
with several spines: ventrals with seven or more rays. Scales moderate or
rather small, ctenid. Airbladder simple. Pyloric appendages in moderate
numbers.

Geographical distribution.—Australian Seas; Indian Ocean; Madeira;
Japan.

The genus Beryx is of exceptional interest, since to fossil forms of this
and closely allied genera belong the oldest known Teleostean Fishes ; ‘the
majority of the Acanthopterygians found in the chalk being representatives
of this family ” (Giinther).

BERYX AFFINIS.
Beryx affinis, Gnth. Catal. Fish. 1. p. 138, 1859; Casteln. Proc. Linn: Soc.
N.S. Wales, ii. p. 225, and ii. p. 865; Hector, Ann. Nat. Hist. 1877
(4) xix. p. 341; Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. 1. p. 147 ; Woods, Fisher.
N.S. Wales, p. 51, pl. xv.; Sherrin, Handb. N. Z. Fish. p. 68.

Nannygai.
Plate XXI.

Beavite 7/12. A. 4/12-13. V.1/7. P.13. -C..19. L. lat. £1—44.. L.
tr. 6/13.

Length of head 3°50-3:75, of caudal fin 3:45-3:55, height of body
3°25-3 33 in the total length. Eye very large, its diameter one third of the
length of the head: snout short and rounded, deeply indented mesially,
1:50-1°66 in the diameter of the eye: interorbital space convex, 1°25-1°40
in the same. Nostrils approximate, subequal in size, the anterior sub-
circular, the posterior ovate and pierced ona higher plane. Upper profile of
the head rounded. Jaws equal, the lower with a prominent bony chin. Cleft
of mouth large and very oblique, the maxilla greatly dilated posteriorly, its
hinder margin sinuous; it is, with the exception of the postero-inferior
angle, entirely overlaid by the supernumerary bone, the surface of which 1s
rugose, and which is posteriorly denticulated, extending to beneath the
posterior margin of the orbit. A lanceolate pentagonal groove between

70 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

the anterior half of the eyes, from the outer angles of which a pair
of rough diverging ridges are continued backwards along the temporal
region, on which they terminate in serrated spinous processes. Preorbital
very finely serrated anteriorly : tarbinals with a deep, naked indentation on
the lower margin, and with the anterior and inferior edges strongly denticu-
lated; their entire surface coarsely granulated: orbital ring rouch, more
coarsely so inferiorly, and with several strongly denticulated spines behind
the eye: preopercle with two margins; the anterior finely serrated on both
limbs, and with two strong spines at the angle; the posterior with fewer but
coarser serrations on the vertical limb, with s strong denticulations below, and
crossed by three or four serrated ridges, which terminate in coarse spines on
the rounded and produced angle: posterior margin of subopercle concave,
the angle produced and spiniferous : : interopercle finely serrated and bearing
a deep naked notch posteriorly: opercle serrated, and furnished with two
strong spines, the upper of which is the longer ; there is a shallow marginal
notch above the spines and a second below them: posttemporal with a single
strong spine posteriorly and small serrations above. Both jaws with a few
small conical teeth in front, and a single series of very fine teeth laterally ;
vomerine patch small and triangular ; a cuneiform band, broadest
anteriorly, on the palatines. The dorsal commences above the sixth scale of
the lateral line and ends above the twenty seventh to twenty ninth scale ;
the distance between its first spine and the tip of the snout is about seven
eighths of that between the same point and the origin of the caudal; the spines
are moderately strong and acute, some of them being laterally erooved ;

they increase oradually in height to the last, which is from four and a
half to five times longer than the first, and 2:00-2°33 in the length of
the head; the rays gradually decrease in height from the first, which
is a little longer than the last spine and twice as long as the last ray; the
length of the base of the dorsal fin is equal to or rather more than that of
the head: the anal commences beneath the second dorsal ray, and ends some
distance behind that fin, which it resembles in shape; its fourth spine is the
highest, equal in height to the fifth dorsal spine, and from 2'50-2°66 in the
length of the head, while its base is about two thirds of the same length, and
its outer margin is slightly convex: the ventral reaches to the vent; the
spine is strong, smooth, and laterally grooved, three fourths of the length of
the rays, and 1°66-1°75 in that of the head: pectorals pointed, re eaching to
the nineteenth or twentieth scale of the lateral line, and from 1:25-1:33 in
the length of the head: caudal deeply forked, the base above and below with
four recumbent graduated spines; the upper lobe is slightly longer than the
lower, and the least height of its pedicle is two sevenths of the height of the
body. Anterior margin of the opercle, and the cheek, scaly; the scales on
the occiput extend forwards as far as the middle of the orbit: vertical fins
with a low scaly sheath; a small elongated scale at the base of the ventral
outside. Lateral line nearly straight.

Colors——Red, with violet reflections, each longitudinal series of scales
with a large median spot, which is golden on the back and grows gradually
paler on the sides, becoming silvery below, and forming well r defined bands ;
abdominal region ‘dirty white: fins red.

Though a fairly common and first rate edible fish nothing is known of the
economy of the Nannygai, except that it appears on our coast in consider-
able numbers during “the warmer months of the year, frequents the
neighborhood of sunken reefs, is taken, when present, plentitully with hook
and line, and commands a hich price in the market. [tis said to be a great
delicacy when slightly corned and smoked.

ae a.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. ial

—

——"

Like all its congeners B. afinis is an inhabitant of moderate depths, only
approaching the shore at intervals, and the reason for this periodical migra-
tion is not quite apparent, for, since those which are sent to the market do
not show any signs of breeding, it does not appear that the exercise of this
important function is in any way connected with this seasonal indrawing to
our coasts and estuaries. >

Inthe Report of the Royal Commission the following paragraph occurs:—
“Tt is seldom seen full roed, and we have not found that the very young fish
are even seen in our harbors or on our coasts, so that it may be fairly
infered that the Nannygai doves not as a rule spawn in this vicinity ;” with
the first sentence our experience entirely coincides ; but with the second we
are unable to agree so cordially, having obtained specimens on several
oceasions both from Port Jackson and Botany Bay, which did not exceed
two inches in length, while we have seen one measuring five inches, which was
taken by hook and line in Port Jackson, the season being about midwinter.
In the same Report the statement is made that “to the north its range
seems to be unlimited,” but we can find no authority for this, nor do we
think itis at all likely to be correct; Saville Kent makes no mention of it
among the edible fishes of Queensland. As a matter of fact we do not know
its exact northern limit in the seas of our own Colony, while we do know
that it makes periodical visits to the whole extent of our southerly seaboard,
and even extends its range in that direction to the Tasmanian coast, where,
however, Johnston considersitrare. As italsoinhabits New Zealand waters,
the occurrence of this deep sea form on both shores strengthens the sugges-
tion made on p. 57 that between that colony and Australia extensive deep sea
banks and reefs are present, which have only to be discovered and worked to
make them a source of incalculable profit to the Colonies at:large. Of
course the methods of fishing now prevalent in these Colonies must be
revolutionized before such a consummation can be hoped for.

The Nannygai attains a length of at least twenty inches.

Family XII.—SCIA:NIDA.

Branchiostegals seven: pseudobranchice present, concealed, or absent.
Body compressed and rather elongate. Mouth in front of or below the
snout. Eye lateral, of moderate size. Cheeks without armature. Pre-
opercle without bony stay: opercle not orfeebly armed. Barbels sometimes
present. Muciferous system of the head well developed. Teeth in villiform
bands, with or without canines: cutting or molariform teeth never present
in the jaws: palate edentulous. Two dorsal fins, the spines of the first
usually feeble ; the second much more developed than the first: anal with
one or two spines : pectoral rays branched and without free filaments: ventrals
thoracic, with one spine and five rays. Seales ctenid or cyclid, covering
the head and snout. Lateral line complete, often continued on to the caudal
fin. Stomach cecal. Airbladder, when present, with branching or elongate
appendages. Pyloric appendages in small or moderate numbers.

Geographical distribution —Tropical and subtropical seas, less common
in the South Pacific. Giinther remarks that they “are chiefly coast fishes
of the tropical and subtropical Atlantic and Indian Oceans, prefering
the neighborhood of the mouths of large rivers, into which they freely
enter, some of the species having become so completely naturalised that
they are never found nowadays in the sea. Some of the larger species
wander far from their orginal home, and are not rarely found at distant

~I
Lo

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

localities as occasional visitors. In the Pacific and on the coast of Australia,
where but few large rivers enter the ocean, they are extremely rare, and in
the Red Sea they are absent. M any attain a large size, and almost all are

eaten.” This statement, published in 1880, regar ding their extreme rarity on
the Australian coast is, of course, founded on error, one or more species,
forming a considerable portion of the food supply, beimg common on all the
explored parts of our shores.

Genus I.—SCIZENA.
Sciena, sp (Artedi) Cuvier, Regne Anim.; Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. v.
p- 28, 1830.

Corvina, Cuvier, Regne Anim.; Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. v. p. 81.

Branchiostegals seven: pseudobranchix present. Body oblong and rather
elongate, compressed. Eyes of moderate size. Interorbital space broad
and convex. Snout rounded, sometimes overhanging the upper jaw. Jaws
equal, or the lower the longer. Cleft of mouth nearly or quite horizontal.
Teeth villiform, with an outer enlarged row: no distinct canines. Two
dorsal fins, the ‘first with eight to thirteen spines, and connected at its base
to the second, which is of moderate length: anal with one or two spines.
Scales ctenid or cyclid, extending over the head and snout. Airbladder
present or absent. Pyloric appendages i in small numbers.

Geographical distribution.—Tropical and temperate seas, much more
numerous in the former; absent from the South Pacifie, except on the shores
of Australia and South America. Fresh waters of the United States

SCLENA AQUILA.

Labrus hololepidotus, Lacép. ui. p. 517, pl. xxi. f. 2, 1802.

Sciena umbra, Lacép. iv. p. 314; Cuv. Mém. Mus. i. p.1, and Regne Anim. ;
Bonap. Faun. Ital. Pesce. pl. —. f. 1.

Cheilodipterus aquila, Lacép. v. p. 685.

Perca vunloo, Risso, Ichthyol. Nice, p. 298, pl ix. £. 30.

Sciena aquila, Risso, Eur. Mérid. iil. p. 411; Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss.
v. p. 28, pl. e.; Guth. Catal. Fish. ii. p. 291, and Fisch. Sudsee, p. 105;
Day, Brit. Fish. i. p. 150, pl. 1.

Scie¢na hololepidota, Cay. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. v. p. 53; Quoy & Gaim.
Voy. Astrolabe, Poiss. p. 697, pl. xii f. 1.

Sciena capensis, Smith, Illustr. 8. Afric. Zool. Fish. pl. xv.

Sciena antarctica, Casteln. Proce. Zool. Soc. Vict. 1872, i. p. 100, and Proce.
Linn. Soc. N.S. Wales, 11. p. 232, and ili. p. 881 ; Macleay, Catal. Austr.
Fish. i. p. 154; Woods, Fisher. N.S. Wales, p. 53, pl. xvi.

? Sciena (Corvina) nove-hollandia, Steindachn. SB. Ak. Wien, 1866, liii. p.
445, pl. v. £. 2.

Sciena neglecta, Rms. and Ogl. Proc, Linn. Soc. N.S. Wales (2) i. p. 941.

Jewfish.
ae rea
B. . D. 10: 1/27-28. A... 2/7. V. 1/5. P. 17. C.17. Le lati Saori
9-10/19- to. ibe pyl. 8.

pene of head, 4:10-4:50, of caudal fin, 5°50-6:25, height of body
4°33-5'33 in the total length. Diameter of eye 5:00-5'50 in the length of
the he saa 1:25-1°60 in that of the snout, and from 0 80-1°'30 in the slightly
convex interorbital space. Nostrils moderately approximate, the anterior

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. tea

circular, the posterior much larger, suboval, and vertical. Upper profile of
head slightly concave. Cleft of mouth slightly oblique, the maxilla not quite
reaching to beneath the posterior margin of the orbit. Vertical limb and
angle of the preopercle serrated, the serrations becoming obsolete in large
examples: opercles with two flattened spines. A row of strong, pointed,
slightly curved teeth in the jaws, rather stronger in the upper than in the
lower, and with a narrow band of finer teeth inside them. Dorsal spines
weak; the third or fourth the longest, from 2°15-2'40 in the length of the
head ; the rayed portion lower than the spinous: the anal commences beneath
the ninth or tenth dorsal ray; its first spine is short, the second about
equal to the seventh dorsal spine and half the length of the contiguous
ray; the anterior rays much longer than those of the dorsal: ventrals
pointed from 1:45-1°70 in the length of the head: pectorals from 1°40-1°50
in the same length: caudal truncate or rounded, the least height of its
pedicle from 3:00-3:25 in the height of the body. Lateral line gently curving
to above the anal fin, beyond which it is straight, and is continued to the
extremity of the caudal fin; the tubes branched posteriorly. Airbladder
large, with numerous branching lateral processes.

Colors.—Deep steel blue above, gradually changing through the silvery
of the sides into the white of the lower surfaces; head not so brilliantly
tinted above as the back, its sides suffused with gold; a black axillarv
blotch: all the fins, except the ventrals which are white, pale brown: irides
golden and brown: inside of jaws and lower margin of the opercular region
orange.

In the seas of Europe, as in our own seas, little is known of the breeding
habits of this fish. In neither is the locality selected known, and the only
evidence elicited by the Roya] Commission as to the spawning season in this
Colony is that of Mr. Hood Pegus, who, referring to the Clarence River
writes :—“ Jewfish are plentiful all the year round, but especially in March,
April, and May. They spawn in May, and are caught with hook and line
as wellas with the net andtrap.” Of five specimens examined three, sent to
market from Broken Bay and Port Jackson during the months of August and
September, contained barely visible ova, while two others from Broken Bay and
Botany obtained in November and December were without any trace of it. It
is probable, therefore, that even in the same localities there is considerable
individual variation in the date for depositing the spawn, or it may be that,
as with the Mullet, there are two different spawning seasons selected by the
different schoois of the same species.

The Jewfishes are bold, cunning, and voracious, ascending rivers to, or even
beyond, the extreme limit of the tide; this, however, is only for predatory
purposes, as it certain that they do not breed in such places; they are regular
attendants on the breeding grounds of the Mullets, and commit great ravages
both among the young fish and the ova. Their food consists chiefly of fishes,
cephalopods, and crustaceans, and in fact of all suitable creatures which they
can overtake and overpower, and their great swiftness and strength enables
them with ease to satisfy even their voracity. As food those measuring less
than two feet are the best for the table, and whether fried or boiled are
excellent ; it is at this stage that they are known as “ Silver Jew” ; they are
then coming in shoals along the coast, seeking the harbors, estuaries, and
salt water lakes, with which our coast abounds, and in which instinct teaches
them that they will find a more plentiful and more easily obtainable supply
of food, and, man excepted, fewer enemies than they are likely to meet
outside.

74 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Tt has long been known to European and American fishermen and sailors
that this and the allied species, especially Pogonias chromis from the Atlantic
shores of the United States, emit noises when under water, which, it is stated,
may be heard at a depth of twenty fathoms ; the means used to produce these
drumming sounds is not, however, distinctly known, all the theories which
have been put forward being mere conjecture. We do not know whether this
peculiarity has been noticed in the Colony, where every facility for detecting
the occurrence of the phenomena is present in abundance.

The airbladder of these fishes is exceptionally large and thick, and a fair
quality of isinglass is oe from it; on this subject the Report of the
Royal Commission says:—‘‘The airbladder of some of the same genus of fishes
is of great value for eee and forms a valuable article of export on the
Indian and Malacca coasts, the merely dried bladder being worth equal to
three shillings per pound.” Needless to say this valuable product i is wasted
here, thousands of bladders being annually thrown away as refuse.

The Jewfish is abundant along the entire coast line of New South Wales;
it is gregarious, ascends rivers beyond the influence of the tide, and is most
destructive to spawning fish. The limit of its northern range has not been
accurately ascertained, but it does not probably extend much beyond the
Queensland frontier. In Victoria Castelnau considered it as a rare fish in
Bass’ Straits, but asit is found as far westward as the mouth of the Murray,
its apparent scarcity is probably due to the want of large rivers flowing into
the sea on the V ictorian coast. Johnston, under the name of S. antaretioa,

catalogues it as, “rare in Tasmanian waters,’ and makes some remarks as to
its specific difference from S. aguila, which, however, will not bear the test
of investigation; he writes:—‘‘As Dr. Giinther recognises an important
difference in the number of scales on the lateral line as of specific value,
there is no doubt but that Castelnau’s S. antarctica is distinct from the
Maigre of Europe”; this is apparently conclusive, but the solution is that

Castelnau, without giving any notice of having done so, has counted the
lateral line scales to the end of the caudal fin, instead of those to the end of
the hippural bone. All things considered the middle zone of the New South
Wales coast may be taken as the centre of distribution of this species in the
South Pacific.

The Jewfish grows to a length of at least five feet, but the more common
market size is from two to three feet.

Genus II._—OTOLITHUS.
Otolithus, Cuvier, Regne Anim.; Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. v. p. 59, 183

Branchiostegals seven : rijenioemchen present. Body oblong. Eyes af
moderate size. Snout obtuse or a little pointed, with the lower jaw the
longer. Preopercle crenulated, serrated, or denticulated. Villiform teeth
in both jaws, with the outer row in the premaxillaries enlarged: more or
less well developed conical canines, either in both jaws, or in the upper

only, usually received, when the mouth is closed, into fosse in the opposite
jaw: a single row of widely space conical teeth in the lower jaw, with
occasionally a single outer row of villiform ones. Two dorsal fins, united at
their bases, the first with nine or ten weak spines: anal with one or two
small spines and but few rays. Scales ctenid or cyclid, of moderate or
small size. Airbladder present, in some with a horn-like, forwardly directed
process on each side, in others with numerous lateral appendages. Pylorie
appendages in small numbers,

Geographical distribution.—Nearly all tropical and subtropical seas; south-
eastern coast of Australia; some species permanently resident in fresh water.

5

oe

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 75

OTOLITHUS ATELODUS.

Ofolithus atelodus; Gnth. Ann. Nat. Hist. (3) 1867, xx. p. 60; Macleay,
Catal. Austr: Fish. i p. 156; Woods, Fisher. N. 8. Waies, [ok 54,
pl. xvii.

Otolithus teraglin, Macleay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N. 8. Wales. v. p. 48.

Teraglin.
Plate XXITI.

Pewe D. 10, 1/29-30; A. 2/9) V. 1/5: P. 19. C.17: Le lat. 74-775. Lo tr.
16/33. Coec. pyl. 5. Vert. 13/12.

Length of head 415—4°33, of caudal fin 5:50-5:90, height of body
4°90-5'10 in the total length. Eyes prominent, the diameter 5°80-6:25 in
the length of the head, 1:50-166 in that of the snout, and 1:33-1:50 in
that of the convex interorbital space. Nostrils moderately approximate,
pierced in a naked groove, the anterior circular, the posterior elongate-oval
and vertical. Upper profile of head flat, or very slightly concave. Lower
jaw the longer. Cleft of mouth wide and but little oblique, the maxilla
reaching to or slightly beyond the hinder margin of the orbit. Opercle with
two weak spines, having a deep indentation between them. Teeth in the upper
jaw in a villiform band, broadest in front, with a symphysial patch of
recurved conical teeth, and with one or two series of strong lateral teeth ;
the lower jaw with a large anterior patch of recurved teeth, and two lateral
series, the inner of which contains the strongest teeth in either jaw. The
dorsal commences slightly behind the opercular flap ; the spines are
feeble, the fourth the longest, from 2°50-2°75 in. the length of the head,
and much longer than any of the rays; the first spine is minute, and the
basal length of the spinous dorsal is two thirds of that of the rayed fin:
the anal commences beneath the nineteenth to twenty first dorsal ray ;
its spines are small, and the anterior rays are subequal to the highest
dorsal spine: ventrals pointed, theie length about one third of the dis-
tance between their origin and the vent, and from 1:85-2:00 in the length
of the head: pectorals small, 1:60-1:90 in the same length: caudal emargi-
nate, the least height of its pedicle one third of the height of the body,
and rather less than the distance between the last dorsal ray and the
base of the caudal. Maxilla scaleless; soft dorsal with a low adipose sheath.
Lateral line gently curved throughout its entire length.

Colors —Upper surface and sides silvery, below white: dorsals yellowish-

-gray with darker spots at the base; caudal yellowish-gray with the outer

margins dark ; pectorals with a black spot at the base inside; ventralis pink ;
anal silvery with the elongate rays dusky: inside of mouth and inner
margin of opercle orange.

The difficulty of formulating any general rule as to the breeding season of
our marine fishes, and especially of those which, like the present species and
the Jewfish, are confirmed wanderers, is well exemplified by the examination
of several specimens recently obtained in the market, which led to the
following results :—During the earlier part of September examples, forwarded
for sale to the Sydney market from Lake Macquarie, were found to be ina
forward state of spawning, the ova being almost fully developed, whilst in
others, taken in Port Jackson during the following November, the contents
of the ovaries were not more than half developed. As with the preceding,
the spawning grounds are quite unknown, nor is it known whether the ova,
when shed, is buried beneath sand or gravel, attached to the fronds of

76 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

seaweeds, or floats; the whereabouts and manner of life of the young fishes
are equally unknown, all we know being that they appear from seaward in
large shoals during the late winter and the spring months, varying at this
time from one to three feet in length, the smaller fishes usually preceding
their more mature brethren by a few days.

Referring to the Teraglin, the Royal Commission’s Report has the follow-
ing sentence :—* In our species the airbladder is of great size and excellent
quality, and treated in the same way, that is without any preparation or
outlay except that of drying in the sun, would probably add from threepence
to sixpence to the value of each fish caught.”

The Teraglin is of equally rapacious habits as the Jewfish, but does not
ascend rivers to a similar extent, and is not, therefore, so gr eat a pest to the
estuarine breeding grounds. Asa table fish it is infinitely superior to the
Jewfish, even in the young, or Silver Jew, stage of that species, and always
commands a high price in the market.

So far as we know at present the Teraglin is only found on the New
South Wales coast, where it is abundant, and grows to a maximum length of
about three feet.

Family XIIJ.—CARANGIDZ.

Branchiostegals normally seven (six to ten): pseudobranchie present,
except in Lichia and Trachynotus. Body generally compressed, oblong,
elevated, or subeylindrical. Eyes lateral. Gull-openings wide. No bony
articulation between the preopercle and infraorbital. Dentition yariable :
teeth, when present, conical. Spinous dorsal less developed than the rayed
portion or than the anal, either continuous with or separated from the rayed
portion, and sometimes formed of isolated spines: the anal spines, when
present, may or may not be continuous with the fin: the posterior rays of
the dorsal and anal fins sometimes detached: ventrals thoracic, sometimes rudi-
mentary or absent. Scales generally small or absent. The ‘lateral line may
be partially or entirely armed with ‘shield-like plates. Airbladder present.
Pyloric appendages usually numerous.

ee Al distribution.—Tropical and temperate seas of both hemis-

1eres
. Giinther lays great stress on the uniformity of the number of vertebre in
this family, fixing this number at ten abdominal and fourteen caudal, with,
however, a limitation in favor of Temnodon and Chorinemus, which have,
the former twelve abdominal, the latter fifteen or sixteen caudal vertebre ;
to these must be added awuerates, in which there are also sixteen, while,
even in the typical genus Caranx, our White Trevally (C. georgianus) has
constantly fifteen caudal vertebre, and Seriola lalandit sometimes has
eleven abdominal. Until, therefore, the vertebral column of the numerous
little known species of Caran, much less of Carangide, has been thoroughly
investigated, it would be well not to place too much reliance on this as a
diagnos stic character of the family.

In many of the Carangid genera the head in the young is armed with
spines, as in Naucrates, but these are absorbed before they attain to
maturity.

Of the true Carangide many recent genera, such as Caranx, Argyriosus,
Lichia, and Trachynotus, are present in various Tertiary formations, while of
the more aberrant forms Flatax occurs as far back as the Cretaceous, and
reappears in the Tertiary in company with Zanclus and Equula.

in 6

— os

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 17]

Genus I.—_ CAR ANX.,

Caranz (Commerson), Lacép. Hist. Nat. Poiss. iii. p. 60, 1802.
Trachurus, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. ix. p. 6, 1833.
Carangichthys, Bleek. Celebes, 111. p. 760

Branchiostegals seven: pseudobranchie present. Body oblong, or elevated,
or subeylindrical, more or less compressed. Cleft of mouth moderate. Eyes
lateral, with or without adipose lids. Dentition feeble, more or less complete.
Two dorsal fins, the first continuous, with about eight feeble spines which are
sometimes rudimentary, and having in front of its origin a recumbent spine
directed forwards: the second dorsal more developed than the first, und
similar to the anal; the posterior rays of both these fins sometimes wholly
or partially detached: two preanal spines, which are sometimes rudimentary,
separated by an interspace from the anal fin. Scales minute. Lateral line
with an anterior curved and a posterior straight portion, the latter covered
with large plate-like scales, which are usually keeled, and sometimes spinate ;
these are rarely continued on to the anterior curved portion. Airbladder
bifurcated posteriorly. Pyloric appendages in large numbers.

Geographical distribution.—Almost all temperate and tropical seas, more
especially abundant in the latter.

This is a very large and complex genus, embracing species with little or no
external resemblance to one another, and might conveniently be subdivided
into two or more genera.

CARANX TRACHURUS.

Scomber trachurus, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 494, 1766; Bloch, pl. lvi.

Caranz trachurus, Lacép. Hist. Nat. Poiss. iii. p. 60; Risso, Ichthyol. Nice,
p. 173, and Eur. Merid. iii. p. 421; Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. ix. p.
11, pl. eexlvi.; Gay, Hist. Chile, Zool. 11. p 233 ; Richards. Ichthyol.
China, p. 273, and Ann. Nat. Hist. 1843, xi. p. 25; Day, Brit. Fish. 1. p.
124, pl. xliv.

Trachurus vulgaris, Flem. Brit. Anim. p. 218.

Caranz trachurus, var. japonicus, Schleg. Faun. Japon. Poiss. p. 109, pl. lix.
fal:

Selar japonicus, Bleek. Japan, pl. viii. f. 1.

Caranx symmetricus, Ayres, Proc. Calif. Acad. Nat. Se. 1. 1855, p. 62.

Caranx cuviert, Lowe, Trans. Zool. Soe. ii. p. 183.

Caranz declivis, Jenyns, Zool. Beagle, Fish. p. 68, pl. xiv.

Trachurus trachurus, Casteln. Anim. nouy. ou rares, Poiss. p. 23; Gnth. Catal.
Fish. ii. p. 419 ; Kner, Voy. Novara, Fisch. p.150; Kner & Steindachn.
SB. Ak. Wien, liv. p. 364; Steindachn. SB. Ak. Wien, lvii. p. 382 ;
Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 166; McCoy, Prodr. Zool. Vict. dee. 11.
pl. 18; Johnston, Proc. Roy. Soc. Tas. 1882, pp. 85, 119; Sherrin,
Handb. N.Z. Fish. p. 46.

Trachurus declivis, Casteln. Proc Linn. Soe. N.S. Wales, ii. p. 383 ; Woods,
Fisher. N. S. Wales, p. 58, pls. xviii, xxii.

Yellowtail; Scad.

pei Saaliaae Ans? 1109 Vi 1/5, PB. 21. C. 17. L. lat. 71-73.:Cee. pyle
12-20, Vert. 10/14.

Length of head 4:75-5:00, of caudal fin 5:00-5°33, height of body 4:75-5:00

in the total length. Eye with an adipose lid, the posterior part extending for-
wards to or nearly to the margin of the pupil, the anterior portion narrow ; its

78 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

diameter 3°40-3°60 in the length of the head, and 1:00-1:25 in that of the
snout: interorbital space convex with a central ridge, 1:20-1:33 in the
diameter of the eye. Nostrils approximate, oval, oblique, the anterior slightly
the larger. Upper profile of head slightly convex. Cleft of mouth oblique ;
lower jaw the longer, the maxilla extending to beneath the anterior third of
the orbit. A narrow band of minute teeth in the jaws, on the vomer, and
palatine bones, and along the middle of the tongue. Dorsal spines weak,
increasing in length to the fourth, which is from 1:60-1°90 in the length of
the head; a short interspace between the fins; second dorsal much lower
than the spinous and similar to the anal: detached anal spines strong: ventral
fin not extending to the vent, its length being from 1:10-1°33 in the distanee
between its origin and the vent, and 1'60-1°75 in that of the head: pectoral
faleate, extending backwards to above the preanal spines, 1°15-1'25 in the
same length: caudal forked, the height of its pedicle less than its width.
Head naked in front of the eyes. Lateral line abruptly curved downwards
below the anterior third of the rayed dorsal, behind this straight; anteriorly
it is crossed by large scale-like plates much deeper than long, and without
keel, while the plates on the straight portion, thirty six to thirty nine in
number, are keeled, most strongly so posteriorly.

Colors.—Adult- dark blue, young bright green, above the lateral line,
below which it is silvery tinted with metallic pink and gold ; opercle with a
black spot: irides bronze above, with orange reflections ; silvery below.

It is difficult to ascertain the exact season or seasons of breeding of the
Yellowtail, since the adult fishes rarely enter our bays and harbors, and are,
therefore, very seldom seen in our fishmarkets; the fact that the immature
fishes, however, from three to six or eight inches in length, are always to be
found there in numbers, proves that their breeding stations are not far
distant from the coast. That the Report of the Royal Commission is
erroneous in its suggestion that “ It is most probable that this fish spawns
in the inlets and harbors of the coast, from the fact that the young fish of five
or six inches in length are always to be found in such localities” is easily
demonstrable seeing that, if this were the case, the adult fishes, when breeding,
would be taken by the seine fishermen in countless numbers, and forwarded
in due course to the market, and this, as we have before shown, is an almost
unknown occurrence. It is much more probable that the shoals passing along
the coast shed their spawn in the open sea, that the spawn floats, and is carried
by the combined action of wind and tide into our bays and inlets, in the warm,
quiet waters of which they quickly come to maturity ; and that a continuous
supply of these small fishes is kept up throughout the year leads us to the
inference that either the Yellowtail breeds twice in the year, or, more
probably, that the different shoals do not all breed at the same time. The
adult fishes are said to pass along the coast in enormous shoals about mid-
summer, but they are on the coast at other seasons, the two largest we have
examined having been taken in Lake Macquarie during the month of August ;
in neither of these examples, however, could distinct evidences of breeding be
detected.

In the same Report it is stated that “The very young fry have a most
extraordinary and ingenious way of providing for their safety and nutrition
at the same time; they take up their quarters inside the umbrella of the
large Meduse, where they are sate from their enemies, and are, without any
exertion on their part, supplied with the minute organisms which constitute
their food, by the constant current kept up by the action of the curtain-like
cilia of the animal.” We are unaware upon whose authority this statement

Sa ae

a>

=

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 79

is made, and, though it is very possibly correct, we think that confirmatory
evidence, drawn from thoroughly reliable sources, that is from the personal
observation of individuals competent to recognise the very young stages of
C. trachurus—auust be forthcoming before this can be accepted as a constant
habit of the species. It has never, so far as we are aware, been observed on the
British coast, where the ordinary life history of the fish has been fully worked
out, though it is well known that several members of the True Cod family
(Gadid@) make use of this means of concealment and protection, and are thus
carried in safety to the shallow waters near the shore where the earlier
stages of their existence are necessarily passed.

Their food consists of the fry of other fishes, small crabs and molluses, &e.
As food the adults, when perfectly fresh, are firm and well flavored, but they
soon deteriorate, and become tasteless and insipid. The principle use, how-
ever, to which the Yellowtail is put is as bait for the line fishermen; it
forms a good bait for Snapper, but is not so good as Mackerel. They readily
take a bait, either artificial or natural, more especially if it is kept moving
through the water so as to represent a small fish. They may also be taken
by “whiffing,” that is by trailing a line, or better still several lines, after a
boat in moderately rapid motion, or anchored in a strong tideway so as to
cause the lines to stream out behind.

These fishes almost without exception suffer from being the host of an
isopodous crustacean of the genus Anilocra, which lives in the throat, and
thus obtains both sustenance and protection for itself ; though it is common
to take this commensal from the Scad with its developed ova attached we
have never found more than one in a single fish.

Though immense shoals of large Sead are known to frequent the open sea
along our coast, they do not make themselves so conspicuous as those which
at irregular intervals visit the British coasts, probably because, in the warmer
waters washing the shores of the Colony, the supply of suitable food is
more constant.

The range of this species is very wide, embracing all the temperate coasts
of Europe, Madeira, along the west coast of Africa to the Cape of Good Hope,
the Chinese seas, Chili, the temperate parts of Australia, and New Zealand.

As has been stated it is very abundant on the coast of New South Wales,
but the large shoals which are off the coast during the warmer months
probably seek the open sea at a greater depth after spawning, as they have not
been noticed on the Queensland coast, and the species is only incidentally
mentioned by Saville Kent as being the “ Yellowtail” of the Sydney market.
MeCoy considers it to be “a very rare visitor”? to Hobson’s Bay, but in
Tasmanian waters Johnston says :— ‘‘ The Horse Mackerel occurs in these
waters in vast numbers. The young arescenall round the bays of the upper
waters of the Derwent during the autumn. ‘The mature fish are in fair esteem
in the market ;” and again:—‘“ They appear in immense shoals at times
between January and June, and might with proper appliances become the
source of a valuable industry.”

In New Zealand, according to Sherrin, ‘this fish appears in Wellington
Harbor about the end of November, and is one of the commonest offered
for sale throughout the summer.” The Maori name of our Yellowtail is
“ Hauture,” and its habits on the New Zealand coast are, we gather from
the same authority, similar to those which prevail in British waters; he
says:—“ Immense shoals of Sead are occasionally driven on the beaches
round the harbor by their impetuosity when following their prey into

80 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

shallow water.’ So far Mr. Sherrin is undoubtedly correct, but that the
succeeding sentence, “‘ or from their sufferings caused by an irritating isopod
crustacean that infects their gills at this season,” is erroneous, is clearly
demonstrable by the facts that the equally infected New South Wales fishes
do not seek relief from their sufferings, if such there be, by any such
suicidal policy, while those which frequent the British coasts, where the
commensal is unknown, are notable in following it. In the southern pro-
vinees of New Zealand the species is rare.

The Yellowtail grows to a length of twenty inches, but the more usual
size of the adult fish is about twelve; the largest we have seen from the
Colony did not quite measure sixteen inches.

CARANX GEORGIANUS.

Caranx georgianus, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. ix. p. 85, 1,833; Jenyns,
Voy. Beagle, Fish. p. 71; Richards. Ann Nat. Hist. 1843, Xi, p. 27, and
Voy. Ereb. & Terror, Fish. p. 135, pl. Iviii. ff. 1-3; Guth. ee Fish.
ii. p. 440; Casteln. Proc: Zool. Soe. Vict. 1. 1872, p. 117; ‘Ally & Miael:
Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S. Wales, i. p. 827 ; Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p-
168, and Proce. Linn. Soc. N.S. W ales, vii. p. 204; Johnston, Proce. Roy.
Soc. Tas. 1852, pp. 85, 119; Sherrin, Handb. N.Z. Fish. p. 99.

Caranx chilensis, Gay, Hist. Chile, Zool. i. p. 235, Ictiol. Atl. pl. vi. f.
Steindaehn. SB. Ak. Wien, 1875, Ixxi. me 459.

White Trevally.
Plate XXIV.

B vii. D. 8. 1/25-27. A. 2. 1/22-24. V. 1/5. P. 20-21. C.19. Gi. lat. 79>
81/19-22. Coec. pyl. 15. Vert. 10/15.

Length of head 4:00—4°40, of caudal fin 420-475, height of body 3:00-
3°50 in the total length. Eye rather small, with rudimentary adipose lid,
its diameter 4:00-4°75 in the length of the head, 1°33-1°75 in that of the
pointed snout, and 1:20-1:50 in the convex interorbital space. Nostrils
approximate, oval, subequal. Upper jaw slightly the longer; cleft of mouth
moderate and a little oblique; the maxilla dilated posteriorly, reaching to
beneath the front margin of the orbit, or not quite so far. Upper surface
of head very slightly convex; a low longitudinal ridge extending from the
interorbital space to the horizontal anterior spine. a single row of short
stout conical teeth in each jaw, usually supplemented by a “few extra ones
at the symphyses: narrow bands of villiform teeth on the vomer, palatines,
and tongue. Dorsal spines weak, much higher than the rays, the third the
longest, 2 00-2'4) in the length of the head. ; the distance between the base
of the first ray and the origin of the caudal is equal to that between the
same spot and the posterior margin of the orbit: the anterior anal spine
rises beneath the third or fourth dorsal ray : ventral fins reaching to the vent ,
190-225 in the length of the head: pectorals long and faleate, reaching to
the vertical from the sixth to eighth anal ray, its length from one seventh to
one fourth longer than that of the head : caudal deeply forked, the height of
its pedicle much less than its width, which is equal to the distance between
its origin and the base of the last dorsal ray. Scales minute and adherent,
the breast scaly ; bases of the vertical fins with an adipose sheath. Lateral
line arched to beneath the middle of the rayed dorsal. Airbladder moderate.

- 4 a

= ep

-EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 81

Colors.—Steel blue above, silvery on the sides and below ; a black spot on
the opercle, behind which along the median line of the body a broad golden
band is present or absent: tip of spinous dorsal blackish.

The White Trevallies are full of spawn in October, and the principal
breeding season occurs during this and the succeeding month, large specimens
obtained in the Sydney market during December being as a rule without
trace of spawn. From Twofold Bay Mr. Glover also fixes the same two
months as the spawning season, and these may, therefore, be taken as the
normal period for the southern half of the Colony at least. As their habits
during this important season are similar to those of C. trachurus, so likewise
we find the immature fishes, up to about ten inches in length, abundant in
our sheltered harbors and estuaries for the greater part of the year, whence
they are sent in numbers to the market, where they meet with a ready sale
at fair prices; the adults too are much more commonly sent to market than
those of the Yellowtail, as they do not confine themselves so exclusively to
the open sea as does that species, but by freely entering the indentations of
the coast place themselves within reach of the seine fishermen.

We are at a loss to know why it is stated in the Report of the Royal
Commission that the Trevally “is not much esteemed as food.” In our
opinion it, especially when large, isa firm, well flavored fish, rightly deserving
to hold a high rank among the edible fishes of the Colony. Its food consists
of small fishes, squid, swimming crabs, and such like.

Though not so generally affected by the presence of Anilocra as its
congener, it is by no means uncommon to find its throat similarly tenanted
by this curious Isopod.

The White Trevally is abundant along the entire coast line of New South
Wales, and is also found along the Queensland coast northwards to Torres
Straits, where, referring to it, Saville Kent says:—‘*The White or Silver
Trevally of the Southern Colonies grows to a weight of ten to twelve pounds
and undoubtedly represents one of the most delicate and finest flavored
fishes in Australian waters.” It is very common on the Victorian coast,
where it is called “ Silver Trevally ” and, according to Castelnau, is “ particu-
larly so in the cold months of the year.” As it is also common in all the
seas of southern and western Australia it may be fairly considered as consti-
tuting one of the most important sources of food supply for the entire
Australian seaboard. Johnston remarks of their occurrence in Tasmanian
waters, that they “are very much prized for food, and are caught in con-
siderable quantities in the Tamar and at South Arm during the autumn.
Although it is said that they grow to a considerable size, the smaller ones are
alone seen in local markets. They are caught by graball and seine, as a
rule, but they take bait readily, and may be caught with hook andline.” In
New Zealand, where its native name is “ Arara,”’ it is, Hector remarks, “a
highly esteemed fish, that is very common in every part of the Colony during
the summer months, but is in best condition at the commencement and close
of the season. . . . The flesh is very delicate, but less so in the larger
sized fish, about twelve inches in length being the best size for the table.
The Trevalli frequents shallow water and feeds among the rocks, so that it
may sometimes be caught by the hand at low water.” According to Mr.
Wilson (vide Sherrin) they “smoke splendidly, though they are not adapted
for canning.” They are also found at Lord Howe, Norfolk, and Raoul
Islands, and at the former are very common and grow to a large size, speci-
mens measuring 30 inches having been recorded. It is considered one of
the best food fishes, and is used fresh, salted, or smoked. It has been
recorded by Gay from Juan Fernandez.

F

82 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Genus II.—SERIOLA,

Seriola, part, Cuvier, Régne Anim.; Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. ix. p. 200,
1833.

Branchiostegals seven: pseudobranchie present. Body oblong and
moderately compressed, with the abdomen rounded. Cleft of mouth
moderate. Preopercle entire or very feebly serrated. Bands of villiform
teeth on the jaws, vomer, and palatine bones. First dorsal fin with rather
feeble spines, whichare connected by membrane: second dorsal and anal much
more developed, without detached finlets ; the latter generally with a pair of
preanal spines separated from the rest of the fin. Scales small or rudimen-
tary. Lateral lime unarmed. Airbladder large and simple. Pyloric
appendages in large numbers.

Geographical distribution.—N early all the seas of the tropical and temperate
zones.

SERIOLA LALANDII.

Seriola lalandii, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. ix. ». 208, 1830; Gnth. Catal.
Fish. ii. p. 463; Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. 1872, i. p. 174; Woods,
Fisher. N. 8. Wales, p. 59, pl. xrx; McCoy, Prodr. Zool. Vict. dec.
xviii. pl. 172; Sherrin Handb, N. Z. Fish, p. 39.

Seriola aureo-vittata, Temm. & Schleg. Faun. Japon. Poiss. p. 115, pl. uxm.
fig. 1.

Seriola dubia, Lowe, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1839, vii. p. 81, and Trans. Zool. Soe.
lil. p. 5.

Seriola grandis, Casteln. Proce. Zool. Soc. Vict. 1872, i., p. 115; Macleay,
Catal. Austr. Fishi., p.175: Johnston, Proc. Roy. Soc. Tas. 1882, p. 119.

Seriola simplex, Rams. & Ogl. Proc. Linn. Soc. N. S.. Wales, x., p. 757.

Kingfish.
B. vii. D. 6-7. 1/32-34. A. 0-2. 1/20-21. V. 1/5. P. 21. C. 19. Ti. dat.
156-160. Coec. pyl. num. (113). Vert. 10-11/14.

Length of head 4°40-4°60, of caudal fin 5°25-5°80, height of body 4°66—
5°25 in the total length. Eye rather small, with the adipose lid but little
developed, its diameter 4°75—5°75 in the length of the head, and 1°50—2:00in
that of the snout, which is elongate, conical, and equal in length to the
convex interorbital space. Nostrils approximate, of equal size, oval and
vertical. Upper profile of head slightly convex. Jaws equal, or the lower

a little the longer. Cleft of mouth slightly oblique, the maxilla extending -

to beneath the anterior third of the orbit, or not quite so far. Jaws with
broad bands of villiform teeth ; vomerine teeth in a sagittate patch, palatine
in bands; pterygoid bones with small scattered patthes ; tongue with an
oblong median patch, and with numerous small lateral patches. Dorsal
spines low and feeble, the fourth the longest, one-sixth of the length of
the head ; the anterior rays the longest, from 2°10-2°33 in the same; the base
of the first dorsal ray is equidistant from the tip of the snout and the origin
of the caudal fin: the anal commences beneath the fifteenth or sixteenth
dorsal ray; the anterior rays are similar to those of the second dorsal,
their length being 2°75 in that of the head ; the detached spines in front of
the anal are sometimes absent: the ventral fins reach to midway between
their origin and the vent, and their length is from 166-190 in that of the
head; in specimens under a foot in length they are, however, much longer

ae |

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 83

—

proportionately ; the outer ray is partially attached to the body by mem-
brane: pectorals rather small, from 1°85-2-00 in the length of the head:
caudal deeply forked, the least height of the pedicle, which is feebly keeled,
equal to its width, and three fifths of the distance between the last dorsal
ray and the origin of the caudal fin: a distinct pit in front of the caudal fin
above and below. Entire head, with the exception of the cheeks, the upper
margin of the opercles, and some isolated patches on the temporal region,
naked. Lateral line curved and wavy to beneath the anterior third of the
rayed dorsal, thence straight.

Colors.—Brilliant purplish blue above, the head darker and with a distinctly
ereenish tinge ; sides silvery ; abdominal region pearly white ; a broad golden
band commencing behind the eye, and traversing the median line of the body
may or may not be present: soft dorsal and anal olive green, the elongate
anterior rays tipped with yellow, the latter fin with a narrow white margin,
and with a pearly spot between the bases of each pair of rays; caudal olive
green with the lobes yellow ; ventrals white outside, yellowish-green inside:
pectorals and spinous dorsal gray: irides silvery, clouded in parts with
golden brown.

From the examination of specimens, obtained in the Sydney market, it is
apparent that the main body of Kingfishes shed their spawn in October,
though individuals having the spawn ready for extrusion are not infrequently
met with both in September and November. That the ova is shed as a rule
out to sea, and possibly at some considerable distance from the land, is
probable, while it may be taken for granted that it floats, nevertheless,
unlike the two preceding species, the fry are never found in our harbors
nor even on our outer shores; where, therefore, they remain, during the
period elapsing between their emergence from the egg and their appearance
in shoals along the coast during the latter end of summer, when they
measure from twelve to eighteen inches, is merely matter for conjecture.
In the Twofold Bay District they are reported to spawn in deep water
outside about the month of September, after which “they make for a large
sandbank which exists about twelve miles out from the Heads, where they
are found in great numbers.” Mr. Glover, from whom the above extract is
taken, also claims to have “ seen the young fry out at the Heads in December,
at which time they also come into the shoal waters of the bay.” He also
credits them with being “ one of the greatest enemies to the spawn (sic) of
the smaller fish we have.”

The Kingfish visits our shores in large shoals at irregular intervals
throughout the year, the large fishes not, however, consorting with those of
smaller size. At all ages their voracity is very great, and they do much
damage to such fishes as the Mullet, both by harassing the parents when on
the breeding grounds, and subsequently by the enormous consumption of fry.

Their food consists almost exclusively of small fishes, and Hardyheads
(Atherina pinguis), Yellowtails (Caranx trachurus), Whitings (Sillago, sp.),
and Mullet (MZugil dobula), have been taken by us from the intestines of a
single large individual. As a table fish it varies much with the season, and
its size, examples measuring two feet and under being firm and palatable
while the larger fishes grow increasingly coarse, tough, and flavorless. In
this connection Mr. Edward Hill remarks:—‘‘ When the Kingfishes are in
good condition and perfectly fresh, the belly part, cured and smoked, is far
superior to any of the imported fish cured in that way; and that portion
cured alone and used immediately, before it gets too salt, boiled, and served
up with egg sauce, is a choice morceau.” As a game fish for sporting

or
o

84 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

purposes it ranks high in the estimation of the same author, who is also of
opinion that half a dozen large Kingfishes from fifty to sixty pounds weight
caught by one angler form a pat day’ s work.

Tt must not be lost sight of when referring to this fish under its trivial

name, that the Kingfish of Victoria is Sciena aquila, while that of Tasmania
is Thyrsites solandra.

The entire coast of New South Wales is subject at all seasons to the
incursion of shoals of this species, of which the most marked is a run of
large breeding fish commencing during August and lasting till about the
middle of November ; from ARE time during ane summer and mana. months
large shoals of immature and halfgrown fishes make their appearance, these
in their turn retiring, with the approach of cold weather, to more open,
deeper, and consequently warmer waters. Even, however, during the depth
of winter some few examples, chiefly of large size, may constantly be met
with in our market.

How far northwards it ranges we are unable to say, there being no avail-
able catalogue of Queensland Fishes, but we gather from Saville Kent’s
Preliminary Report that ib1s.a \* large and valuable foodfish of the Queens-
land market,” and is “ not unfrequently taken in Moreton Bay. It is a
school fish readily taken with hook and line, or, as in some localities, with
the harpoon. It is much esteemed for the table.”

Writing of its occurrence on the Victorian coast under the heading. 8.
grandis, Castelnau remarks that the Yellowtail—by which name it is there
known—“ plays a conspicuous figure in the Melbourne market, particularly
during the hottest months of the year.” Referring to Tasmania, Johnston
says :—‘‘ Appears in schools; abundant off the George Town Heads regularly
during a brief season (autumn) every year. Takes bait greedily.” For a
similar reason to that given when discussing its distribution in Queensland
waters, we are also unable e to determine how far its range extends to the
westward, no South Australian naturalist having as yet published a Catalogue
of the Fishes of their Colony or even of the Gulf of St. Vincent; we think it
probable, however, that it occurs along the entire seaboard ‘of southern
Australia.

At Lord Howe Island it is common, and much esteemed either fresh, salted,
or smoked. It is found in the seas of New Zealand, but its distribution
there does not appear to be at present accurately determined; the Maori
name is “Haku.” Sherrin remarks :—*‘In the months of January and
February in each year large shoals of this fish visit Cook Strait, and
occasionally enter Wellington Harbor. They are generally of two dsitinct
sizes, the smaller about six pounds weight and tw enty inches long, and the
larger about four feet in length and weighing about forty t pounds. The flesh
is very rich and well flav ored, but, like all fishes of this class, must be eaten
quite fresh. These fishes are often caught in Moki* nets, to which they do
greatdamage. They also drive on to ex] posed beaches, several of them being
generally cast up together. Natives eine them very highly, and eagerly
search the coast for them at the proper season, and have been known to carry
choice specimens far into the interior as gifts to their friends. * * * *
In New Zealand it is not mentioned as having been seen further south than
Cook Strait, but in all probability it must occur along the whole of the west side
of the island. In its habits it is migratory and gregarious, like the Tunny.”
He goes on to say that in the Auckland District it is not so plentiful as

The ‘‘ Moki” is the Bastard Trumpeter, Las iain Fo eter

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 85

Kahawai (4rripis salar) or Snapper, but that they are to be obtained in the
open sea if sought for, while in the Dunedin market they were observed
but once in three years.

The Kingfish has an extensive range outside of the Australian Colonies;
it was originally described from the coast of Brazil, from whence it crosses
the Atlantic to the Cape of Good Hope, and it also occurs, but rarely, at
St. Helena, and, if we are correct in assigning Lowe’s S. dubia to this species,
at Maderia also; while, under the name of S. aureovittata, Schlegel has
recorded it from the seas of Japan.

The Kingfish grows to a length of at least fifty two inches, and a weight
of sixty pounds.

SERIOLA HIPPOS.

Seriola hippos, Gnth. Ann. Nat. Hist. (4) 1876, xvii. p. 392; Macleay, Catal.
Austr. Fish. 1. p. 176; Woods, Fisher. N.S. Wales, p. 60.

Seriola nigrofasciata, Casteln. Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S. Wales, iii. p. 352;
(not Riippell) Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. 1. p. 174.

Samsonfish.
Eavie. 8. 1/2325. A. 2. 1/16. V. 1/5. P. 20-22. €. 19. Cec. pyl. num.
Vert. 10/14.

Length of head 3°75—4°20, of caudal fin 4°40-4°80, height of body 3:00-3°80
in the total length. Eye moderate, the adipose lid scarcely overlapping the
iris, its diameter 3°70-4-00 in the length of the head, 1:20-1°40 in that of
the snout, and 1°25 in the convex interorbital space. Nostrils approximate,
the anterior oval and protected by a flap, the posterior much larger,
subeireular, exposed. Jaws equal. Cleft of mouth moderate, and very
slightly oblique ; the maxilla greatly dilated posteriorly, extending to beneath
the middle of the orbit. Upper profile of head with a slight concavity on the
snout, and rounded on the occiput; a low longitudinal ridge on the interorbital
space and the occiput, beyond which it extends but a short distance. Teeth
in the jaws in villitorm bands, with several of the outer rows enlarged; the
bands separated at the symphyses, broad in front and gradually narrowing
posteriorly ; a patch of villitorm teeth on the vomer ; palatines and pterygoids
toothed ; tongue with an oval median band, and numerous detached lateral

atches. Dorsal spines low, the fifth the longest, one fourth to one fifth of
the length of the head; the anterior rays elongate, five eighths of the same;
the origin of the rayed dorsal is nearer to that of the caudal than to the end
of the snout: the anal commences beneath the eleventh dorsal ray ; the
anterior rays are elongate, and rather more than half of the length of the
head: ventral fins reaching two thirds of the distance between their origin and
the vent, which distance is subequal to the length of the head; the anterior
ray attached to the body by a skinny flap: pectorals short, about five ninths
of the length of the head: caudal forked, the least height of the pedicle
equal to its width, and three fourths of the distance between the base of
the last dorsal ray and the origin of the caudal ; a well marked pit in front
of the origin of the caudal above and below. Entire head, with the exception
of the cheeks scaleless: bases of the vertical fins naked. Lateral line
irregularly waved, following the curvature of the back.

Colors.—Bluish above, the head darkest; sides golden; lower surfaces
silvery: spinous dorsal dusky, hyaline basally ; rayed dorsal pale yellowish-
brown, darkest marginally; ventrals, pectorals, and anal dusky, with a
silvery base, and a narrow whitish outer margin.

86 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

The Samsonfish occurs not unfrequently in the Sydney market, but
always singly and taken by hook andline. None of the specimens personally
examined contained ova in any stage of growth, nor is there any published
account of the season or manner in which the spawning is accomplished, but
it is not probable that these differ materially from what obtains among their
congeners: That, however, the fry are very rarely found upon our shores,
along with the solitary habits of the individuals brought to our market, and the
limited distribution which we can at present ascribe with certainty to the
species, leads to the inference that the localities where the main shoals of
these fishes habitually shed their spawn is in the open sea, or if near land
have not as yet been discovered.

Mr. Hill, referring to Port Jackson, writes :—‘The Samsonfish is
occasionally caught either in the harbor or off the headlands outside; its
habits are similar to those of the Kingfishes, except that it moves about in
deep water, and is more fond of the northern latitude.” What this last
sentence is intended to convey would be difficult to determine, for, unless its
author had distinct evidence of its greater abundance to the northward,
which we have now no means of judging, it must be taken for what it is worth
as a mere expression of opinion. It was possibly a persual of this sentence
which induced Saville Kent to say that its “range probably extends to
Queensland waters.” Mr. Hill also noticesas remarkable the great strength
of these fishes, and assumes, with all probability, that it is from this charac-
teristic that they have acquired their trivial name.

So far as can be ascertained from public records and from our own expe-
rience, the purely Port Jackson District, stretching from Broken Bay in the
north to Port Hacking in the south, can alone be given as the acknowledged
habitat of this species on our coast.

The Samsonfish attains a length of at least twenty inches.

Genus III,__TEMNODON.

Temnodon, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. ix. p. 225, 1833.

Branchiostegals seven: pseudobranchie present. Body oblong, compressed.
Preopercle with some slight denticulations. Jaws armed with strong teeth:
villiform teeth on the vomer and palatines. Two dorsal fins, the first with
seven feeble spines: the second and the anal more developed: one or two
small detached spines in front of the anal. Scales moderate, cyclid. Pyloric
appendages very numerous. Airbladder simple.

Geographical distribution.—Temperate and tropical seas of both hemi-
spheres.

TEMNODON SALTATOR.

Gasterosteus saltatrix, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 491, 1766; Shaw, Zool. iv. p-
609.

Scomber saltator, Bl. Schn. p. 35.

Chilodipterus heptacanthus, Lacép. Hist. Nat. Poiss. iii. p. 542, pl. xxi. fig. 3
(bad).

Pomatomus skib, Lacép. Hist. Nat. Poiss. iv. p. 436, pl. viii. fig. 3.

Scomber plumbeus, Mitch. Trans. Lit. & Phil. Soc. New York, i. p. 424, pl. iv.
fig. 1.

Temnodon heptacanthus, Quoy & Gaim. Voy. Freycinet, Zool. p. 400, pl.

Ixi. fig. 2.

oC

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 87

Temnodon saltator, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. ix. p. 225, pl. eelx; Cuv.
Regne Anim. [I]. Poiss. pl. lvi. fig. 3; Storer, Report, p.57; De Kay,
New York Fauna, Fish. p. 130, pl. xxvi. fig. $1; Baird, Ninth Smithson.
Report, p. 337; Holbr. Ichthyol. 8. Carol. p. 62, pl. ix. fig. 2; Gay, Hist.
Chil. Zool. 11. p. 244; Lowe, Trans. Zool. Soc. i. p. 183; Nordm. in
Demidoff, Voy. Russ. Merid. iii. p. 394; Guichen. Explor. Algér. Poiss.
p: 63; Webb & Berthel. Hist. Nat. Iles Canar. Poiss. p. 58, pl. xiii.
fig. 2; Gnth. Catal. Fish. 1. p.479; Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soe. Vict. 1872,
i. p. 118; Macleay Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 179; Woods, Fisher. New
South Wales, p. 60, pl. xx.

Tailor.
Plate XXV.
avin). 7-8. 1/2426. A. 1-2. 1/26—28. V. 1/5. P. 17. C.17. L. lat. 90-100.
Li. tr. 8-9/19-21. Cee. pyl. num. Vert. 12/14.

Length of head 4°20-4°33, of caudal fin 4:50-5:15, height of body 4°50-
4°75 in the total length. Eye with the adipose lid but little developed,
its diameter 4:50-6:25 in the total length, 1:10-1:60 in the length of the
snout, and 1:10-1:70 in the interorbital space, which is strongly convex.
Nostrils approximate, separated by a narrow bridge of skin only; the anterior
oval and vertical ; the posterior a long, narrow, vertical slit. Upper profile
of head gently rounded. Lower jaw the longer. Cleft of mouth wide and
oblique, the maxilla extending to beneath the posterior margin of the eye,
or not quite so far. Preopercle finely denticulated on the lower limb, and

- with a notch on the vertical limb immediately above the angle: opercle with

a weak bony point. Jaws with a single series of strong subulate teeth ; the
upper with a series of smaller teeth anteriorly, separated by a considerable
interval from the outer series: villiform teeth on the vomer in a triangular
patch; on the palatines in a band, which is broadest about the middle.
Dorsal spines very feeble, the fourth the longest, 4°50-5°00 in the length of
the head, and 2°00-2°33 in that of the anterior rays, which are much longer
than the posterior ones: the anal commences beneath the fourth dorsal ray ;
it is of similar shape to the rayed dorsal, and extends slightly beyond that
fin: ventrals rather small, their length from 2°00 in half-grown to 2°75 in
adult examples in the distance between their origin and the vent, and from
2°20-2°50 in the length of the head; its spine long and slender, 2°66-3°33
in the same length: pectorals small and pointed, 1:50-1:75 in the same:
caudal forked, the least height of its pedicle 3:00-3'50 in the height of the
body. Cheeks and opercles scaly; a few scales on the temporal region and
on the hinder part of the occiput: soft dorsal and anal scaly. Curve of the
lateral line very slight. Airbladder large.

Colors.—Pale green above, silvery below: soft dorsal, anal, and posterior
half of caudal tinged with yellow.

During the spring months the Tailor arrives off our coasts in countless
numbers for the purpose of shedding their spawn; this function takes place
in the open sea, but well within the influence of the tides, and the impreg-
nated ova float on the surface in large masses, where they become the prey
of numerous predaceous fishes and birds; owing to the combined warmth of
the sun and water, and influenced doubtless by the action of the tides, the
ova mature quickly, and the young fish on their emergence soon find their
way into sheltered harbors and inlets, though, should stormy weather
intervene during their passage, thousands of fry under two inches in

MD

8 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

length are frequently washed ashore on the outer beaches, those, however,
which survive the perils of the journey, and reach the comparatively
safe shelter of our harbors and salt water lakes rapidly increase in size,
and are taken by the seine at all seasons of the year, measuring from four
to ten inches in length, and are sent to market along with Yellowtail, to
be sold as bait, for which purpose they are excellent.

Writing from Twofold Bay Mr. Glover remarks: :-—“They are seen between
the Heads in September and October in large shoals. JT think they spawn
in November in deep water outside ; I have ‘often seen the spawn floating
on the surface, and surrounded by gulls, shags, &e. The young fry are
caught in the bay in March, varying from two inches upwards, accompanied
by full grown ones eighteen inc ches in le ngth. In June they leave the Bay
till the Folle wing September.” From the Glarence River Heads Mr. Hood
Pegus reported “that they come in October and spawn during the same
month,

As a table fish the Tailor is in great request, and is bought up with
avidity in the market; indeed. we have few more delicate or well flavored.
fishes on the coast ; the flesh, however, deteriorates very rapidly, and care
should, therefore, be taken when choosing one for consumption to select an
example which has but recently been captured.

The Tailor appears to subsist almost exclusively upon smaller fishes, and
as its voracity is boundless, the destruction caused by shoals of adults to
their own fry and those of the other species must be enormous. On two
occasions only have we found food other than fishes; these were, on one
oceasion a squid, on another several small swimming crabs.

Consequent on their rapacity they take a bait of almost any kind freely,
and afford good sport to the angler. The great majority of those brought
to market are, however, enn by the seine net, but, though command-
ing a remunerative price, the enciosure of a shoal of large Tailors is
frequently no great cause for congratulation on the part of their captors,
as their strong subulate teeth, aided by their strength and determination,
enable them in an incredibly short time to cut through the meshes, and not
only escape themselves, but by rendering the net useless cause the loss
of that night’s fishing, not to speak of the trouble and expense incurred in
mending the nets. In connection with this Oliver (vide Tenison Woods)
states :—‘ This fish is very destructive to the fishermen’s nets. A school of
Tailors enclosed in a seine generally involves wholesale destruction to the
net. After such a haul a considerable expenditure of time and twine
is necessary to repair the rents made by the sharp teeth of these very active
and determined fishes. Instances have been known where the entire bunt
of a net has been torn to shreds by a few dozen Tailors.”

Speaking generally of its distribution Giinther states that it “is spread
over nearly all the tropical and subtropical seas ; it frequents principally the
coasts, but is also met with in the opensea. On the Atlantic coasts of the United
States it is well known by the name of ‘ Bluefish,’ being highly esteemed as
food, and furnishing excellent sport. It is one of the most rapacious fishes,
destroying an immense number of other shore fishes, and killing many more
than it can devour.”

The Tailor is very abundant along the whole of our coastline from north
to south, and though as before state ed the catch is greatest during the spring
and early summer months, there are nevertheless not many days “throughout
the year on which they are absent from the market. On the Queensland
coast we are again left in uncertainty as to the extension of its northerly
range, but Saville Kent mentions it as ‘“‘requiring classification among the

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 89

representative fishes of pak Bay”; ; he also remarks that it is locally
known as the “ Diarbi”’ or ‘‘ Pombah,”’ is ‘closely allied to Serzola, associates
in a similar way in shoals g grows toa weight of about seventeen pounds, affords
excellent sport, is very voracious and extremely destructive to fishing nets, is
an excellent table fish, and is in best season during the winter months, In
hot weather the flesh decomposes very rapidly.

According to Castelnau the Skipjack, as this species is called in
Melbourne, “is one of the most common fishes in the market. It is generally
found at Melbourne of a small size, but I have seen one in September which
was two and a half feet in length.” In view of this account of its abundance
in Victorian waters, and of the silence one + way or other of McCoy on this point,
it is surprising to find the species dismissed by Lucas with the brief intimation,
“ Toc.—Queenscliff.” In all probability the Tailor is common along our
entire southern coastline, and we know that it is found on the West
Australian coast at least as far north as the Swan River. Johnston,
refering to the Tasmanian coast, merely remarks :—“ An odd individual
caught occasionally in the Derwent.”

So far the Tailor has not been recorded from the shores of New Zealand ;
neither does it occur among any of the numerous collections from the
Pacifie Islands, nor can we find it noticed from the western shores of North
America It is not mentioned by Indian zoologists, yet there is an example
in the British Museum from the Molucca Sea. It is abundant along the
shores of the Eastern States of North America, and crosses the Atlantie to
the Canary Islands at least. It is very common at the Cape, and according
to Castelnau is known there as “ Elftvish.”

It is credited by Giinther with attaining to a length of five feet, but the
ordinary size of adults in our market does not exceed twenty four inches,
while the largest seen measured but thirty three.

Genus IV.—TRACHYNOTUS.

Trachinotus (Lacép.) Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. viii. p. 398, 1831.

Branchiostegals seven: pseudobranchiw absent. Body more or less
elevated, compressed. Cleft of mouth small: snout obtuse and swollen. Eyes
lateral. Teeth on the jaws, vomer, and palatine bones, generally lost with
age. Two dorsal fins: the first composed of a few small spines, connected
by a low membrane, and with an anterior horizontal spine directed forwards :.
second dorsal and anal similar, and more developed than the first dorsal:
two preanai spines, separated from the fin by an interspace: no finlets. Scales
very small. Lateral line without armature. Airbladder bifurcate posteriorly.
Pyloric appendages in large or moderate numbers.

Geographical distribution.—Atlantic coasts of tropical and temperate
America; East and West coasts of Africa; from the Red Sea, through the
Indian Seas to those of China and Japan, the Malay Archipelago, and
Australia.

TRACHYNOTUS RUSSELLI.

Scomber botla parah, Russell, Fish. Vizag. i. p. 32, pl. exxxvi.

Seomber botla, Shaw, Zool. iv. p. 591.

Trachinotus russelii, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. viii. p. 436; Jerdon.
Madras Journ. L. & Se. 1851, p. 136.

Trachinotus oblonqus, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. Vill., p. 437.

Trachynotus oblongus, Guth. Catal. Fish. i. p. 484.

Trachynotus russellii, Day, Fish. Ind. p. 233, pl. li. B. fig. 3

90 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Dart.

B. vii. D. 6. 1/23-25. A. 2. 1/22-24*. V. 1/5. P. 18. C. 17. L. lat. 85-95:
Cee. pyl. 10. Vert. 10/14.

Length of head 5:10-5:50, of caudal fin 3°33-3°75, height of body
3°00-3'25 in the total length. Eye moderate 3°33-3°75 in the length of the
head, and 1°10-1°25 in the interorbital space, which is convex: snout short
and obtusely rounded, rising abrubtly from the jaws, 1:10-1:20 in the
diameter of the eye. N ostrils separated by a narrow band of skin, vertical,
the posterior the larger. Jawsequal. Cleft of mouth moderate and slightly
oblique, the maxilla extending to beneath the middle of the orbit, or not so
far. Upper profile of head very slightly convex, the interorbital space and
the occiput with a low longitudinal ridge which extends backwards to the
recumbent dorsal spine. A narrow band of villiform teeth in each jaw, the
outer row enlarged ; a triangular patch on the vomer, and a short elongate band
on the palatines. The anterior dorsal rays reach, when laid back, almost to the
end of the fin, and are from one seventh to one third longer than the head :
the anal is similar to the dorsal ; its anterior rays are even longer, reaching
when intact to or even slightly beyond the end of the fin, and from one
third to three fifths longer than the head: ventrals small, reaching to the
vent, 2°25—2°75 in the length of the head: pectorals small, 1-40-1°66 in the
same length: caudal deeply forked, the least height of ‘the pedicle four
fifths of the distance between the last dorsal ray and the base of the caudal.
Entire head, except the cheeks and a narrow band along the upper margin
of the opercle, scaleless: vertical fins with a low scaly sheath. Lateral line
nearly straight, the anterior half wavy.

Colors.—Bluish-gray above, silvery on the sides and below; a series of six
or seven indistinct ‘dusky spots immediately above the lateral line: elongated
rays of the dorsal and anal, and caudal lobes blackish.

As a food fish the Dart belongs more especially to the northern districts
of the Colony, but we occasionally find it forwarded to the Sydney market
in considerable numbers from such fishing grounds as Port Stephens and
Lake Macquarie; these visits occur during the latter months of spring and
the summer, but in no case could we detect any symptoms of spawn in the
ovaries of a considerable number examined.

This handsome fish has received its popular name from the alleged rapidity
of its motions. Judging by the contents of the stomachs of those dissected
the major portion of its “food would appear to be the young of other fishes,
though small squid are not unfrequently present, and on one occasion the
author detected the remains of a swimming crab As a table fish they
cannot be highly recommended, nev ertheless they are by no means unpalat-
able when eaten perfectly fresh.

On the New South Wales coast the Dart occasionally finds its way as far
south as Port Jackson according to Macleay, but to the northward it quickly
increases in numbers and importance, though even in Port Stephens and
Lake Macquarie, where it is sometimes met t with in considerable shoals, its
appearance must be considered irregular, none of the fishes sent to market
being full grown, nor likely to spawn in the district; it occurs also at Lord
Howe Island. Curiously enough the genus Trachynotus i is not even men-
tioned by Saville Kent in his “Preliminary Report on the Food Fishes of
Queensland, though, from their numbers and the size to which they attain,

* In one example there were nineteen rays only, though the base of the fin was of equal length to
similarly sized specimens having twenty four rays.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 91

they might have been expected to form no unimportant item among the food-
producing resources of the northern parts of the Colony at least; they are
abundant in Torres’ Straits, and along all our northern and north-western
seaboard, while in West Australian seas they may safely be predicted to
extend at least as far to the southward as we know them to do on the east
coast. This species ranges westward through the seas of the Malay Archi-
pelago to those of India.

The Dart grows to the length of twenty two inches in tropical seas, but on
our coast rarely attains to more than half that length.

Day states that Trachynotus russelli may be easily distinguished from the
closely allied 7. baillonz by the position of the lateral series of spots, which
on the former are above, on the latter across, the lateral line, and by the
development of the ventral fins, which are much longer in 7. russelli than
n its congener.

Genus V.—PSETTUS,

Psettus (Commerson) Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. vii. p. 240, 1831.

Branchiostegals six: pseudobranchizw present. Body much compressed
and elevated. Cleft of mouth small: snout short. Eyes lateral. Villiform
teeth on the jaws, vomer, palatine bones, and tongue. One dorsal fin
with seven or eight spines: anal continuous, with three spines: ventrals
rudimentary. Scales small, covering the vertical fins. Lateral ime unarmed.
Airbladder bifurcate posteriorly. Pyloric appendages numerous.

Geographical distribution—From the Red Sea, east coast of Africa,
and the Mascarene Archipelago through the seas of India to those of China,
Malaysia, and Australia, and eastwards to Samoa and Fiji: west coast of
Africa.

PSETTUS ARGENTEUS.

Chetodon argenteus, Linn. Ann. Acad. iv. p. 249; Bl. Schn. p. 230.

Psettus rhombeus, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. vi. p. 245.

Psetius argenteus, Richards, Voy. Erebus. & Terror, Fish. p. 57, pl. xxxv. ff.
1-3; Gnth. Catal. Fish. i. p. 487, Fisch. de Sudsee, p. 140, and Study
of Fish. ff. 198, 199; Kner, Voy. Novara, Fisch. p. 164; Day, Fish.
Ind. p. 235, pl. li. B. fig. 5; Casteln. Proc. Linn. Soe. N. S. Wales, 11.
p. 235; Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 181, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.
Wales, iv. p. 63, and vii. p. 266; Woods, Fisher. N. 8. Wales, pl. xlv.

Batfish.

B. vi. D. 8/28-29. A. 3/28-30. V. 1/ 2-3. P. 16-17. C. 17. L. lat. 68-75.
L. tr. 18/50 ca. Coec. pyl. 120 ca. Vert. 9/14.

Length of head 3°80-440, of caudal fin 4°00, height of body 1:60-1'85 in
the total length. Eye iarge, 2°50-2°75 in the length of the head: snout
short and obtusely rounded, 1:50-1:75 in the diameter of the eye: inter-
orbital space convex, 1°10—1'25 in the same. Nostrils approximate, oval,
the anterior not much smaller than the posterior. Jaws equal. Cleft of
mouth small and oblique, the maxilla extending to beneath the anterior margin
of the orbit or a little further, and expanded behind. Upper profile of head
very slightly convex; occipital ridge obtuse, inconspicuous. Angle and
lower portion of the posterior limb of the preopercle feebly serrated, the
denticulations lost with age. Villiform teeth in a narrow band in both
jaws, in a subcircular patch on the vomer, and a short band on the palatines ;

92 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

pterygoids densely clothed with minute teeth ; a central suboval patch on the
tongue. Last dorsal spine the longest, about three sevenths of the anterior
rays, which are produced and from 1:00-1°33 in the length of the head : the
anal is similar to the soft dorsal, its anterior rays are equal in length to those
of that fin, and the third spine is longer and stronger than the last dorsal
spine: ventral fins rudimentary, the short stout spine reaching midway to
the vent, which is situated nearer to their origin than to that of the anal:
pectorals small, about three fourths of the length of the head: caudal
emarginate, the least height of its pedicle five eighths of the same length.
Scales small and eyelid, the greater part of the vertical fins scaly, the snout
and maxilla naked. Lateral line with a long gradual curve to below the
middle of the rayed dorsal.

Colors.—Pale yellowish-brown with violet reflections on the upper surfaces
and the caudal region; abdominal region silvery; a black band from the
nape to the eye, anda second from the origin of the dorsal fin to the opercle,
present in immature, but indistinct in adult examples: dorsal and caudal
fins dusky ; anal tinged with yellow.

The Batfish appears on the coast of New South Wales, north of Port
Jackson, in considerable shoals, during the spring and earlier summer
months. They are heavy with spawn about midsummer, but we are
unacquainted with the manner in which the spawn is deposited, nor have we
as yet seen the fry brought ashore in our harbors or estuaries, those sent
to market being all adult and of about equal size.

Their food consists of minute marine animals, crustaceans, molluses,
worms, &c., the smallness of the mouth precluding the possibility of their
swallowing other food, while their comparatively limited powers of locomotion
prevent them from capturing swifter prey. As food they are of good quality.

On the Australian coast it is found at least as far to the south-eastward
as Port Jackson, sometimes in considerable shoals. It has not been
recorded from Victoria, Tasmania, or New Zealand, but is abundant on the
Queensland coast, and, according to Saville Kent, is “commonly taken in
Moreton Bay, and is classified among the food fishes of that Colony.” It
occurs in numbers along the northern seaboard of Australia, but the hmit
of its southerly range on the western coast has not been recorded.

Beyond these Colonies its range is very extensive, stretching from the
Red Sea, the east coast of Africa, Madagascar, and Rodriguez, through
the seas of India and Malaysia, eastward to Samoa and ¥ij1.

The Batfish attains to a length of nine inches, but rarely exceeds six in
our seas.

Family XIV._SCOMBRIDZ.

Branchiostegals seven or eight : pseudobranchiz present. Body oblong or
fusiform, more or less compressed. Eyes lateral. Gill-openings wide. No
bony articulation between the preopercle and infraorbital bones. Teeth
always present in the jaws: vomer and palatine bones with or without
teeth. Two dorsal fins: the spinous less developed than the rayed portion
or than the anal, either continuous with or separated from the rayed dorsal,
sometimes (as in Echeneis) modified into a sucking disc: finlets present or
absent: ventrals thoracic. Tail with or without a lateral keel. Scales small
or absent. Airbladder present or absent. Pyloric appendages in large
numbers.

Geographical distribution. —Carnivorous pelagic fishes of the tropical and
temperate seas of both hemisphere.

\
.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 93

According to Giinther all true Scombrid fishes have more than ten
abdominal, and more than fourteen caudal vertebre. Along with the Gadide,
Olupeide, and Salmonide, the members of this family are most useful to
mankind. He goes on to say:—‘ They are fishes of prey, and unceasingly
active, their power of endurance in swimming being equal to the rapidity
of their motions. Their muscles receive a greater supply of blood vessels
and nerves than in other fishes, and are of a red color, and more like those of
birds or mammals. This energy of muscular action causes the temperature
of their blood to be several degrees higher than in other fishes. They wander
about in shoals, spawn in the open sea, but periodically approach the shore,
probably in pursuit of other fishes on which they feed.” And again :—
“‘ Mackerel, like other marine fishes, birds, and mammals of prey, follow the
shoals of young and adult Clupeids in their periodical migrations ; on the
British coasts it is principally the fry of the Pilchard and Sprat which
wanders from the open sea towards the coast, and guides the movements of
the Mackerel.”

Day remarks :—‘“ Fishes of the Mackerel family are pelagic forms, readily
distinguishable by their elegant shapes and brilliant colors, while they are
mostly highly prized for the table. Carnivorous.and exceedingly active, their
shapes are well adapted to enable them to glide rapidly through the water ;
while to obviate the least impediment, we even find, in some, depressions for
the reception of the pectoral fins.”

Fossil Scombride are not uncommon in tertiary formations, the existing
genera Scomber, Thynnus, and Cybium being represented in the Eocene and
Miocene.

Genus I.—_SCOMBER.

Scomber, sp. Artedi, Genera Pisce. p. 30, 1738.
Scomber, Cuvier, Régne Anim.; Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. vii. p. 6, 1831.
Cordylus, Gray, in Gronow’s Syst. Ichthyol. 1854.

Branchiostegals seven : pseudobranchie present. Body fusiform, com-
pressed. Cleft of mouth deep. Eyes lateral, with adipose lids. Teeth in
the jaws small and deciduous: similar teeth present or absent on the vomer
and palatine bones. Two dorsal fins, the first continuous, with feeble spines,
and separated by an interspace from the second; the spines fewer in
number than the rays of the second dorsal or the anal: five or six finlets
behind the rayed dorsal and anal: a preanal spine generally present. Two
slight ridges on each side of the root of the caudal fin. Scales very small,
equally covering the whole body as arule. Airbladder present or absent,
simple. Pyloric appendages in large numbers.

Geographical distribution —Almost all the tropical and temperate seas
of both hemispheres; not, as yet, recorded from the Atlantic shores of
temperate South America.

SCOMBER PNEUMATOPHORUS.

Scomber pneumatophorus, De la Roche, Ann. Mus. Hist. Nat. 1809, xiii. pp.
315, 3384; Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. viii. p. 86; Guichen. Explor.
Algér. Poiss. p. 56; Guth. Catal. Fish. il. p. 359; McCoy, Prodr. Zool.
Vict. dec. iii. pl. 28.

Scomber grex, Mitch. Trans. Lit. & Phil. Soc. N. York, p. 422; Cuv. & Val.
Hist. Nat. Poiss. viii. p. 45; Dekay, N. York Faun. Fish. p. 103, pl. xi.
PZ.

94. EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Scomber australasicus, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. vill. p. 49; Guth. Catal.
Fish. ii. p. 359; Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 190; Johnston, Proce.
Roy. Soe. Tas.1882, pp. 84,118 ; Sherrin, Handb. N.Z. Fish. p. 61.

? Scomber capensis, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. vili. p. 56.

Scomber pneumatophorus major, Schleg. Faun. Japon. Poiss. p. 94, pl. xlvu, f. 1.

Scomber pneumatophorus minor, Schleg. Faun. Japon. Poiss. p. 94, pl. xlvii,

9

? Scomber saba, Bleek. Japan, p. 405, and Verh. Batay. Gen. xxvi. p. 95.

Scomber janesaba, Bleek. Japan, p. 406, and Verh. Batav. Gen. xxvi. p. 96;
Gnth. Catal. Fish. ii. p. 359 ; Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. Suppl. p. 27.

Scomber tapeinocephalus, Bleck. Japan, p. 407, and Verh. Batav. Gen. xxvi.
p: 97, pl. vii. £. 2; Guth. Catal. Fish ii. p. 361; Macleay, Catal. Austr.
Fish. Suppl. p. 27.

Scomber antarcticus, Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. 1872, i. p. 106.

Mackerel.

B. vii. D. 10-12. 1/11 + v-vi. A. 1. 1/11 + v-vi. V. 1/5. P. 21. €. 19.
Coec. pyl. num. Vert. 14/17.

Length of head 4°00-4°25, of caudal fin 6:00-7:00, height of body
5°50-6°00 in the total length. Thickness of body from 1:25-1:40 in its
height. Diameter of eye 3°00-3°40 in the length of the head, equal in length
to the snout, and 1:40-1:60 in the interorbital space, which is flat; the
anterior adipose lid reaches slightly beyond the front margin of the pupil,
and inferiorly crosses over the posterior lid, which latter extends forward
over one fourth of the pupil. Upper surface of head flat, with a broad
median longitudinal groove; occiput with a short ridge. Jaws equal. Cleft
of mouth large and slightly oblique; maxilla entirely covered by the
preorbital, extending to beneath the anterior third of the orbit. Posterior
limb of preopercle oblique and convex. A single row of small curved teeth
- on the jaws and palatines: two small patches on the vomer: tongue tooth-
jess. The spinous dorsal commences above the posterior angle of the base
of the ventral; the distance between its origin and the tip of the snout is
3:10-3'25 in the total length; the spines are of moderate length, but weak ;
the second the longest, from 2°00-2°50 in the length of the head; second
dorsal low: the anal commences beneath the third or fourth dorsal ray, and is
preceded by a single short strong detached spine: ventral small, its length
from 3°00-3°50 in the distance between its origin and the vent, and 2°40-2°60
in the length of the head: pectoral short and pointed, its length from
2:00-2°20 in the same: caudal deeply forked, each lobe with a basal keel.
Scales minute, in fifteen to seventeen series between the lateral line and the
base of the first dorsal: largest on the pectoral region, where they form an
indistinct corselet: a row across the cheek. Lateral line gently curved.
Airbladder present, of raoderate size

Colors.— Upper surfaces bright green, frequently becoming dark blue atter
death, with numerous, irregular, wavy, transverse bars; sides paler green,
with darker spots and short streaks; lower surfaces pearly white, washed
with orange and pink, and ornamented with many more or less indistinct
dark gray blotches and spots: interorbital space pale: cheeks with a golden
tinge.

Large shoals of Mackerel appear upon our coast at irregular intervals
during the year, but these visits, which may number as many as three or
even four in the twelve months, or may be entirely wanting during a similar

)
1

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 95

period, are much too uncertain in their recurrence to allow of any such
profitable fishery—as that pertaining to the industry, as carried on in European
and American waters—being held here, even were any adequate means for
their capture employed by our fishermen. ‘These shoals, which periodically
appear in the bays and inlets of our deeply indented coast, consist entirely
of immature fishes, never or very rarely exceeding twelve inches in length,
and showing no trace of their having spawned in the past, nor of any likeli-
hood of their so doing in the near “future ; we are, therefore, indebted for
these visits solely to “the abundance or searcity of suitable food, which
consists chiefly of the fry of other fishes, and, according to Mr. Edward Hill,
of shrimps and young prawns. Taking into consideration the thousands of
individuals which go to comprise a single shoal, and their extreme voracity,
necessitated by an exceptionally active mode of life, it is not to be wondered
at that these sources of food supply are quickly exhausted, and this having
been effected the shoals disappear as suddenly as they had previously made
their appearance. There seems, however, to be a general consensus of
opinion that enormous shoals of Mackerel annually pass along our coast
about midsummer, heading in a northerly direction, but whether these
shoals consist of adult and breeding fishes, or what their ultimate desti-
nation is, can only be conjectured. It is, however, more than probable
that the “shoals of enormous magnitude” mentioned in the Report of the
Royal Commission, as causing the sea, “sometimes for miles, to have the
appearance of being almost a solid mass of them,” are, when so observed,
engaged in the very act of shedding their spawn. Of the habits of the
common Atlantic Mackerel (Scomber scomber), when engaged in perpetuating
its species, it has been remarked by Sars (v. Day, Brit. Fish. 1. p. 89) that
the ova are “deposited some leagues from the shore, and at the very surface
of the waves, where a great quantity of these fishes may often be met with,
engaged in spawning.” There is no reason to doubt that the breeding
operations of our species are carried out in a similar manner. Though
normally a fish of very rapid growth, such may be retarded by the absence of
suitable food, or by along continuance of cold and stormy weather.

Mackerel give excellent sport to the line fisher, either from a boat under
easy sail or anchored ina strong tideway, so as to permit of the lines, of which
it 1s always best to use several in each boat, streaming away behind, the
sinkers used being of course graduated to the swiftness with which the boat
is moving or the strength of the tide; nor must it be lost sight of that the
present species is much more liable to be taken near the bottom than is 8.
scomber. Mackerel are not by any means choice in their selection of a bait,
almost any glittering substance being sufficient to attract them, but we have
never found any lure so deadly as a strip cut off the side ‘of the tail of
another mackerel, and termed a lask or lashing, and which, when in motion
through the water, has a wonderful resemblance to the sinuous movements
of a small fish, and being exceedingly tough a single bait may with care be
used for the capture of a number of individuals.

In pursuit of their prey Mackerel do not follow it up, as most fishes do,
but strike across the line of its flight, as has been observed by us on several
occasions, when large shoals entered the harbor of Portrush on the north
coast of Ireland, and were taken by hundreds off the quays by means of a rod
and line with three or more large white flies attached ; all-the fish observed,
and these were often within a few feet, struck at the flies at an angle to
their course.

The confusion, which has caused several writers on our food fishes, such
as Tenison Woods and even Saville Kent, to confound our common Mackerel

96 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

with Castelnau’s 8. antarcticus, is directly attributable to the Royal Com-
mission Report above quoted. There it is stated :—‘‘The genus Scomber is
represented in Australia by two species, S. awstralascius, Cuv. & Val., and 8.
antarcticus, Casteln. The last named is the one best known in these seas as
the ‘ Mackerel’.” How so grave an error could have been made it is difficult
to imagine, since Castelnau distinctly states that his species has no airbladder,
while the most cursory examination is suflicient to reveal the presence of a
well developed one in our species. Though he has not been followed by
other colonial authors this question was practically decided by MeCoy many
years ago. The only question, therefore, which need concern us now is
whether Castelnau is to be relied upon in his statement as to the absence
of an airbladder in the unique example of S. antarcticus which he examined,
and judging from the carelessness which characterises many other descriptions
of Australian fishes by the same author, and the fact that no other colonial
scientist has since met with his fish, we must conclude that the Count’s
conclusion is open to grave doubt ; nevertheless there is no reason whatever
why a Mackerel without an airbladder should not be coexistent in our seas
with one possessed of that organ, as is the case in European waters; should
this be so S. antarcticus will probably prove to be a more southerly form.
We are, however, of opinion that Castelnau was mistaken as to the absence
of an airbladder in his supposed species, which will in that event merge in
the present form.

The food of the Mackerel consists of the fry and ova of other fishes, small
crustaceans, &c., while as a table fish it is universally esteemed, care being,
however, taken that they are eaten quite fresh, as they decompose very

rapidly, soon become soft and tasteless, and develop deleterious qualities ;
they are also excellent when pickled fresh. They are of great value too in
providing the best bait for all other predaceous fishes.

This Mackerel is common along our coast from south to north, and is

“ occasionally taken in Queensland waters’? according to Saville Kent.
McCoy states that it appears “ rarely 1 in Hobson’s Bay, but in considerable
numbers when it does appear”; to ‘the westward it can be traced through
King George’s Sound whence it was described by Cuvier and Valenciennes
to Swan River and northwards, from both which places specimens have been
received by the British Museum. Of its occurrence in Tasmanian waters
Johnston writes :—‘ I have not seen specimens, but the fishermen assure me
that a fish, called by them the English Mackerel, is seen in immense shoals,
after long irregular intervals of time, on the east coast”; and again: :-—The
English Mackerel is seen on the east co oast, occasionally in large numbers, each
year, moving in a northerly direction. They have been known to enter the
estuary of the Derwent in lar ge numbers as far as Bridgewater, but owing
to the absence of proper means for capturing them, they rarely find their way
to the market.” In New Zealand, where its native name is “ Tawatawa,”
its occurrence on the coast seems to be much more regular than on our
shores ; Sherrin remarks :—‘ The appearance of Mackerel shoals is of more
frequent and regular occurrence than is generally regarded, or was at least
in past years, as it was the usual Maori habit in summer to station men on
cliffs to watch the shoals coming to land.”

Many good observers consider that Gmelin’s Scomber colias is identical
with this” fish, but as this is by no means proved to be correct, and as that
species has constantly but seven dorsal spines only, we have considered it
advisable to keep them separate. The synonymy given is compiled from
descriptions only.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 97

Genus II.—_PELAMYS.

Pelamys, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. viii, p. 149, 1831.

Branchiostigals seven: pseudobranchie present. Body elongate-oblong.
Cleft of mouth deep. Teeth in the jaws of moderate strength: small teeth
present or absent on the vomer, present on the palatine bones. Two dorsal
fins, the first formed of rather feeble spines, and reaching almost to the base
of the second dorsal, behind which and the anal are from six to nine finlets.
Seales minute: enlarged and forming a corselet on the anterior part of the
body. A longitudinal keel on each side of the tail. Airbladder absent.
Pyloric appendage dendritical.

Geographical distribution —Temperate and tropical seas.

PELAMYS CHILENSIS.

Pelamys chilensis, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. viii. p. 163; Gay, Hist.
Chile, Zool. 11. p. 224; Gnth. Catal. Fish ii. p. 368 ; Steindachn. SB. Ak.
Wien, lvii. p. 353 ; Day, Fish, Ind. p. 253, pl. lvi. ‘o i

Pelamys orientalis, Schleg. Faun. Japon. Poiss. p- 69, pl. li.; Gnth. Catal.
Fish. 11. p. 368.

Pelamys australis, Macleay Catal. Austr. Fish. 1. p. 192.

Pelamys schlegeli, McCoy, Prodr. Zool. Vict. dec. xvi. pl. 155.

Horse-Mackerel.
Plate XX VI.

B. vii. D. 18-19. 2-3/12-13.+vii-viii. A. 3-4/12-13.+vi. V. 1/5. P. 25-
C. 24. Vert. 23/22.

Length of head 4:00-4°20, of caudal fin 5°75-6°00, height of body 4:50-
4°80 in the total length. Eye with a very narrow adipose lid, its diameter
520-540 in the length of the head, 1°75 in. the length of the snout,
which is conical and slightly depressed, and 1:40 in the convex inter-
orbital space. Upper jaw very slightly the longer. Cleft of mouth deep-
and almost horizontal ; maxilla slightly expanded behind, reaching to beneath
the posterior margin of the orbit. A single row of distant, incurved teeth
in the jaws increasing in size posteriorly, fifteen to twenty in number in the
upper jaw, ten to thirteen in the lower; lower jaw with one, sometimes
two, pair of canines behind the symphysis, and inside of the outer row,
directed inwards and backwards; a small circular patch of stout teeth,
curving in all directions on the head of the vomer; these teeth are
decideous, but two or three are always present. A short row of recurved
teeth on the palatines. Dorsal spines weak, the second the longest,
three sevenths of the length of the head, gradually decreasing in length
from thence the posterior ones being very short, and the. last very
close to the origin of the rayed dorsal ; the latter fin high in front,
its height about two thirds of the length of its base: the anal com-
mences beneath the last dorsal ray or first “tinlet, and is similar to the rayed
dorsal, its height, however, is equal to the length of its base : ventrals short,
their length from 4°50-4'75 in the distance between their origin and the
vent, and 3:10-3:30 in the length of the head: pectorals short and falcate,
extending backwards to beneath the ninth dorsal spine, from’ 9:00—9'60 in
the total length, and 2°15-2 33 in the leneth of the head : caudal with pointed
lobes ; posterior portion of caudal pedicle strongly depressed, and bearing a

G

98 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

lateral longitudinal keel, without supplementary keels above and below.
Scales small, covering the entire body, anteriorly forming a distinct corselet,
which sends backwards three prolongations, the upper passing along the base
of the spimous dorsal, the central one along the middle of the side to immedi-
ately behind the pectoral, the upper edge of which is sunk in a groove, and
the lower, which is also grooved, passing along the median line of the
abdomen to a short distance behind the termination of the ventrals. Air-
bladder absent.

Colors—Back green with violet reflections, below silvery; a broad
dusky band covering the upper surface of the head and extending along
the dorsal profile to the base of the rayed dorsal, growing gradually narrower
posteriorly ; five to eleven dark longitudinal wavy bands on the sides, the
lower ones faint or wanting: dorsal fins dusky, the upper third of the
anterior spines, darkest, of the rays yellowish, as also are the tips of the
finlets; anal and ventral fins whitish ; pectorals and caudal blackish: irides
silvery.

The Horse Mackerel, as this fish is invariably called here both by fishermen
and dealers, appears on our shores in considerable shoals at irregular inter-
vals, and even ascends our shallow bays and estuaries to some distance in
pursuit of fry. Specimens obtained from Port Jackson and Botany during
the month of March, contained ova in an early stage of development.

Like all its allies these fishes are exceedingly active and voracious, nothing
which it can swallow coming amiss to its appetite, while as food it is
moderate when quite fresh.

So far the Port Jackson District is the only recorded Australian habitat
of this species, with the exception of a single specimen, in which the lower
body bands are very strongly marked, obtained by McCoy in Port Phillip.
It is, therefore, to be hoped that the figure given by him (Prodr. Zool. Vict.
dec. xvi. pl. 155) and the accompanying description, along with those
presented here, will draw attention to our larger striped Scombrids, and
enable us shortly to gain a clearer insight into their distribution in Aus-
tralian seas. Itis also found in Indian and Japanese waters, and was
originally described from the coast of Chili.

With us eighteen inches is the maximum size to which it attains, but the
type specimen is twenty six inches in length.

Pelamys chilensis is included in Sherrin’s “ List of Fishes in New Zea-
land” (p. 301), but is not mentioned in the index or the letterpress; we are,
therefore, unable to say whether it is common or otherwise.

Family XV.—TRACHINIDE.

Branchiostegals five to seven: pseudobranchie present. Body more or
less elongate, compressed posteriorly. Cleft of mouth varying from small
to very deep, and from almost horizontal to nearly vertical. Eyes more or
less lateral. Some of the bones of the head usually armed: preopercle
without bony stay. Teeth in the jaws small and pointed, with or without
canines: vomerine teeth present: palate edentulous or dentigerous. One
or two dorsal fins, the rays generally greatly outnumbering the spines: the
anal similar to the rayed dorsal: ventrals thoracic, with one spine and five
rays: lower pectoral rays simple or branched. Scales present or absent.
Airbladder generally absent. Pyloric appendages in small numbers.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 99

Geogrophical distribution Cosmopolitan. All the Trachinide are of
small size, and, with the exception ot Bathydraco, are littoral forms, some of
which enter rivers. Almost all are slow and inactive in their movements,
and keep entirely to the bottom. This, however, is not invariably the case ;
as instances to the contrary our whitings (Si//ago) may be taken, while the
European Trachinus vipera will rise to a white fly after sunset (see Proc. Roy.
Dublin Soe. 1885, p. 512.)

Several fossil forms have been described from tertiary deposits.

Genus I.—SILLAGO.

Sillago, Cuvier, Regne Anim.; Cuv & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. il. p. 398, 1829
Sillaginodes, Gill, Proc. Ac. Nat. Sc. Philad. 1861, p. 50-4.
Sillaginopsis, Gill, Proc. Ac. Nat. Sc. Philad. 1861, p. 505.

Branchiostegals six: pseudobranchiw present. Body elongate and some-
what cylindrical. Head conieal, with the muciferous system well developed.
Cleft of mouth small: the upper jaw rather the longer. Eyes lateral
directed slightly upwards. Gill-openings wide. Preopercle serrated or
crenulated : opercle terminating in a spinous point. Villiform teeth in the
jaws, with an outer subconical series, and on the vomer: palatine bones
edentulous. Two dorsal fins, the first with nine to twelve spines : the second
more developed, similar to the anal: ventrals thoracic : the lower pectoral
rays branched. Scales moderate or small, ctenoid. Lateral line not
continued on to the caudal fin. Airbladder simple. Pyloric appendages in
small number.

Geographical distribution —From the Red Sea, the east coast of Africa,
and the Seychelles, through all the seas of India and Malaysia, to those of
Australia and Tasmania.

The great confusion, which exists in the works of Australian authors, as
to the correct names to which the two species mentioned below are refer-
able, has made it a task of exceptional difficulty to select from the writings
of these authors the true species to which they allude, and thus present an
amended, and we trust more accurate, synonymy to our readers. That many
of these errors have been caused by the confused account given in the
Report of the Royal Commission, pp. 16, 17, is undoubted, but in justice to
the gentlemen who drew up that Report it is but fair to say that they were
probably misled by the statement made by Giinther (Catal. Fish. ii. p. 245,
foot-note) that the Astrolabe figure shows twenty one rays, whereas it really
shows two spines and nineteen rays, and as one of the spines is as often
absent as present, it necessarily follows that, so far as this character is con-
cerned, the fish in question is intermediate between S. maculata and WN. ciliata.
Johnston also throws some additional light on the subject by the statement
that in the Tasmanian form the “sides are faintly marked with yellowish
bars, which become obsolete towards the belly,” and, it might be added,
probably disappear in specimens preserved in alcohol. Until, therefore, a
eareful comparison of the Tasmanian fish with undoubted specimens of our
two species has been made, it seems to us unadvisable to consider S. bassensis
as a proved synonym of S. maculata. The Melbourne Whiting, 8. punctata,
occasionally occurs as far north as Port Jackson.

100 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

SILLAGO MACULATA.

Sillago maculata, Quoy & Gaim. Voy. Freycinet, Zool. p. 261, pl. Ini. f. 2;
Cuv. & Val.in. p. 411; Bleek. Pere. p. 62, and Revis. Sill. 1874, p. 71;
Goth. Catal. Fish. ii. p. 245; Kner, Voy. Novara, Fisch. p. 127: Day,
Fish. Ind. p. 265, pl. lvii. f. 4; Bleek. Atl. Ichthyol. pl. ecelxxxix. f.
5; All. & Macl. Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S. Wales, i. p. 279; Casteln. Proc.
Zool. Soe. Vict. 1872, 1. p. 94, and Proce. Linn. Soc. N. 8. Wales, iii. p.
380; Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish.i p. 201; Woods, Fisher, N. 8. Wales,
pl. xxiii.

? Sillago bassensis, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. i. p. 412; Quoy & Gaim.
Voy. Astrolabe, Poiss. p. 672, pl. i. f. 2.

? Sillago ciliata, Johnston, Proc. Roy. Soe. Tas. 1882, pp. 80, 116.

Trumpeter Whiting.

B. vi. D. 11. 1/19-20. A. 1-2/20-21. V.1/5. P. 15. C. 17. L. lat. 70-72-54, te:
6/14. Coec. pyl. 4. Vert. 14/21.

Length of head 3:75-4:25, of caudal fin 5:50-6:00, height of body
5-00-5'66 in the total length. Diameter of eye 350-425 in the length of
the head, and 133-150 in that of the snout: interorbital space flat,
1°25-1'50 in the diameter of the eye. Nostrils approximate, subcircular, the
anterior protected by a flap, the posterior patent. Upper profile of head
slightly rounded. Upper jaw a little the longer. Cleft of mouth small and
transverse, the maxilla extending less than half way along the snout.
Preopercle finely denticulated : opercle with a single blunt point. Teeth in
the jawsin villiform bands, with the outer row a little enlarged ; an arcuate
band on the vomer. Dorsal spines weak, the second the longest, 1:75-2:25
in the length of the head: second dorsal not so high as the first, its base
about one eighth longer than that of the anal: the anal commences opposite
the third dorsal ray, and ends beneath the penultimate ray: ventral fin
with the outer ray filamentous, its length from 1:25-1°50 in the distance
between its origin and the vent, and 1°50-2:00 in that of the head: pectorals
1:65-2°00 in the same: caudal emarginate, the least height of the pedicle
from 2°33-2°75 in the height of the body. Preorbital, maxilla, and snout in
front of the nostrils naked ; a row of minute scales behind each dorsal and
anal ray. Lateral line gently curved to beneath the anterior dorsal rays,
thence straight.

Colors.—Sandy brown above, silvery below; the sides with a conspicuous,
median, longitudinal silvery band, and with seven or eight irregular dusky
blotches directed obliquely forwards, which are sometimes very faint or
even absent: cheeks golden, a dark green blotch on the opercles: spinous
dorsal blotched, rayed dorsal spotted, with olive green; anal and ventrals
golden; pectorals and caudal cloudy gray, the former with a deep black spot
in front of the base.

So great is the confusion existing with regard to this and the succeeding
species of Whiting, that it is very difficult to ascertain to which of them the
various authors refer; it is, however, generally conceded that the two species
shed their ova at different seasons, and this accords with our own observations.
Examples of this species obtained during January and February have the roe
about half developed, and the months, March and April, given as the breeding
season in the Royal Commission Report, are therefore correct. The ova is
deposited on sandy beaches in sheltered bays and lakes, and in estuaries, water

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 101

of no great depth being selected. In the Report above referred to it is stated :—
$8 There i is a similar want of reliable evidence as to the time of the appearance
of the young fry, but we believe that there are sufficient grounds for eon-
eluding that the spawn deposited at the end of summer does not germinate
until the warmth of spring.” This remark is worthy of all consideration,
the only alternative suggestion being that during ‘the winter months the
coldness of the Snallew: water in which the ova are deposited, retards their
growth on their emergence from the egg. Be this as it may, the young fish,
measuring from one He two inches, may ihe found abuni dantly on shallow, shore
tered, sandy flats and lagunes—such as Manly Lagune, where great facilities
for their observation are available—during the early summer months ; ; each
of these young fish is in possession of a hole in the sand, but whether self-
excavated, or having been deserted by, or taken from, its rightful owner, we

are not in a position to state ; at the mouth of the hole, which is only just
large enough to admit of the passage of its body, the little creature lies, and
on the approach of danger, or even the passage of a dark cloud over the sun,
immediately disappears, “the anterior half of the head, however, as quickly
reappearing, thus showing that close beneath the surface a chamber must
exist, sufficiently large to. permit of their turning round with ease ; should
any movement occur in their neighborhood to cause them further a alec when
in this position they are able to back down again into their hiding place
with great celerity, but if perfect quiet is maintained, they soon emerge and
take up their original position near the opening. These were undoubtedly
S. maculata, as several specimens were caught.

Though not numerically so abundant nor attaining to such a size as the
succeeding species, the flesh of this Whiting is of equally excellent quality,
and few, if any, of our food fishes are so universally appreciated, while none
command so certain a sale, and none with the exception of its congener, for
their size so high a price in the local market. Their food consists of worms,
small crustaceans, isopods, and foraminifera.

The Trumpeter Whiting is found along the entire seaboard of New

South Wales, but becomes more numerous to the northward. It is men-
tioned by Saville Kent as frequenting Moreton Bay, but no more inappro-
riate name than that of “Sydney Whiting” could have been devised
for it, Sillago maculata being the ‘only species of our Whitings which
can boast of an extended range; S. punctata being confined, so far as our
present records go, to Victoria and South Australia; S. bassensis, if a good
species, inhabiting Tasmanian waters only; while S, cé//ata is found along
our entire eastern and perhaps nothern coast-lines ; what species is found
in West Australia we are unable to state at present.* In virtue of its wide
northerly and westerly range, the Trumpeter Whiting should be abundant
along the shores of Queensland and North Australia. From Victoria it
has been recorded as “once seen’ ’ by Castelnau, and it does not appear
from Lueas’ Census that it has been observed since ; while Johnston
records it doubtfully from Tasmania. Of the common ’ Whiting of the
island colony, it is, however, necessary to speak at greater length ;
Johnston, who refers it to S. ciliata, writes :—‘ The Tasmanian Whiting is
a most valuable market fish ; it fetches a higher price in the market, for its
size, than any other fish. These fishes are usually taken in seine nets,
during the months of November, December, and January, in the Derwent,
and along the east coast. They also may, be taken with hook and line, ae

* A report on the Food Fishes of West Australia ony the pen of a competent ichthyologist is greatly needed.
No more fertile and almost unworked field for the study of this branch of zoological science exists on the
face of the globe, than the varied and extensive seaboard of that magnificent Colony.

102 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

a dozen or so are frequently captured in this way at odd times in the upper
waters about Sandy Bay as late as July. They go in schools, but they are
stated to have greatly fallen off in numbers during the last year or two ;
the reason for this decrease has not yet been satisfactorily determined. They
are delicious little fishes, averaging a quarter or a pound in weight, silvery,
with elongate snout and body. The sides are faintly marked with yellowish
bars, which become obsolete towards the belly.” Further on the same
author remarks :—‘‘ When (freshly) caught, however, there are six to seven
faint irregularly oblique bars running across the side in a forward direction
from the dorsal to the lateral line. Faint obliquestreaks of olive ornament
the interspaces between the dorsal rays. There are invariably seventy rows
of scales along the lateral line. Average length ten inches.” Mr. Johnston,
presumably from personal examination, gives the formula of the anal fin in
the Tasmanian species as 2/18-19; in all the specimens of S. céliata which
have passed through our hands, that formula was 2/16, while in 8. maculata
it was 1-2/20-21, the Tasmanian fish being, theretore, intermediate in this
character. We may at once withdraw 8. ciliata from the discussion, as from
Johnston’s remarks we have ample evidence that his fish does not belong to that
species, the number of scales on the lateral line, the coloration, and the average
size and weight, all combining to preclude such a belief. The whole question,
therefore, rests on the identity or otherwise of S. bassensis with S. maculata,
and this can only be settled finally by a direct comparison of the Tasmanian
form with the undoubted S. maculata of our own coast. We may, however,
remark that the anal formula as given by Johnston, agrees with the figures
of S. bassensis in the voyage of the Astrolabe, but by a clerical error
the authors of the Histoire Naturelle des Poissons, are represented as giving
that formula as 1/12, though in the next line they assert that it has two
anal spines (J/ y a deux épines a son anale).

It is a resident of the seas of the Malay Archipelago, and ranges westward
as far as the Andaman Islands, but has not as yet been recorded from the
mainland of India.

This species attains to a length of twelve inches, but the more usual
market size is under ten inches.

SILLAGO CILIATA.

Sullago ciliata, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. ui. p. 415; Cuv. Régne Anim.
il. Poiss. pl. xii. f. 2; Gnth. Catal. Fish. ii. p. 245; Casteln. Proc.
Zool. Soc. Vict. 1. p. 118; Kner, Voy. Novara, Fisch. p. 127; All. &
Macl. Proc. Linn. Soc. N. 8. Wales, i. p. 279; Macleay, Catal. Austr.
Fish. 1. p. 202; Woods, Fisher. N. S. Wales, pl. xxiv.

Sillago terra-regine, Casteln. Proc. Linn. Soe. N. 8. Wales, ii. p. 232.

Stllago bassensis, Casteln. Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S. Wales, iii. p. 380; Macleay,
Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 202.

Sand Whiting.
Plate XX VII.
Bovi. D.11.1/17-18. A. 2/16, V.1/5.°P. 16. ‘C. 17. 1h. lati ia
6/12-13. Cee. pyl. 3. Vert. 14/19.

Length of head 4:00-4:20, of candal fin 5:20-5°75, height of body 5:°66-
5°85 in the totallength. Diameter of eye, 4:00-5:25 in the length of the head,
and 1°75-2°50 in that of the snout: interorbital space flat, 1°00-1°40 in the
diameter of the eye. Nostrils approximate, the anterior crescentic and

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 103

protected by a flap, the posterior circular and patent. Upper profile of
head slightly rounded. Upper jaw a little the longer. Cleft of mouth
small and transverse, the maxilla not extending fp, more than half way
along the snout. Preopercle finely denticulated on the vertical limb:
opercle with a blunt point. Teeth im the jaws villiform with an outer
enlarged row; on the vomer in an angular band. Dorsal spines weak, the
second the longest, 1°50-1°75 in the length of the head ; second dorsal not
nearly so high as the first, its base one fifth longer than that of the anal:
the anal commences opposite the second or third dorsal ray, and ends opposite
the fifteenth: ventral fin extending from five sevenths to one half of the
distance between its origin and the vent, its length, 1°50-2:00 in that of
the head; the outer ray slightly filamentous: pectorals from 1:°50-1°75 in
the same: caudal emarginate, the least height of the pedicle 2:15-2:33 in the
height of the body. Scales adherent; none on the preorbital or anterior
half of the snout; rows of minute scales behind the dorsal and anterior
anal rays.

Colors.—Sandy eat above with purple and green reflections ; upper
surface of head and the snout olive green; a broad but rather indistinct
yellowish band along the middle of the sides: spinous dorsal with faint dusky
blotches, the rayed with rows of blackish spots; anal and ventral golden ;
pectorals pale brown with a darker base; caudal yellowish with blackish
margins.

The principal breeding season of this Si//ago extends from the middle of
October nearly to Christmas, according to the bulk of the specimens
examined by us, and this is fairly in harmony with the evidence of Mr. Glover,
who states that in Twofold Bay :—‘‘ They spawn in December, up the river,
and also on sand-banks in the bay. I have caught them very small in
April” ; and of Mr. Hood Pegus, who, speaking of the Clarence Heads,
remarks :—‘“ Whiting are most plentiful in January, and spawn in November,
December, and January.” Reiying on the evidence of Mr. C. Smith, the
Royal Commissioners say :— We are inclined to think that this W hiting” a=
undoubtedly S. ciliata, not S. maculata as supposed by the Commission—
“has two spawning seasons in the year, but if so, and there is little reason
to doubt it, the spring” (winter?) ‘‘ spawning is much the least important.”
That there are two distinct seasons during which this species, and in all
probability S. maculata also, sheds its spawn, admits of no doubt, but, as
mentioned before, the main body of adult fish deposit their ova during the
early months of summer, while those which utilise June and July for this
purpose are, as a rule, smaller, not fully adult, fish, which are possibly
obeying the instincts of nature for the first time; there is, therefore, we
consider, but one breeding season in the year for each individual fish, We
are not in a position to state whether the fry of this fish protects itself by
seeking refuge in holes im the sand, as mentioned in the account of the
preceding species.

In its habits this species does not materially differ from S. maculata, but,
being a larger and more handsome fish, it commands an even higher price
im the market, and is, of all our food fishes, the one which is most in request
for the breakfast table of those who can afford its price. The bulk of the
Whitings sent to the Sydney Market are captured by means of the seine
net, but they are also taken by hook and line.

Mr. Hill, refering to this species under the name of S. maculata, says :—
“The W. hiting may be caught with hook and line off sandy beaches or sand-
spits, and in open sandy bays on the coast, in smooth water. The best bait
is a live earthworm, although they will also take a fish bait, but not so

104 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

readily ; rarely, however, is the adult Whiting caught by hook and line;
the medium size is the rule, except on the open sea beaches, where some of
the very large ones may be taken by these means.” So far as this goes it is
doubtless correct, but the remainder of the paragraph* is hardly what one
would expect to find countenanced by a Royal Commission specially appomted
for the purpose of protecting our food fishes during the earlier stages of
their existence, and developing our fishing industries; .neither of these
important ends are likely to be attained by advocating this unprincipled
destruction of the fry of our finest food fish.

The Sand Whiting is far more abundant on the shores of the Colony than
the preceding species, and is found along the coast from north to south;
but like S. maculata appears to increase in numbers towards our northern
boundary, while the finest consignments of these fishes forwarded to the
Sydney market come from Lake Macquarie. Macleay has still further
accentuated the confusion existing between the Australian Whitings by
enumerating our common form as S. dassensis, and giving northern Aus-
tralia as the restricted habitat of S. ezliata; this further confusion, it is but
just to say, is probably traceable to Castelnau’s papers on the subject.

S. ciliata is common on the coast of Queensland, and extends its range
northward to York Peninsula and probably to the shores of southern New
Guinea ; but the extent of its range to the westward cannot be determined
until a series of examples from our northern and north-western waters have
been placed in the hands of a competent authority. This species has not
been recorded as yet from Victoria; but it is palpable that a fish which is
abundant at Twofold Bay is sure to occur in at least the eastern waters of
that Colony. Although Johnston is in error as to the fish which he cata-
logues as S. ciliata (see p. 101), the true S. ciliata does, as might be
expected, occur on the Taamanian coast, a specimen from that Colony being
in the collection of the British Museum.

This fine species grows to the length of twenty inches, and it is no
uncommon sight to see in the Sydney market several dozens of these fishes,
each individual of which would exceed fifteen ; twelve inches is, however,
about the average size.

Family XVI.—COTTIDZ.

Branchiostegals five to seven: pseudobranchie present. Body oblong
or subcylindrical. Cleft of mouth lateral. Eyes lateral or directed upwards.
Some of tke bones of the head armed. Preopercle connected to the subor-
bital ring by a bony stay. Dentition generally feeble, and consisting of
villiform bands: vomer and palate with or without teeth. One or two
dorsal fins, the spinous portion less developed than the soft portion or the
anal: ventrals thoracic, with five or less rays: pectorals with or without free
rays. Body naked, scaly, or with series of bony plates. Airbladder present
or absent. Pyloric appendages, when present, few or in moderate numbers.

Geographical distribution.—Cosmopolitan.

This family contains a number of carnivorous fishes, none of which attain
to a large size, belonging chiefly to the littoral zone; some, however, are
inhabitants of fresh water only, and one Japanese species (Cottus bathybius)
is found at a depth of at least five hundred fathoms.

Fossil representatives, among which the recent genus Zrigla occurs,
have been described from various tertiary formations.

* The very young Whiting, from three to four inches long, in the beginning of the year, and at early
morning flood tide, will readily take a worm bait. These, nicely cleaned, and fried crisp and brown, are not
easily to be beaten, and would fairly vie with the famous Whitebait of England.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 105

Genus I._ PLATYCEPHALUS.

Platycephalus, Bl. Schn. p. 58,1801; Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. iv.
2226:
eee eicplialus, Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. 1872, i. p. 87.

Branchiostegals seven: pseudobranchie present. Head broad, much
depressed, more or less armed. Body depressed anteriorly, subcylindrical
posteriorly. Cleft of mouth wide: lower jaw the longer. Eyes lateral or
directed upwards. Jaws, vomer, and palatine bones with bands of villiform
teeth, the former sometimes intermixed with larger ones. ‘Two dorsal fins,
the first with the anterior spine smali and isolated: a similar spine some-
times present between the fins: anal similar to the rayed dotsal: ventrals
thoracic, remote from the root of the pectorals: no pectoral appendages.
Scales small or of moderate size, ctenid. Lateral line complete: in some
species armed with spines. Airbladder absent. Pyloric appendages in
moderate numbers.

Geographical distribution—From the seas of Australia and Polynesia,
through those of Malaysia, northwards to Japan, and westwards through
those of India to the east coast of Africa.

. Day remarks :—‘“‘ These fishes are termed ‘ Crocodile-fishes’ in Malabar,
and wounds from their spines are dreaded, because of the violent irritation
they occasion.” He also notices the peculiarity of the eyes, “in that the
iris possesses two semicircular flaps, one above and the other below, the upper
being usually the larger; they can be brought close, one to the other, probably
due to the stimulus of light.” Gziinther, refering to the genus, says :—
“This genus represents in the tropical Indian Ocean the Cotti of the Arctic
and the Notothenie of the Antarctic zone. Like these, they live on the
bottom in shallow water, hidden in the sand, the colors of which are assimi-
lated to those of their body. Therefore, they are very scarce near coral
islands which are surrounded by great depths ; whilst the numbers of species
is considerable on many points of the shelving Australian coasts. Their long
and strong ventral fins are of great use to them in locomotion.”

PLATYCEPHALUS FUSCUS.

Platycephalus fuscus, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. iv. p. 241; Quoy & Gaim.
Voy. Astrolabe, Poiss. pl. x. f. 1; Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict., 1872,
1. p. 86, and Proc. Linn. Soc. N. S. Wales, iii. p. 379; Sauv. N. Arch.
Mus. (2) i. p. 150; Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 217: Woods,
Fisher. N.S. Wales, p. 67, pl. xxv.

? Platycephalus cinereus, Guth. Proc. Zool. Soc. 1871, p. 661; Macleay,
Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 219.

Common Flathead.
Plate XX VIII.
Bowie. 2-7. 1/13.-A. 13. V. ‘1/5. P. 19-20. C. 14. L. lat. ca. 100. Cove.
pyl. 11. Vert. 11/16.

Length of head 3°50-3°75, of caudal fin 6:66-7:00, height of body
8:50-9:00 in the total length: breadth of head at the base of the preopercular
spines 1'80—2°00 in its length. Diameter of eye 6°66—7°33 in the length of
the head, and 1°80-2°00 in that of the snout, which is broad and depressed,
rounded in front, its length one fourth of that of the head: interorbital

106 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

space slightly concave, from 1°10-1'33 in the diameter of te eye. Nostrils
small, rounded, separated by a moderate interspace, the anterior pierced in
the summit of a low tube. Upper surface of head flat. Lower jaw the
longer. The maxilla extends to below the middle of the orbit. Preorbital with
two short, stout, blunt spines, directed forwards, at its antero-inferior angle,
from the bases of which rise two prominent parallel ridges, which terminate
at the preopercular spines, and the upper of which bears a very minute
spinous point at the anterior angle of the preopercle: no turbinal spines: a
broad low ridge, ceasing between the eyes, behind the turbinal bones: a
minute spine at the antero-superior margin of the orbit: a pair of convergent
ridges from above the eyes terminate on the anterior part of the occiput in
a minute point: five other short occipital ridges, the anterior pair profusely
branched, the posterior pair ending in a minute spine: a temporal ridge
from the postero-superior margin of the orbit to the origin of the lateral
line, bearing several minute ‘points, and a short strong terminal spine:
opercle with a single weak spine: preopercular spines slightly divergent,
the lowér a little lon ger than the upper, and two thirds of the diameter of
the eye: a skinny flap, not quite equal in length to the interorbital space
and ending in an acute point, on the suboperele. Maxilla witha broad band
of villiform teeth and a short strong canine at the inner angle of the
symphysis on either ramus, and several pairs of similar but much smaller
teeth in front of and outside it; mandible with a narrow band of villiform
teeth in front, and an inner row of short sharp teeth continued back as far
as the maxillary bands; two sriall patches of villiform teeth on the vomer,
connected mesially by a single series, and terminating on either side in thnae
strong conical teeth, the median one being much the longest ; a single series
of small, stout, conical, acute teeth on the palatines, extending backwards to
behind the angle of the mouth. Two partially isolated spines in front of
the spinous dors sal, the first very minute and about as long as the last spine ;
the second strong, 5°50 in the length of the succeeding spine, which is the
longest, from 2° 00-2'15 in the length of the head, and ‘yather more than the
distance between the tip of the lower j jaw and the posterior margin of the
eye; the remaining dorsal spines flexible ; a short, stout, isolated spine in
front of the second dorsal ; anterior dorsal ray the longest and unbranched,
not quite so long as the longest spine ; the distance between its base and the
origin of the caudal 1-25 in that between the same point and the tip of the
snout: the anal commences opposite to the origin of the soft dorsal, and
reaches some distance further back than that fin ; the posterior rays, except
the last, are the longest, but not nearly so long as the anterior rays of the
dorsal: the fourth ventral ray is the longest, reaching to the second or
third anal ray, its length from 1:33-1:50 in that of the head : pectoral rather
short and rounded, reaching to the vertical from the fourth flexible dorsal
spine, its length from 2.00-2'30 in that of the head; the lower five, six, or
seven rays equal : caudal gently rounded, the height. of the pedicle at the
base of the last anal ray two thirds of its width at the same spot. Lateral
line smooth; fourteen series of scales between it and the first dorsal ray,
and one hundred and thirty series above it.
Colors.—Rich brown above and on the upper half of the sides, the head
lighter with numerous reddish-brown spots ; sides of head and subopercular
flap spotted with pale olive green; lower half of sides pale greenish-yellow
with indistinct blotches of olive green; white below: first dorsal with a
series of small chestnut spots in front of each spine ; second with the spots
crossing the rays, forming interrupted bands ; upper third of caudal similar
to the dorsals, but with much larger spots ; the remainder dark bluish-gray,

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 107

unspotted, and narrowly edged below with white ; pectorals grayish, thickly
freckled with reddish-brown ; ventrals similar, but with much larger spots,
and with the spine and a narrow margin white; anal white.

Of the several species of Flathead inhabiting the seas of New South Wales
not one can claim any title to commercial rank except the one which is here
described and figured.

So far as our own observation goes, the main body of the Flatheads, con-
signed to the Sydney market from the coast line between Shoalhaven to the
south and Lake Macquarie to the north, shed their ova during the two first
months of the year, and this is generally in accordance with the evidence given
before the Royal Commission. Writing from Twofold Bay, under date
February, 1880, Mr. Glover states :—“ Flathead are plentiful here all the
year round in the shallower parts of the bay. They are caught with hook
and line, and they spawn, I think, about March, as they are very full of ova
now, and I have caught very small ones soon after March. The fish spawn
im the usual fishing places and the spawn lies loose.” This notice must,
however, be considered as possibly applying to Platycephalus bassensis and
P. levigatus as well as to the present species. In the Clarence River the
date of spawning is said to be January, February,and March. The ova are
deposited on sand or mud banks in water of a moderate depth.

The fiesh of the Flathead is of excellent quality, firm, flaky, and well
flavored; in fact all the species must be ranked among our best food fishes;
its appearance is unfortunately somewhat against it, but once the prejudice
excited by this is overcome, it will not intentionally be cast aside in future.
Being essentially a ground fish its food principally consists of squid, prawns,
and other crustaceans, worms, and smaller fishes; among the latter we have
recognised Callionymi, a Petroscirtes, young Pseudorhombi, Stigmatophora,
and in a large specimen an eight inches example of its own species.

Though properly a marine fish inhabiting sand and mud banks at a
moderate depth in our bays and estuaries, the Flathead is also found on the
shelving and sandy tracts of our ocean shores to the depth of at least 80.
fathoms, but it is needless to say that, until the trawl net comes into general
use, these valuable fishing grounds must remain idle; this fish does not,
however, confine itself solely to salt water, as it is well known to ascend
many of our rivers far above the influence of the tide, and Tenison Woods
remarks that “ P. fuscus comes up the Hunter River as far as West Mait-
land, where it is caught abundantly by the anglers in summer.”

They are considerable contributors to the sport of the amateur line fisher,
the most sportsmanlike method of capturing them being to allow the boat to
drift with the tide broad side on across a bank, when, if the fish be plentiful
on the ground, good sport, with the not unpleasant resultant of a large
number of excellent table fish, may frequently be obtained ; unfortunately,
where fish are plentiful sharks are rarely distant, and many a good hour’s
fishing is spoiled by these pests; the writer formed one of a boat’s crew which
decided to drift over a well known bank in the hope of making a material
and welcome accession to their Christmas dinner ; all went favorably for the
first five minutes when half a dozen fine Flathead had been brought to bag ;
then the School Sharks (Galeus) made their appearance, and not another fish
was caught. Mr. Hill, writing of Flathead fishing, remarks :—‘‘They are
ground fishes, and bite freely i in the summer season, but retire into deeper
water during the colder months of the year, where they might also be caught
with the line. Ofa calm day it is usual to let the boat drift over the eround
which is generally sandy, when occasionally they bite freely. I have often
known fifteen or tw enty dozens hauled up as fast as the lines could be put

108 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES,

over. They are sluggish fishes and do not give much sport; the very large
ones, of three to four (?) feet in length, which are at times caught with the
line, have pretty good strength but are soon exhausted. The flesh is good,
white, firm, and flaky, and is preferable when boiled.” The same author
also warns anglers against the “ great pain and inflammation consequent on
a wound inflicted by the preopercular spines, with which they strike viciously,
and which they can erect to a certain degree at will, when stirred by anger
or fear.”

How far to the northward the species is found it is difficult to say, but we
have seen specimens from Maryborough, while Saville Kent, alluding pre-
sumably to the Brisbane Market, writes that Flatheads ‘ ‘yield a substantial
contribution to the general fish supply. The most abundant and familiar
type is the Common Flathead, Platycephalus fuscus.” From Port Phillip
Lucas records this species as the “Grass Flathead,’ while Castelnau,
states that it is found on a weedy bottom ; a conclusion which does not tally
with our experience in this Colony, but which would seemingly be more
applicable to the Rock Flathead, P. levigatus.

If we are correct in our suggestion that Giinther’s P. cinereus is the same
fish as this of which we are now treating, and the differences between his
description and ours are trifling, the range of this species would be extended
in a westerly direction at least to South Australia, while the anomaly of its
absence from Tasmanian waters, where Johnston gives itas “not uncommon,
but rarely brought to market,’ would disappear.

This species attains a length of forty inches, but the majority of examples
sent to market are little more than half that size.

Genus II.—TRIGLA.

Trigla, Artedi, Gen. Pise. p. 42, 1738; Cuvier, Régne Anim.; Cuv. & Val.
Hist. Nat. Poiss. iv. p. 9.
Lepidotrigla, Ginther, Catal. Fish 11. p. 196, 1860.

Branchiostegals seven: pseudobranchie present. Head parallelopiped,
with its upper surface and sides bony, the large infraorbital covering the
cheek. Villiform teeth in the jaws and normally on the vomer: palate
edentulous. Two dorsal fins, the first being of less extent than the second :—
three free pectoral filaments. Airbladder well developed, usually provided
with lateral muscles, and sometimes partially divided internally. Pylorie
appendages in small numbers.

Geographical distributionCoasts of Australia, Tasmania, and New
Zealand. Beyond theselimits Day gives its distribution as follows :—* Coasts
of Europe, being especially abundant in the Mediterranean. One species
extending across the North Atlantic is found on the eastern shores of
North America. To the south it passes round the west coast of Afriea, and
from the Atlantic to the Indian Ocean, apparently avoiding the east coast
of Africa, the shores of India, and the contiguous islands.”

One of the most noticeable characteristics of Trigla is the presence of
three free pectoral filaments, which are employed as organs of touch and
locomotion, and it is most interesting to watch these fishes balancing them-
selves by means of their expanded “pectoral fins, slowly draw themselves
forward by these filaments, and at the same time carefully testing every
particle of the ground over which they are passing in order to detect their
concealed prey. For the adequate execution of such complex functions
it is manifest that these filaments must be supplied with specially

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 109

strengthened nerves, and accordingly we find Giinther (Study of Fishes, p.
108) observing: “The additional function which the (five) anterior spinal
nerves of Jrigla have to perform, in supplying the sensitive pectoral
appendages and their muscles, has caused the development of a paired series
of globular swellings of the corresponding portion of the spinal chord. A
similar structure is found in Polynemus.”

TRIGLA KUMU.

Trigla kumu, Less. & Garn. Voy. Coquille, Poiss. pl. xix., 1826; Cuv. & Val.
Hist. Nat. Poiss. iv. p. 50; Jenyns, Voy. Beagle, Fish. p. 27; Schleg.
Faun. Japon. Poiss. p. 37, pl. xiv. A. f. 8; Owen, Osteol. Catal. i. p. 55;
Bleek. Verhand. Batav. Genootsch. xxvi. Japan, p. 74; Gnth. Catal.
Fish. ii. p. 204: Kner, Voy. Novara, Fisch. p. 124, pl. vi. f.:2 (ar
bladder), and SB. Ak. Wien, lvii. p. 318; McCoy, Prodr. Zool. Vict.
dec. i. pl. 5; Castein. Proc. Linn. Soc. N. S. Wales, ii. p. 3380;
Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fisb. i. p. 225; Woods, Fisher. N.S. Wales,
p. 68, pl. xxvii.; Sherrin, Handb. Fish. N.Z. p. 36.

Trigla spinosa, McClell. Cale. Journ. Nat. Hist. iv. p. 396, pl. xxi. £. 2.

Trigla kumu, var. dorsomaculata, Steindachn. SB. Ak. Wien, xxiv. p. 216.

Red Gurnard.
Plate X XIX.

B. vii. D. 9-10/15. A. 14-15. V. 1/5. P. 10-1143. C. 12. L. lat. 75-82.
Cec. pyl. 6. Vert. 12/22.

Length of head 4:00-4:25, of caudal fin 5°15-5°66, height of body 5:66-6:50
in the total length: breadth of head immediately behind the preopercle
140-166 in its length. Eye large, situated so high up as to rise above the
dorsal profile, its diameter 3°85—4:00 in the length of the head. and 1 80-200
in that of the snout, which is rather elongate, and flat or slightly concave
above: interorbital space concave, 1°50-1'75 in the diameter of the eye.
Nostrils remote, the anterior small and subcircular, protected by a low skinny
flap; the posterior open, forming a moderately long subhorizontal slit, and
pierced slightly nearer to the orbit than to the tip of the preorbital. Occiput
slightly convex. Upper jaw the longer. Cleft of mouth moderate and
horizontal, the maxilla reaching to beneath the anterior margin of the orbit,
or not quite so far. Preorbital granulose and bearing anteriorly several
small blunt spinous points: armature of snout ornamented with numerous
series of small granules radiating from a common centre: supraorbital ridge
anteriorly with two or three strong spines, the upper of which is rather
the larger; posteriorly roughened or obscurely spinose: a naked patch
anteriorly on the snout, from whence a narrow naked band runs backwards
through the nostrils to beneath and behind the orbit, and thence below the
eccipital bone to the opercular flap: cheeks with horizontal, preopercle
with vertical series of granules: preopercle with two spines at the angle,
the upper the longer; no distinet ridge between the preorbital and the
angle of the preopercle: an interopercular spine: opercle with a broad,
naked margin, the bony portion with radiating striz composed of small
granules, and armed with two spines, the lower of which is much the
stronger and longer: occipital bone lunate behind, each horn terminating
posteriorly ina strong spine: clavicle witha single strong spine. Both
jaws with a band of villiform teeth, interrupted at the symphyses : vomerine
teeth in two small circular patches. The dorsal fin commences above the

110 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

free portion of the clavicular spine, and ends above the fourteenth anal ray ;

the first spine is roughened anteriorly ; it is not so long asthe second, whieh
is normally the longest, 1°50-1°66 in the length of the head ; the tenth spine,
when present, is minute and may easily be overlooked ; the first ray of the
soft dorsal is unbranched, and its base is from one fifth to one seventh
nearer to the origin of the caudal than to the tip of the snout; the third or
fourth ray is the highest, about three fifths of the highest spine ; the last
ray is undivided: the anal commences beneath the second dorsal ray; ali
the rays, except the last three, are simple, the last being divided to its base :

in small examples the ventral fin reaches to the vent, but in the adult fish it
falls a little short of it; the spine is stronger than those of the first dorsal,
the fifth of which is about equal in length to it; the third and fourth rays
are equal and longest, from 1°10-1°33 in the length of the head : the pectoral
is rounded posterior ly, and the middle rays, w hich are longest, are from one
fourth to two fifths longer than the head, and reach back as far as the fourth
to the seventh anal ray: caudal emarginate in small, truncated with the
outer rays slightly produced in large, examples; the least height of the
caudal pedicle equal to its width at the same spot, and about three sevenths
of the distance between the dorsal fin and the base of the caudal. Scales
minute. Lateral line almost straight, the scalessmooth: the series of keeled
scales along each side of the bases of the dorsal fins well developed, and
numbering about twenty three pairs.

Colors.—Upper surfaces and sides of the head red, with or without an
admixture of brown; lower surfaces white washed with pink: dorsal and
caudal fins reddish with a str ong tinge of yellow, the latter color frequently
predominating on the posterior half of the caudal; anal and ventral! fins white
or pinkish; pectorals externally pale red, the membrane frequently tinged
with violet, and with a broad pale blue marginal band posteriorly ; the inner
or posterior side olive green or purple, with more or less numerous light blue
spots on its outer half, and with a large black blotch on the lower third of
the fin, the spots on which are milk white.

There is not, so far as we are aware, any recorded notice of the spawning
season of this fish on the Australian coast, and the only light which we can
throw on the subject is, therefore, from our own necessarily limited observa-
tions; these fix the season at or about the two last months of the year,
specimens examined during the last week in October being full of ripe ova,
while others were found to have spawned towards the latter ‘end of December;
others again dissected during May and June contained no ova. The fry are
never seen in our harbors, nor have I ever found it oceurring among the
débris of the seine net. Little is known as to the place and method of
shedding the spawn, but since Sars’ discovery that the ova floats, it is
probable that these do not differ materially from other fishes dwelling at
moderate depths, such as the Cod (Gadus morrhua), the flotation of whose
ova is unquestionable. We have ourselves noticed that about July and
August the Gray Gurnards (Zrigla gurnardus) off the north coast of Ireland
were full of roe, and schooled on the surface of the water.

Asa food fish our Red Gurnard is excellent, the best way of preparing it
being undoubtedly by stuffing and baking. Their food consists of worms,
small molluses, crustaceans, and fishes.

Notwithstanding the large size of the pectoral fins these fishes have not
the power of sustaining themselves in the air, and ean only leap out of the
water and immediately fall back again like other fishes, and this power even
they do not often exert, or only at least when striving to escape from an
enemy, and perhaps at the schooling season.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. F

Though but seldom appearing in our market the Red Gurnard is probably
not uncommon on the coast of the Colony, but being an inhabitant of water
of considerable depth, and with a sandy or shingly bottom, we have at present
no appliances for capturing it, and it is only when a stray individual is taken
by men engaged in fishing for Snapper that we ever see a specimen. It
is found along the coast of Queensland from north to south, and is the fish
mentioned by Saville Kent as Trigla polyommata, but not the species figured
by him under that name, which is possibly Zrigla buergert. 'Tenison Woods
has also confounded these two unmistakable fishes, so that the names on Plates
xxvi and xxvii must be reversed. It occurs on the shores of Victoria and
Tasmania, but is notcommon. Although we have no record of its occurrence
in the seas of South and West Australia, its extensive range, through
Malaysia to the Chinese and Japanese seas, leads us to infer its existence
in those waters, and its gradual increase in numbers in a northerly direction
Kner has recorded it from the Cape of Good Hope.

Our Red Gurnard is found also in New Zealand waters, where it is known
to the Maoris by the name of Kumukumu, and is much more abundant than
is the ease in the other Colonies. Sherrin remarks:—‘‘ The Red Gurnard
or Kumukumu is very abundant durmg the summer months in the harbors
of the North, and full nets are sometimes drawn in Wellington with no
other fish in them. The full grown fish weighs about four pounds, and all
sizes are used as food, the smaller ones, however, being preferred. The
flesh is firm and white but rather dry. The grunting noise which this
beautifully colored fish makes when caught, is a great source of amusement
to amateur fishermen. It is rarely seen in the Dunedin market. Though
found aj] around the North Island, they are not so plentiful m many piaces
as at Wellington. They can be caught with hook and line if fished for, and
are found in some fifteen fathoms of water.” Further, he says that ‘in
flavor it is similar to Snapper when fresh in tins, and will put up well in
small casks.” The grunting noise above refered to is caused, says Ginther,
“by the escape of gas from the airbladder through the open pneumatic
duct.”

This species grows to a length of twenty inches.

TRIGLA POLYOMMATA.

Trigla polyommata, Richards, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1839, p. 96, and Trans. Zool.
Soe. ni. p. 87, pl. v. f. 2; Guth. Catal. Fish. 1. p. 204; Casteln. Proe.
Zool. Soc. Vict. 1872, i.p.88; Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. 1. p. 226 (fin
Sormula incorrect) ; Woods, Fisher. N. 8. Wales, pl. xxvi.; Johnston,
Proce. Roy. Soc. Tas. 1882, pp. 80, 115.

Hoplonotus polyommatus, Guichen. Ann. Soe. Linn. Maine-et-Loire, ix.
Ichthyol.

? Trigla amena, Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. ii. p. 131; Macleay, Catal. Aust.
Fish. 11. p. 226.

Sharp-beaked Gurnard.
Bi vir. D: 8/12. A 12, V. 1/5 P. 12 + 3. C. 18. Coe: pyl. 8. Vert. 13/14.
Length of head* 3°33-3°60, of caudal fin 5:20-5°33, height of body 4°50—
4°75 in the total length: breadth of head 1:90-2°33 in its length. Eye very
large, rising far above the dorsal profile, its diameter 3°00—3'66 in the length

of the head, and 1:33-1°50 in that of the snout, which is short, abruptly
descending, and concaye: interorbital space deeply concave, 1:00-1 20 in the

* Measured from the tip of the preorbital to that of the occipital spine.

142 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

diameter of the eye. Nostrils separated by a short interspace, the anterior
minute and rounded, the posterior of moderate size, elongate-oval, and
oblique, very much nearer to the orbit than to the extremity of the pre-
orbital spine. Occiput flat. Upper jaw the longer. Cleft of mouth
moderate, and slightly oblique, the maxilla reaching to the anterior margin
or as far as the first third of the eye. Preorbital granulose, its anterior
extremity produced into a strong, longitudinally striated, spine: armature of
snout densely granulose, without radiating striz : supraorbital ridge simple :
the naked pateh on the snout subovate in shape, and extending backwards
to between the anterior nostrils; the sulcus between the preorbital and
turbinal bones, very narrow, much broader beneath the occipital bones :
armature of the cheeks eranulate, and ornamented with strive which radiate
from the hinder apex of the preorbital: preopercular strie radiating from
the base of the spine: preopercle with from one to three spines at the angle,
the upper being always present: no distinct ridge between the preorbital
and the angle of the preopercle: posterior margin of interopercle rounded :
opercle with a broad, naked margin, the bony part coarsely granulated
anteriorly, finely so posteriorly ; bearing two spines, the lower of which is much
the stronger: occipital bone lunate behind, enclosing a membranous space,
and terminating at each edge ina very strong acute spine: clavicle with a
very strong ridged spine, about equal in total length to the diameter of the
eye. Jaws with a band of villiform teeth, interrupted at the symphyses ;
vomerine teeth ina single patch much broader than long. ‘The dorsal fin
commences above the expanded portion of the clavicle, and ends slightly in
front of the anal; the spines are strong, the three first minutely granulated
on their lower portion anteriorly, the third the longest, but little longer than
the second and fourth, and from 1°90-2°10 in the. length of the head ; the
eighth spine is minute ; the two first rays of the soft dorsal are unbranched,
the anterior being one half the length of the second, and the distance between
its base and the origin of the caudal is 1°75 in that between the same spot
and the tip of the snout; the fourth ray is the highest, and five sevenths of
the third spine; the last ray is undivided: the anal commences beneath the
origin of the soft dorsal ; the first seven rays are simple, the last divided
almost to its base, and ‘the middle rays are the longest: the ventral fin
barely reaches to the vent; its spine 1s equal in length { to, but more flexible
than, the first dorsal spine, and the middle ray is the longest, from 1:40-1°'80
in the length of the head: the pectoral is rounded “posteriorly, and its
middle rays are from one sixth to one tenth longer than the head, and extend
to between the fifth and seventh anal rays: caudal deeply emarginate ; the
least height of the pedicle greater than its breadth at the same spot, and
rather less than one half of the distance between the dorsal fin and the origin
of the caudal. Scales exceedingly small, absent on the throat and chest.
Lateral line smooth and slightly sinuous. <A series of seven stout, flat,
roughened plates supporting the base of the spinous dorsal, the anterior of
which is crescentic, the convex portion being in front; rayed dorsal without
supporting plates.

Colors—Upper parts red or reddish-brown, the sides sometimes tinged
with yellow; below silvery: dorsal and caudal fins uniform red ; ventral pale
pink or yellow ; pectorals outwardly dull purple with occasionally a few
scattered white spots, and with the inner surface olive green ornamented
with purple bands, which run parallel to the hinder margin of the fin, and
are much narrower than the interspaces; two large, oblong, white edged
black spots, the lower of which is about twice as long as the upper, near “its
base inferiorly ; anal white.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES, aa be:

The breeding season of this species differs from that of Trigla kumu,
examples obtained in the Sydney market having the ova fully developed
during the months of July and August; in no other respects does it differ in
its habits from that species.

Speaking generally, this is a southern, while the Red Gurnard is a
northern, form. The Sharp-beaked Gurnard is not so common on our coast
as its congener, and only large specimens occur, while Port Stephens appears
to be approximately its northward range. Both on our own coast and that
of the sister Colonies, this species is commonly, but erroneously, known as
the Flymg Gurnard, this name being shared by, and with more propriety
applied to, Daetylopter us orientalis. On the Victorian coast, Castelnau
says :—“ Without being common in the Melbourne market, this fish appears at
all seasons ; but often for months there are none to be seen, and then several
will be caught together.” On the Tasmanian coast they are *‘ not uncommon,
during May and June, in the estuaries of the Derwent and Tamar.”
Johnston, who has had special facilities for observing this species, gives the
following interesting account, interesting because the Gurnards, not being
strictly littoral fishes, do not come under § supervision in their natural state as
do shore fishes; he says: —‘“ At times during the winter season these beautifully
colored fishes, ‘with their gaudily-painted ‘pectoral wings, may be seen around
our wharves in small schools, dashing, or rather flying, through the water,
with sudden bounds, aftertheirprey. . . . . . Theyare rarely captured,
however, on our coasts; and are, therefore, unimportant here, from a com-
mercial point of view.” Macleay records it from West Australia, but we are
unaware upon what evidence. Castelnau’s Zvrigla amena is very closely
allied to, if not identical with, our fish, the black spot on the spinous dorsal
being the most prominent distinctive character mentioned in the description.

This species attains to a length of twenty inches.

Family XVII._-SPHYR/ENIDNZ.

Branchiostegals seven: pseudobranchie present. Body elongate, sub-
cylindrical or compressed. Eyes of moderate size, Jateral. Cleft of mouth
wide. Jaws armed with strong, trenchant teeth, with or without a villiform
band: teeth present on the palate, absent or present on the vomer. Two
dorsal fins remote from each other: anal similar to the second dorsal.
Ventrals abdominal, composed of one spine and five rays. Scales small or of
moderate size, cyclid. Lateral line continuous. Airbladder present, bifur-
cate anteriorly. Pyloric appendages in moderate or large numbers.

Geographical distribution.—Seas of the tropical and temperate regions ;
carnivorous.

Genus I.—SPHYRAINA.

Sphyrena, Artedi, Synon. Pisc, p. 112, 1738; Cuvier, Regne Anim.; Cuv. &
Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. ii. p. 325.

Branchiostegals seven: pseudobranchiw present. Body elongate, sub-
eylindrical. Cleft of mouth wide. Eyes lateral. Large trenchant teeth in
both jaws and on the palatine bones: vomer edentulous. Two short dorsal
fins, separated by a long interspace: anal with a single spine, similar to the
second dorsal : ventrals opposite, or nearly opposite, “to the anterior dorsal.
Scales small, cyclid, adherent. Airbladder large, bifurcate anteriorly.
Pyloric appendages i in moderate or large numbers.

Geographical distribution.—Almost all temperate and tropical seas.

H

114 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

These fishes are very voracious, and some of them grow to a large size and
are greatly dreaded by the inhabitants of those shores which they frequent.
Cuvier and Valenciennes, quoting some of the older writers, relate of the
West Indian Barracuda (Sphyrena picuda), that “it must be included in the
number of marine monsters which are greedy for human flesh” ; that “ it
attains to the length of seven or eight feet, and rushes with fury upon the
men whom it perceives in the water. Its teeth often inflict mortal injuries” ;
that ‘‘it is more dangerous than the shark, inasmuch as noise and movement,
far from intimidating it, serve to incite it the more to rush upon its victims.”

SPHYRANA NOVAHOLLANDIA.

Sphyrena 1 ees Gnth. Catal. Fish. ii. p. 335; Macleay, Catal.
Austr. Fish. ii. p. 82; Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Viet. i. p- 96.

Short-finned Pike.
Plate XXX.
B. vii. D. 5. 1/9. A. 2/9. V. 1/5. P. 13: C. 17. L. lat. 127-136, L. ér.
11/16-17. Cee. pyl. 47. Vert. 12/12.

Length of head 4°25-4°50, of caudal fin 7°33-7°80, height of body
9°50-9'75 in the total length. Eye large, its diameter 5°66—6'50 in the length
of the head, and 2/10-2'$0 in that of the snout: interorbital space flat, with
two pairs of lateral longitudinal grooves, its width from 1:20-1°33 in the
diameter of the eye. Nostrils small; the anterior pierced in a low tube,
which is directed forwards ; the posterior about twice as large and with an
anterior skinny flap, which, when decumbent, completely conceals the
orifice. Upper profile of head flat. Lower jaw much the longer. Cleft of
mouth very slightly oblique; the posterior portion of the maxilla sharply
separated from the attenuated anterior portion, quadrilateral, the posterior
margin slightly concave, the inferior margin convex, reaching to the posterior
nostril in young specimens, and one fourth of its own length in front of the
eye in large examples. Two to four pairs of strong recurved conical teeth
in the upper jaw anteriorly, behind which are a single closely set row of
minute teeth ; a pair of strong recurved fangs in the middle of the lower jaw
in front, followed by a row of conical teeth, numbering about sixteen in each
ramus and strongest posteriorly; palatine teeth in a single series, five
strong ones on each side, preceded by one or two, and succeeded by numerous,
small ones. Dorsal spines weak and flexible, the first and second the
longest, 3°15-3°50 in the length of the head; the distance between the
origin of the fin and the tip of the snout is 1 15 in that between the same
point and the base of the caudal, while that between the origins of the
two dorsal fins is 1°40 in the length of the head; the second dorsal ray is
the longest, 1°30 in the postorbital portion of the head, and 1:20 in the
longest spines: the anal commences beneath the third dorsal ray, and extends
back slightly beyond that fin, the basal length of the latter being about one
fifth more than that of the former ; the anal rays are equal in height to those
of the dorsal, and the posterior ray in both fins 1s slightly elongated :
ventrals small, inserted beneath the anterior half of the first dorsal, the outer
ray the longest, their length 2°50 in the distance between their origin and
the vent, and 3:20-3'66 in the length of the head: pectorals small, equal in
length to the postorbital portion of the head, or 2°40-2°75 in the length of
the head: caudal deeply forked, the least height of the pedicle 2°30 ‘in the
height of the body. Lateral line almost straight.

Colors.—Green above, silvery below: soft “dorsal and caudal yellow, the
latter with a black marginal band posteriorly.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 115

These fishes occur in the Sydney market during all seasons of the year,
generally in small numbers and rather irregularly ; occasionally, however,
they appear in fair quantity, this being almost invariably in August or
September when they are in fine condition and full of ripe ova; by the end
of October these small schools have disappeared. Weare unable to say how
or where the spawn is shed. They are very voracious, swim rapidly and
high in the water, and feed principally on small fishes, of which they destroy
large numbers ; it is probable that nothing in motion through the water,
which they can swallow, comes amiss to them; we have taken the following
fishes from their intestines ; Yellowtail (Caranz trachurus), Tailor (Temnodon
saltator), Hardyhead (Atherina pinguwis), Mullet (AZugil peront), and Gar-
fish (Hemirhamphus reqularis), besides numbers of fry too small or too much
decomposed to be readily recognisable; no other substances have as yet
been found by us. As table fish they are excellent. Like the Barracoutas
of Tasmania, these fishes, where plentiful, afford excellent sport to the line
fisher by trailing baited hooks or artificial lures after a boat kept sailing at
a moderate rate of speed.

Exactly how far to the northward this Pike is found is not known, but it
is not included in Saville Kent’s list of Queensland Food Fishes ; to the
southward, however, it increases rapidly in numbers, and is common on the
coast of Victoria, where Castelnau says that it “is considered by many as
the most delicate of the Victorian fishes”; and again, writing in 1872, he
remarks :—‘‘ The fishmongers say that, some years ago, this fish used to be
generally larger than now, and that it was quite common to get them over
a yard long. It is only rarely that such specimens appear on the market
now.” Mr. North, however, informs me that he has frequently caught them
in Western Port measurimg considerably more than three feet, in fact,
approaching to, if not exceeding, four feet. To the westward it occurs at
least as faras Adelaide. It is not included in Johnston’s Catalogue of
Tasmanian Fishes.

The largest specimen seen in market measured thirty five inches.

Genus II._DINOLESTES.

Dinolestes, Klunzinger, Arch. f. Nat. 1872, p. 29, pl. iii.
Neosphyrena, Castelnau, Proc. Zool. Soc. Vic., i. p. 96 1872.
Lanioperca, Giinther, Ann. Nat. Hist. (4) 1872, x. p. 183.

Branchiostegals seven: pseudobranchie present. Body moderately
elongate, compressed. Cleft of mouth wide. Eye lateral. Jaws, vomer,
and palatine bones with narrow bands of viliiform teeth, the former witlf an
outer enlarged series: one or two pairs of very strong canines anteriorly in
the upper jaw. Two dorsal fins, the anterior small: the posterior and the
anal well developed, the latter with two spines: ventrals situated considerably
in front of the first dorsal. Scales moderate, cyclid, deciduous.

Geographical distribution Australian seas.

DINOLESTES MUELLERI.

Dinolestes muelleri, Klunz. Arch. £. Nat. 1872, p. 29, pl. iii.

Neosphyrena multiradiata, Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. i. p. 96.

Lamoperca mordax, Guth. Ann. Nat. Hist. (4) 1872, x. p. 183; Macleay,
Catal. Austr. Fish. ii. p. 86; Woods, Fisher. N. S. Wales, pls. xxvii.
xxix. MeCoy, Prodr. Zool. Vict. dec. xii. pl. 115. ;

Esox? lewini, Griff. An. Kingd. Ed. p. 465, pl. Ix. 1834; Gill, Ann. Nat.
Hist. (4) 1874, xiv. p. 159.

116 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Long-finned Pike.
B. vu. D. 5. 1/18-19. A. 2/25-26. V. 1/5. P. 16. C. 17. L. lat. 64-67,
L. tr. 6/11.

Length of head 3°40, of caudal fin 6:00, height of body 6:00 in the total
length. Eye large, its diameter 5-00 in the length of the head, and 2°00 in
that of the obtusely rounded snout: interorbital space flat, 1°33 in the
diameter of the eye. Nostrils small, oval, approximate, the anterior tubular,
the posterior simple. Upper profile of head flat. Lower jaw much the
longer. Cleft of mouth slightly oblique, the maxilla reaching to beneath the
anterior margin of the orbit ; in shape it 1s elongate- pyriform, with the lower
edge emarginate, and the posterior rounded. U pper jaw with two pairs of
strong canines in front, the anterior pair erect with recurved tips, the
posterior similar but much larger and inclined backwards; both jaws with
a broad band of villiform teeth, having an outer enlarged series, which in the
upper are subequal and throughout much smaller and more numerous than
those of the lower, in which the four or more rarely five posterior teeth are
remote and caninid; teeth on the vomer in a horseshoe-shaped band, with
the are in front, and two or three posterior ones on either side greatly
enlarged ; a narrow elongate band of small teeth on the palatines. The
dorsal spines are small and weak, the second and longest not being equal to
the diameter of the eye, and the distance between the origin of the fin and
the tip of the snout is 1°33 in that between the same spot and the base of the
caudal ; the second dorsal ray is the longest, and equals the postorbital por-
tion of the head: the anal commences beneath the origin of the second dorsal
and extends back far beyond it, the basal length of the latter being 1°30 in
that of the former, and equa! to the distance between the origins of the two
dorsals ; the anal rays are not quite so high as those of the dorsal: ventrals
small, the outer ray the longest, reaching midway to the vent, its length 3°20
in that of the head : pectorais reaching as far back as the ventrals, and equal
in length to the maxilla: caudal emar ‘inate, the least height of its pedicle
2°25 in the height of the body. Lateral line slightly curved downwards
above the pectorals, thence straight.

Colors.— Above brown with a tinge of gold, the head darkest ; silvery
below the lateral line ; the caudal pedicle deeply tinted with yellow : vertical
fins yellow ; inside of jaws anteriorly, and upper surface of tongue purple :
teeth dull red.

Full-roed examples of this fish are often obtainable in our market during
thg winter months, and except that with us it frequents deeper water and
keeps closer to the bottom, it does not differ materially in its habits from
the Sphyrene. Its much shorter and deeper body makes it recognisable
when lying on the floor of the market, even when the fins cannot be seen.

Though from the small number of specimens of this fish and Sphyr ena
novehollandiea, which we have so far had an opportunity of examining
intestinally, it would be presumptuous to draw a hard and fast line as to the
food, it is a fact that, in the majority of specimens of this species, remains
of crustaceans and molluses were plentifully present, while in no case were
they discernible in the Short-finned Pike. As a food fish it is equally as
good as, if not better than, that species.

The outward resemblance which this fish bears to the other members of
the family, all the species of which, Dinolestes included, are grouped
together by fishermen, dealers, and market officials as ‘* Pike,” makes it
difficult to gauge, even approximately, the northern limit to which this species
attains. We have known it to occur in small numbers both in Botany and

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 1t7

Broken Bays, but beyond the latter no record exists, and it does not appear
to have been observed on the Queensland coast. In the Melbourne market,
where it goes by the name of “ Skipjack Pike ” this species, writes Castelnau
is “ common in the months of May, June, and July. . . . . Itis con-
sidered equal to Sphyrena novehollandie for the use of the table.”
Johnston dismisses it from the shores whence it was originally described with
a curt “not uncommon in the Derwent.”

The Long-finned Pike is said to grow to twenty four inches ; the largest we
have examined was seventeen inches, and was considered exceptionally large.

Family XVIII.—MUGILIDA.

Branchiostegals four to six: pseudobranchie present. Gill-openings
_wide; gills four. Body oblong and compressed, the head sometimes
depressed. Mouth in front of the snout, narrow or of moderate width.
Eyes lateral, with or without adipose lids. Opercles generally unarmed.
Dentition feeble: sometimes absent. Two dorsal fins separated by an inter-
space, the anterior consisting of four stiff spines: anal a little longer than
the rayed dorsal: ventral fins abdominal, suspended from: an elongated
coracoid bone. Scales cyclid, rarely ctenid, extending on to the snout.
No lateral line. Airbladder large, simple. Pyloric appendages in small
numbers. Vertebre twenty four to twenty six.

Geographical distribution.—Seas of the temperate and tropical regions
entering fresh waters ; some species apparently confined to the latter.

Day remarks :—‘{In India and Burma I have observed that in such
forms as Mugil corsula, M. cascasia, and M. hamiltonii, which mostly or
entirely reside in fresh water, the scales are strongly ctenid, while the two
last have merely two pyloric appendages.”

Genus I._ MUGIL.

Mugil, Artedi, Gen. Pisce. p. 82, 1738.

Branchiostegals four to six: pseudobranchie present. Mouth more or
less transverse, with a shallow lateral cleft, and the anterior margin of the
mandible sharp and sometimes ciliated. Eyes with or without adipose lids.
Teeth, when present, minute. Pyloric appendages in small numbers. Upper
portion of stomach very muscular: intestinal tract long.

Geographical distribution.—All temperate and tropical regions.

The majority of the species pass a portion of the year in the sea, whence
they migrate to the brackish water of estuaries for the purpose of depositing
their spawn ; some, however, are now confined to purely fresh water, but
it is probable that, like the land-locked Salmon, some cause, other than
their own volition, necessitated so important a departure from their natural
mode of life.

For the benefit of Australian students Dr. Giinther’s clear enunciation of
the means by which the Mullet obtains its microscopic food, and the special
mechanism employed to insure the perfect attainment of that object, may
be advantageously reproduced here; he says:—‘‘They frequent brackish
waters in which they find an abundance of food, which consists chietly of the
organic substances mixed with mud or sand; in order to prevent larger
bodies from passing into the stomach, or substances from passing through
the gill-openings, these fishes have the organs of the pharynx modified into
a filtering apparatus. They take in a quantity of sand or mud, and, after
having worked it for some time between the pharyngeal bones, they reject
the roughest and indigestible portion of it.”

118 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Refering to Mugil chelo he continues :—“ The upper pharyngeals have a
rather irregular form; they are slightly arched, the convexity being directed
towards the pharyngeal cavity, tapering anteriorly and broad posteriorly. |
They are coated with a thick, soft membrane, which reaches far beyond the
margin of the bone, at least on its interior posterior portion ; this membrane
is studded all over with minute horny cilia. he pharyngeal bone rests upon
a large fatty mass, giving it a considerable degree of elasticity. There is a
very large venous sinus between the anterior portion of the pharyngeal and
the basal portion of the branchial arches. Another mass of fat, of elliptical
form, occupies the middle of the roof of the pharynx, between the two
pharyngeal bones. Each branchial arch is provided on each side, in its whole
length, with a series of closely set gillrakers, which are laterally bent down-
wards, each series closely fitting into the series of the adjoining arch; they
constitute together a sieve, admirably adapted to permit a transit for the
water, retaining at the same time every other substance in the cavity of the
pharynx.

‘The lower pharyngeal bones are elongate, crescent-shaped, and broader
posteriorly than anteriorly. Their inner surface is concave, corresponding
to the convexity of the upper pharyngeals, and provided with a single series
of lamellz, similar to those of the branchial arches, but reaching across the
bone from one margin to the other.

‘The intestinal tract shows no less peculiarities. The lower portion of
the csophagus is provided with numerous long thread-like papillae, and
continued into the oblong ovoid membranaceous cecal’ portion of the
stomach, the mucosa of which forms several longitudinal folds. The second
portion of the stomach reminds one of the stomach of birds; it communi-

cates laterally with the other portion, is globular, and surrounded by an
exceedingly strong muscle. This muscle is not divided into two as in birds,
but is of great thickness in the whole circumference of the stomach, all the
muscular fasciculi being circularly arranged. The internal cavity of this
stomach is rather small, and coated with a tough epithelium, longitudinal
folds running from the entrance opening to the pyloric, which is “situated
opposite to the other. A low circular valve forms a pylorus. There are five
rather short pyloric appendages. The intestines make a great number of
circumvolutions, and are seven feet long in a specimen thirteen inches in
length.’ ”

The lateral line being absent in the fishes of this family, while the number
of scales is of great importance in differentiating the various species, of
which very many have been described, it is necessary to define the method
by which the number of lateral and transverse scales is arrived at; in
the former the series of scales running from the upper angle of the operculum
to the base of the caudal fin is counted, in the latter the oblique series which
commences at the base of the first dorsal ray.

MUGIL DOBULA.

Mugil dobula, Guth. Catal. Fish. ii. p. 420, 1861, and Fisch. de Sadsee, p.
214, pl. cxx. fig. A.; Casteln. ou Linn. Soc. N. 8S. Wales, iii. p. 387 ;

Macleay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N. S. Wales, iv. p. 415.
Mugil waigiensis, Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. 1872, i. p. 140 (not Quoy &
Gaimard).

Mugil grandis, Casteln. Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S. Wales, iii, p. 386, 1878 ;
Macleay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N. 8S. Wales, iv. p. 412.

Mugil cephalotus, Johnston, Proc. Roy. Soc. Tas. 1882, p. 122 (not Cuv.
& Val).

|

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 119

Sea Mullet: Hard-gut Mullet.
Plate XX XI.

B. vi. D. 4. 1/8. A. 3/8. V. 1/5. P. 16. C.14. L. lat. 40-42. L. tr. 14-15.
Cee. pyl. 4. Vert. 11/13.

Length of head 4°80 to 5°40, of caudal fin 4°33 to 5:00, height of body
4-00-5'00 in the total length. Eye with the adipose lid extending to or
beyond the front margin and well beyond the hinder margin of the pupil ;
its diameter 3°40—-4°00 in the length of the head, and 166-2715 in that of the
interorbital space, which is almost flat: snout short and very broad, its length
from 1:00-1:20 in the diameter of the eye. Lips thin: jaws fringed with minute
cilia. Nostrils distant, the anterior minute and rounded, about equidistant
from the eye and the tip of the snout ; the posterior oval or pyriform, three
times as large as the anterior, with which it is connected by a naked shallow
groove. Free space below the chin broadly lanceolate, equal to or rather less
than the distance between the end of the snout and the posterior margin of
the orbit. The maxilla extends to beneath the anterior margin of the orbit.
Preorbital minutely denticulate, the denticulations becoming almost obsolete
in large examples, not expanded behind. The distance between the origin
of the spinous dorsal and the base of the caudal is equal to that between
the same point and the end of the snout; the first dorsal spine is the
longest, 1:75-2:00 in the length of the head; the distance between the
origins of the two dorsal fins is equal to or rather more than the length of
the head: the anal commences beneath the origin of the soft dorsal, and its
anterior rays are subequal to those of that fin; the posterior rays are pro-
duced beyond the median, thus forming a deep emargination on the outer
edge of the fin: the length of the ventral is from 2°00—2'40 in the distance
between its origin and the vent, and from 1-50-1°75 in the length of the head:
the pectoral reaches to the ninth or tenth body scale, and is 1:40-1°60 in
the length of the nead: caudal forked, the least height of the pedicle less
than the distance between the last dorsal ray and the base of the eaudal, and
2°33-2°50 in the length of the head. Thirteen or fourteen scales between the
occiput and the origin of the spinous dorsal, four or five on the interspace
between the dorsals, and eight between the rayed dorsal and the caudal : first
dorsal, pectoral, and ventral fins with enlarged pointed axillary scales.

Colors.—Steel blue, with a tinge of green or olive above; sides and lower
surfaces silvery ; a small black axillary spot, and a golden spot on the upper
angle of the opercle: dorsal and pectoral fins dark bluish-gray, caudal and
anal yellowish-green.

As with some’ of our other food fishes this Mullet has two distinct breeding
seasons in each year, that of the autumn, which lasts from some time in Mareh
until about the middle of May, being, however, by far the most important.
At this time they enter the estuaries, inlets, and saltwater lakes, which
indent our coastline from south to north, in almost incredible numbers, and
push on at once to the spawning grounds, which mainly consist of the mud
flats, which margin our rivers. Here, according to Macleay, the ova remain
undeveloped until the spring months, when they mature, and he instances an
occasion on which large shoals of young Sea Mullet, measuring up to an inch
and a half in length, were observed along the shores of Port Jackson about —
the middle of October, from which fact he draws the following deduction :—
“As the time of spawning is never later than May, and as these fish could not
have been more than a day or two old, the inference is that the spawn had
remained in the mud near that spot (Elizabeth Bay) during the winter, and

120 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

until the increasing heat of spring caused the ova to germinate.” As, how-
ever, this author does not seem to have been aware of the second or spring
breeding season of this species, the conclusion above mentioned must be
taken with reservation; it seems more probable to us that these fry were
the progeny of fishes w hich had shed their ova duri ing August or the first
half of September, while the large shoals of young mullet, which undoubtedly
appear during the winter months are the result of the autumn spawning.

In his excellent report to the Royal Commission, Inspector Cain fixes the
date of spawning at “ between the latter end of February and the middle of
April”’ for Brisbane Water, while at Shoathaven March and April are given
as the breeding season. Referring to the Clarence River district, Mr. Hood
Pegus writes :-—‘ Sea mullet commence to enter the river in March, and
proceed up the river as far as the salt water goes. They come in inimmense
shoals, and continue entering in and out with the tides up to July. They
are observed several miles off the coast before they make for the river to
spawn.” He further states that they spawn in April, May, and June in the
river on sandy banks in shoal water, the ova being deposited in circular holes
in the sand, and the young fry make their appearance in July or sometimes
as late as August. Such of the breeding fish as survive the perils of the
river make their way to the open sea about July ; Mr. Thurgate also gives
May as the breeding season in the Richmond River.

The young Mullet on their emergence from the ova remain quiescent until
the absorption of the yelk-sae, atier which they wander in small schools
along the shore in shallow water, mostly working up stream frequently into
purely fresh water; in such places they pass the two first years of their
existence, during w hich they increase rapidly in size ; they then drop quietly
down the rivers and for the first time seek the open sea about the early
autumn months, returning, however, much improved in flavor and condition
during the months of January and February, at which time they are sent in
large “numbers to the Sydney market, where they are soid as “ Hard-gut
Mullet. = Aas scarcely necessary to say that this title is ridiculous, there
being no difference in the hardness of the esophagus of the immature and
the adult fish ; if, therefore, a distinctive appellation is necessary for the
former, River, or better still, Estuary, Mullet would be far more appropriate.

The Sea Mullet are fortunately most prolific fishes, else they could not
have withstood the drain on their numbers caused by the numerous enemies
of the ova and young fry—which comprise, along with sea birds and other
fishes, starfishes, echinoderms, Actines, ell as the persecution
which they undergo from the fishermen in their endeavor to reach the
breeding grounds. In both adult and immature fishes the ovaries are, how-
ever, very large, and as each individual ovum is exceedingly small, the
quantity shed by each fish, which, in an adult female, is computed to number
between two and three millions, is apparently large enough to bear the great
and ever increasing strain on their resources ; and in view of future develop-
ments, which must necessarily take place in the direction of utilising the
surplus catch of this fine fish by canning, smoking, &c¢., it is to be hoped
that the New South Wales Commissioners of Fisheries will not shrink from
their plain duty of stringently conserving the breeding grounds, and the
approaches to the breeding grounds, of a species which, with proper fostering
care, is destined to play no unimportant part in both the intercolonial and
the export trade of the Colony.

In connection with this no place can be more advantageously chosen than
the present to point out, that few, if any, fishes can be more easily domesti-
cated than those belonging to the Mugilide, and, glancing at the wealth of

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 121

sheltered bays, creeks, and backwaters which fringe the margins of our
estuaries and salt water lagunes, it is marvelous that so great and profitable
a trade, one which in the nature of things must be ever increasing in its
scope, and which year by year would necessarily absorb more and more
labor, has not hitherto commended itself to either the public or the private
financiers of the Colony.

Their hardiness, their adaptability to various conditions of life, their
indifference to the density of the element which they inhabit, the fact which
has been proved that they breed and thrive equally well in enclosed fresh-
water ponds as under normal conditions, the ease with which they may be
brought to perfection at a minimum of cost, since no artificial method of
supplying food would be required, all point to our Gray Mullet as the
pioneer of a fishing industry, which is capable of becoming a not unworthy
rival of the Salmon-canning industry of the Western States of America, did
our Australian capitalists possess but a tithe of the indomitable energy and
perseverance of our transpacific cousins.

A steady supply of fish, regulated to meet all local requirements, would
then be daily available for delivery in the market in such a condition that
the most hypercritical could find no ground for cavilling; and so far as this
fish is concerned, would make us practically independent of the forces of
nature—such, for instance, as the terrible floods which have recently devas-
tated Eastern Australia—and the constitutional indolence of the colonial
fishermen.

But little capital would be requisite to inaugurate a fish farm on the lines
here advocated, the initial expense being merely the enclosure of a suitable
sheet of water—preferably one having a stream of fresh water emptying
into it—so thoroughly as to admit of no incursion of the larger predaceous
fishes, such as the Kingfish and Tailor, while at the same time allowing free
entry to the Mullet fry, and permitting no outlet to the marketable fish.

This primitive method having been proved to be a profitable speculation it
would need but little commercial enterprise to advance and enlarge the
industry by enclosing suitable localities by a boundary wall, leaving a few
well protected gates to admit of the ingress and egress of the tides, and being
as copiously as circumstances would allow supplied with fresh water. The
euclosed space should of course be of considerable extent, and the bed
should consist of sand and mud, in order to satisfy the requirements of the
contained Mullet as to nutrition and reproduction. To farms, such as are
briefly sketched out here, the fry, when roaming in schools along the fore-
shores, as 18 their habit, might with ease be transfered in almost illimitable
numbers, and being there freed, so far as is possible, from their natural
enemies, being supplied without cost with an abundance of their natural
food, and being practically undisturbed by any disquieting influences, their
growth would be materially accelerated, and their condition proportionately
improved. With a few such establishments in working order in the Port
Jackson District, and with the unlimited range of choice, which even the
close neighborhood of Sydney affords, dozens of such establishments might
with ease be formed, and a great and profitable canning industry might with
but little effort be built up in our midst; nor should we ever again hear
of the “boat loads of the finest fish thrown away, because they were not
worth the trouble of conveying to market” as mentioned by Macleay ; in
addition to this would be the advantages that the local market or individual
dealers could be supplied from the farms with so many fish as would be
requisite for the day’s consumption and no more, and that these would be
delivered to the customer in a fresh and cleanly state; furthermore the

122 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

enormous and inexcusable destruction of fry, which takes place daily
without let or hindrance along our foreshores, would by the advent of
some such system be reduced to a minimum.

The young fish having been introduced into the enclosed waters, and being
undisturbed by the presence of such enemies as Sharks, Kingfishes, &c., and
the depredations of rapacious birds, such as Cormorants, Herons, and Gulls,
being easily kept in check, would gain so rapidly in size as to enable them
quickly to defy the attacks of less conspicuous, but no less insidious enemies,
such as starfishes, Sea-Anemonies, and the like, which also could be greatly
reduced in numbers by the application of suitable remedies.

By means of proper appliances also many inland towns, where a meal of
fresh fish is now a rarity or even unknown, could be supplied weekly ; but
apart from this it would be well worth trying as an experiment whether the
Sea Mullet could be introduced into ponds, lagunes, and tanks in the trans-
montane districts of the Colony, and there acclimatised ; aad whether the
ova would germinate there and the fry grow to maturity; under such con-
ditions it is hardly to be expected that the fish would grow to so large a size
as it does in its normal state, but if it is possible to breed them in such
places, and of its practicability there can be but little doubt, we have here,
neglected at our very doors, a fish far surpassing in excellence the European
Perch, Carp, and Tench—all of which have been introduced at great expense,
and with no practical results so far as a fish food supply to the Riverine
Districts is concerned—and which with its other natural advantages, would
not interfere in any way with our native fauna.

The question of the acclimatization of the Sea Mullet to purely fresh
water is not one which should be productive of any great difficulty, for since,
as has been shown above, the fry instinctively make their way upwards from
the spawning beds to the utmost limit of the tide or even beyond it, it would
be only necessary to establish a suitable number of farms above the furthest
influence of the tides, and allowing the young fishes to grow to maturity and
breed therein, to secure eventually from the progeny of such parents a hardy
race suitable for introduction into our transmontane waters.

Another advantage to be gained by the establishment of such a system,
combined with the passage of more stringent regulations, enforced by
exemplary punishments, for the more thorough conservation of the breeding
grounds and the approaches leading thereto, would be found in its tendeney
to check in a great degree the grave deterioration which is taking place in
the size and quality of the spawning fishes; this deterioration is very noticeable
and has been during the last ten years as rapid as it is lamentable; for
instance, five or six years ago the average weight of school fish was quite four
pounds and much larger ones were daily procurable during the season ; the
fishes at that time taken at any haul of the seine were of the same general
size, and the intestines were imbedded in a dense layer of pure fat: now
similar school fish do not average three pounds, and a five pounds example
is quite exceptional; the small fishes, of a pound weight or even less, are
indiscriminately mingled with the larger, and the necessary reserve of
strength, requisite for undergoing the weakening process of spawning, as
gauged by the presence of the internal fat, is almost absolutely wanting.

There can be no reasonable doubt as to the causes which tend to produce
this unhappy state of affairs; overfishing night after night the same grounds
in the vicinity of the spawning beds, and the disturbance of and want of
adequate protection to the fishes when engaged in depositing their ova, are
the plain causes of the ruinous decadence of this valuable fishery; if a

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 123

peremptory stop is not put upon these short-sighted practices, the Mullet-
harvest, so much vaunted, will, so far as the metropolitan district is
concerned, be a thing of the past within the next decade.

Having once established these Mullet farms on a sound basis, similar
farms for the reception of such other of our littoral fishes as are not of a
roving disposition, as, for example the Whiting, Flathead, Flounder, Sole,
and Eel would soon foliow.

In the Report of the Royal Commission the following sentences which
require some explanation, occur :—‘‘ When the period at length arrives for
the mature fish to go to the sea preparatory to spawning, the instinct which
actuates them appears to be irresistible. In one instance, some years ago,
when Tuggerah Beach Lake was for a time shut up at its sea mouth, the
Mullet pressed in such masses in the direction in which the outlet should
have been that thousands of them were forced up on the land and perished.
An occurrence of the same kind is mentioned as having happened at Lake
Illawarra under similar circumstances. It is doubtful how long it is
between the rush of the fish to the sea and their reentrance into the
same or other rivers; the belief is that the time is very short, that the
movement is only from one part of the coast to another, and always
from south to north. There can be little doubt that the fishes, after
spawning, find their way back to their old haunts, but they have very
seldom been seen so returning.”

The above would seem to denote that in the opinion of the Commission
the adult as well as the immature fishes spend their whole lives, with the
exception of the ‘“‘ very short time” elapsing between the “rush of the fish
to the sea and their reentrance into the rivers,” in our estuaries; this view
we cannot hold, nor do facts warrant its adoption; it is well known that
enormous shoals of these Mullet appear off the coast during the late
summer and early autumn months; if the Commissioners’ opinion were
correct, the question which would naturally suggest itself to anyone would
be,—where do these huge shoals come from? ‘The answer is not difficult ;
as soon as each fish has shed its spawn it, having become greatly exhausted
in the process, immediately seeks deeper and more quiet waters and with
each ebbing tide drops unobserved down to the bays and thence finally
to the open ocean ; this migration, being composed of individual fish, is carried
out so quietly and at such a depth as to have escaped observation, and
probably lasts more or less continuously during the late autumn and the
winter months ; once having gained the outer beaches these individuals unite
into small bands, which, retiring into water of a moderate depth and keeping
strictly to the bottom, gradually drop down the coast, receiving from every
estuary and inlet which they pass a fresh accession to their numbers; thus
during the spring and summer these ever increasing bands are aimlessly
drifting along, keeping, however, a general southerly direction, until about
the New Year, when the migratory instinct, consequent upon the ripening
of the ova, forces them more and more to the surface, and, a common impulse
leading them all in the one direction, the various bands unite as they proceed,
and form the enormous schools, whose presence on the surface has been
described as a “truly marvellous sight.’ From these schools as they move
slowly up the coast in a northerly direction more or less important bodies
detach themselves and seek each its own well known spawning ground.

Between what parallels these great congregations of Mullet, as distinct
from other surface-schooling families,—such as the Herring, the Mackerel,
and the Sead,—exist, is a matter of great interest, whether viewed from a
scientific or commercial standpoint, and an appeal to the officers of our

124 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

eoastal merchant service, to make notes of any such occurrence, specifying
date, state of tide, trend of current, direction of wind, calmness or otherwise
of the surface water, along with the direction in which the shoal is believed
to be moving, would be certain to produce good results, and would fix incon-
trovertably the southern and northern range of this fine Mugz/.

The Tuggerah Lake and Lake Illawarra cases cited do not in any way
militate against the contention here advanced, since under the circumstances
of the closure of the natural outlets the individual fishes on their way to the
sea were blocked, and becoming massed together within a small area, those
that were in the rear, in their uncontrolable anxiety to gain the safety and
seclusion of the more open waters, pressing forwards in large masses with
this object, absolutely forced the vanguard ashore.

We must again join issue with the Commissioners on their assertion that
the Mullet, after spawning, simply move from one river or inlet to the
other, remaining presumably in the latter until the breeding season again
draws near, when they go out to sea, school, and then return to the rivers in
which each was originally bred ; such an idea, we contend, is preposterous, is
unsupported by facts, and is utterly opposed to the known habits of all
anadromous or semianadromous fishes; from the account given by Macleay,
it appears that this idea is borrowed from the professional fishermen, than
whom, with rare exceptions, no more unreliable body of men, as to the facts
connected with their own calling, can be found the world over.

Notwithstanding the enormous shoals which are known to occur as surface
fishes off our shores during the earlier months of the year, no systematic
attempt, so far as we are aware, has yet been made to capture them before
their arrival on, or in the vicinity of, the spawning beds; then, however, the
destructive seine net comes to the front, and good and bad, adult and young,
salable and unsalable species are alike immolated on the altar of the
Mullet. It is easy to see that an obstinate continuance in such a course,
must end, and indeed is already far advanced theretowards, in the depletion,
if not absolute denudation, of fish life in our metropolitan waters, and all
others round which large centres of population have gathered, or may in the
future so do. The fact is that the rising generation of fishermen have to be
taught that the harvest of the sea must be gathered in the open, and that
they must not be content, as their fathers are, to drag the same harbor
beaches and estuarine mud flats, day after day, month after month, and year
after year; failing their capacity to learn this it will eventually become
necessary to import a sufficient number of our north country men with
their families, or of the equally hardy and daring fishermen of Canada and
the New England States, to work our ocean fisheries, who by the exercise of
greater skill, and the employment of superior methods for placing the catch
on the market would gradually supersede the haphazard system at present
in vogue.

It is generally considered that the Sea Mullet will not take a bait, but this
is denied by Tenison Woods, who, in his account of the species, states that
it “ affords good sport to anglers in the Hunter and other eastern rivers.”
“The bait,’ he continues, ‘‘is a small worm, but a far better kind is the fine
silky green conferva which grows on the surface of stones or logs which
have been long in the water. Mullet will take this with great avidity. The
weed must be cut rather long and wound around the hook. It must not be
confounded with the coarse green wooly conferva which covers the bottom
like a blanket; Mullet will not touch this; the other they eat so greedily
that not a particle can be found on the stones and logs of the rivers where

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 125

these fishes are abundant.”’ This statement, which is not only unsupported
but directly contradicted by all other authorities, needs confirmation.
According to Ramsay, however, it will take a dough bait.

As a food fish this Mullet, both in its adult and immature state, is
deservedly popular, the flesh being always rich and nutritious, nor does
that of even the largest examples ever become coarse, as is so often the
case with other fishes. In a commercial sense this is undoubtedly the
premier fish of New South Wales, and when smoking and canning operations
are more extensively and scientifically cultivated, is capable of becoming
no inconsiderable a source of national wealth, and of being an influential
competitor with the smoked and canned fishes, which we are now compelled
to import. The roe is of very large size, and are most delicious, whether
they are consumed in a fresh or smoked state. Mr. Edward Hill mentions
that “experiments have been tried by boiling them—the Mullet—-down,”
which resulted in the discovery that ‘each fish yielded nearly a pint of fine
clear oil”; we are not aware, however, that any practical attempt has ever
been made to utilise the intestinal fat in this direction, though it is probable
that such oil would possess valuable medicinal properties.

This fine species frequents in enormous numbers the entire length of the
seaboard of the Colony. Of its occurrence on the Queensland coast Saville
Kent remarks:—‘ Taken in the order of their economic importance,
precedence is almost universally conceded to the Sea Mullet, a magnificent
fish growing to a weight of ten or twelve pounds and upwards. This
species arrives in Moreton Bay about the last week in April, continues
plentiful till the middle of July, and by August has passed away to the
north.” In that Colony the immature fish is known as the ‘“ Mangrove
Mullet” a title infinitely preferable to that of “ Hard-gut Mullet” in
use here. He also observes that the Mangrove or Sea Mullet is apparently
the species most easily accessible and best adapted for the purposes
of canning and exportation.” Along the coastline of Victoria this species is
said to be known as “ Sand Mullet,”—a name which is with more propriety
applied in the home Colony to Myzxus elongatus,—and is everywhere.
common; Castelnau, speaking of it under the name of Mugil waigiensis,
says that it is “much esteemed as food.” The omission of South Australian
scientists to give even so fragmentary a list of the fishes inhabiting the
waters geographically pertaining to their Colony, as wash its southern shores,
places us again in the unsatisfactory position of being obliged to infer, not
record as a fact, its presence in those seas, but since the British Museum pos-
sesses specimens from Perth, West Australia,it cannot be doubted that it occurs
in more or less abundance along the entire length of our southern and south-
western seaboard. As to the latitude to which it attains in our north-western
equatorial regions we are equally in the dark, for judging from its occur-
rence so far to the northerly and easterly as the New Hebrides and Sandwich
Islands, we might well suppose that it would even more easily have penetrated
to the more distinctly accessible shores of those groups of islands which belong
to the Austro-Malayan section of the Archipelago. From Tasmania
Johnston records this species, which he refers to Mugil cephalotus, as
being “common along the north-eastern coast, George’s Bay, Scamander
River,” and elsewhere states that it is very highly prized in the market,
attains to a much greater size than Aygonostoma forsteri, but owing to its
distance from the chief centres of population is scarce in the markets, where,
however, it always commands a good price.

Until a more exact system of trivial names shall have been established
throughout the Australian Colonies for such fishes as, from commercial or

126 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

other reasons, are considered worthy of a distinctive vernacular nomenclature,
it is almost hopeless to expect to educate the general public, who go entirely
by these trivial and frequently senseless names, into a due appreciation of
the differences which constitute a species; in our opinion the various
forms should be as carefully described in the vernacular as in the scientific
designation. This species, for instance, which isappropriately the “Sea Mullet”
of the mother Colony and Queensland is the miscalled “Sand Mullet” of
Victoria and Tasmania, and while the “Sea Mullet” of the latter Colony
is the comparatively worthless Agonostoma forsteri, the “Sand Mullet” of
New South Wales is the My«us elongatus of Gimther, more commonly
known as “ Tallegalane,” while to complicate matters, in all ways bad enough,
nothing will persuade most persons that the immature stages of the present
species do not specifically differ from the adult, and both in this Colony and
in Queensland grant to them that rank by the respective titles of “ Hard-
gut’’ and “* Mangrove Mullet.”

These fishes attain to a length of at least twenty four inches.

lt is not an uncommon occurrence to find examples of the Sea Mullet,
which through some accident in early youth have had the snout cut off in
front of the eyes; a remarkable specimen was sent to the Australian
Museum a short time ago, in which the entire front of the head was so far
cut away as to have destroyed all vestiges of the mouth and nostrils proper,
and to have left a mere small longitudinal slit on the right side of the ventral
axis of the snout, which slit had developed around it a series of moderately
strong acute teeth; this tends to the belief that originally the Mugilide
possessed teeth, which, owing to their peculiar method of feeding, have fallen
into desuetude, but are still lying dormant, ready to appear and become
functional on such an emergency as at present cited In this case, as in all
others observed, the sufferer was found to be in excellent condition.

The immature fish, before it has visited the open sea, is not unfrequently
infested by a species of Andlocra, which usually attaches itself to the inner
side of the axil of the pectoral fin.

MUGIL PERONI.

Mugil peroni, Cuv & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. xi. p. 188; Gnth. Catal. Fish. iii.
p. 452; Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. ii. p. 151, and Proe. Linn. Soe.
N.S. Wales, ui. p. 387; Macleay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N. S. Wales iv.
p- 421.

Flat-tailed Mullet.
Plate XX XITT.

B. vi. D. 4. 1/8 A. 3/10. V. 1/5. P. 16. C. 14. L. lat. 35-38. L. tr. 14. Coe.
pyl. 2. Vert. 11/13.

Length of head 433-485, of caudal fin 4°25-4°50, height of body
450-480 in the total length. Eye with the adipose lid but little developed,
its diameter 4°25-4°75 in the length of the head, 1:20-1°45 in that of the
snout, which is obtusely rounded, moderately broad, and very slightly con-
vex, and 1°60-2°00 in the interorbital space, which is convex. Lips thin:
jaws fringed with minute cilia. | Nostrils approximate, upright, suboval, the
anterior slightly nearer to the orbit than to the tip of the snout; the
posterior about twice as large as the anterior. Free space below the cbin
lanceolate, equal to or rather longer than the distance between the end of
the snout and the posterior margin of the orbit. The maxilla extends to

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 127

between the hinder nestril and the orbit. Preorbital minutely denticulate
along its inferior, more strongly so on its posterior edge, expanded behind.
The distance between the origin of the spinous dorsal and the base of the
caudal is 1:25-1:50 in that between the same point and the top of the
snout ; the first dorsal spine is the longest, 1775-215 in the length of the
head; the distance between the origins of the two dorsal fins is much less
than the length of the head: the anal commences considerably in front of
the soft dorsal, and its anterior rays are longer than those of that fin; the
posterior rays are not produced beyond the median: the ventral extends
midway between its origin and that of the anal, and is 1°60-1°80 in the
length of the head: the pectoral reaches to the tenth or eleventh body
seale, and is 1:40-1'60 in the length of the head: caudal deeply emarginate,
the least height of the pedicle is more than the distance between the last
dorsal ray and the base of the caudal, and one half or rather more than one
half of the length of the head. Fifteen to seventeen scales between the
occiput and the origin of the spinous dorsal, six on the interspace between
the dorsals, and seven or eight between the rayed dorsal and the caudal;
no enlarged axillary scale.

Colors.—Steel blue above, silvery on the sides, white below; scales of
the back with a narrow median longitudinal streak forming bands, and often
with golden reflections ; a small black axillary spot preceded by a golden
blotch: soft dorsal, anal, and caudal fins tinged with gold on the outer
margin.

Though the Flat-tailed Mullet does not attain to acommercial importance
similar to that of its larger relative, the Sea Mullet, nor possesses the excep-
tional richness of flesh peculiar to that species, it forms no inconsiderable
part of our food resources, and is abundant, and in good condition through-
out almost the whole year.

The spawning season appears to be spread over a number of months,
specimens examined during December having been ripe for spawning, while
others of the same catch had the ova in all different developments between
that and the barely possible discernment of its formation in the ovaries ; the
main body, however, appears to shed their spawn about the latter end of
spring or during the early winter months, but at any time between December
and June, inclusive, spawning fishes may be observed. This prolongation of
the breeding season doubtless accounts for the fact that they are rarely
noticed to arrive in the enormous shoals, for which we are accustomed to
look in the case of Mugil dobula. The Flat-tailed Mullet does not penetrate
up the rivers to such an extent as does the preceding species, but prefers
shallow sandy bays in the various inlets which indent our coasts.

In habits, feeding, &c., it differs in no wise from the other species of
Mugil. As food it is excellent, and not being so oily as the Sea Mullet is
more delicate in flavor, and more adapted for these reasons to the use of
invalids.

This fish is found along our coast from south to north, but in the former
direction quickly decreases in numbers, and though originally described
from Western Port, Victoria,— erroneously stated by its describers as being
situated on the north-western coast of New Holland (pris sur la céte nord-
ouest de la Nouwvelle-Hollande dans le port Western*)—is so scarce in that
Colony that it only seems to have been recorded in one instance, by Castelnau,

* This is evidently an error, since Dumont D’Urville’s expedition only explored the southern coast of
Australia and Tasmania,

128 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

—»

since, and so far not at allin Tasmania. It is not mentioned, at least under
its scientific name by Saville Kent from the coast of Queensland, but there
ean be little doubt as to its presence along the whole eastern seaboard of
Australia.

The average size at which this species appears in the market is about
twelve inches, but examples measuring as much as sixteen occasionally occur.

Genus II._MYXUS.
Myzxus, Ginther, Catal. Fish. iii. p. 466, 1861. .

Branchiostegals six: pseudobranchie present. Cleft of mouth extending
on to the sides of the snout, but not reaching to the orbit: anterior margin
of the mandible sharp. Eyes without adipose lids. A single series of small
teeth in the upper jaw: similar teeth sometimes present in the lower jaw, on
the vomer, and on the palatine bones. Pylorie appendages in small numbers.

Geographical distribution Coasts of Australia and western South
America.

MYXUS ELONGATUS.

Myxus elongatus. Guth. Catal. Fish. ii. p. 466; Kner. Voy. Novara, Fisch.
p- 230; Macleay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S. Wales, iv. p. 426.

Tallegalane: Sand Mullet.
Plate XX XIII.

B. vi. D. 4.1/8 A. 3/9. V. 1/5. P. 16. C. 14. L. lat. 43-46. L. tr. 15. Coe.
pyl. 2. Vert. 11/18.

Length of head 4:40-4:75, of caudal fin 4°66-4:90, height of body 4°60-
4°85 in the total length. Eye moderate, with the adipose lid but little
developed, its diameter 4°20-4°60 in the length of the head, 1°20-1°40 in
that of the obtusely rounded snout, and 1:40-1°60 in the interorbital space,
which is very slightly convex. Lips thin. Nostrils approximate, the an-
terior circular and set in a low tube, a little nearer to the eye than to the
tip of the snout; the posterior upright and oval, about twice as large
as the anterior. Free space behind the mandible lanceolate, its length
equal to the distance between the eye and the tip of the snout. The
maxilla extends to between the posterior nostril and the orbit. Preorbital
denticulated along the posterior half of its lower margin and the hinder
margin, the denticulations strongest at the angle, not much expanded
behind. A single series of small, rarely tricuspid teeth in the upper jaw;
lower fringed with minute cilie ; a narrow transverse band of small teeth
on the head of the vomer, and a similar, but smaller, patch on the palatines.
The distance between the origin of the spinous dorsal and the base of the
caudal is equal to that between the same point and the anterior margin of
the eye; spinous dorsal small, the first spine the longest, 2°00-2°33 in the
length of the head; the distance between the origins of the two dorsal fins
is a little less than the length of the head; the rayed dorsal commences
opposite to the middle of the anal fin: the anterior anal rays are longer
than those of the dorsal, and the posterior ray is produced beyond the
median rays, forming a shallow emargination on the outer edge of the fin:
the length of the ventral is from 2:00-2'33 in the distance between its
origin and that of the anal, and from 1°75-1'90 in that of the head: the pec-
toral reaches to the tenth body scale, and is 1°50-1'66 in the same length :

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 129

caudal deeply emarginate, the least height of the pedicle much less than
the distance between the base of the last dorsal ray and the origin of the
caudal, and 2°40-2°60 in the length of the head. There are seventeen or
eighteen scales between the occiput and the origin of the spinous dorsal,
nine on the interspace between the dorsals, and ten between the rayed
dorsal and the caudal; no enlarged axillary scale ; elongate scale above the
base of the ventral small.

Oolors.—Light reddish-brown or dark green above; sides pmk; lower
surfaces silvery ; a small black axillary spot.

The Sand Mullet, or, to use the more euphonious aboriginal name, Talle-
galane, does not materially differ in its habits from its congeners.

Like the preceding species they deposit their spawn on sandy beaches
during the autumn months, and these ova do not seem to germinate until
the succeeding spring, when we have seen the fry swept ashore by thousands
in the back wash of a seine net, along with those of Stigmatophora, Sillago,
and others.

The Tallegalane is found along the entire coastline of New South Wales,
but is more abundant towards the northern boundaries of the Colony; in
Victoria, from whence Gunther received one of his types, it is so scarce that
is has not since been recorded, nor have the Tasmanian authorities as yet
obtained examples from their seas. Writing of Queensland, Saville Kent
says:—‘‘A member of the genus Myxus—WM. elongatus, Guth.—is also a
native of Queensland ; it, however, rarely measures a foot in length, and is
but little esteemed as food.” We are not, however, told how far its range
extends in a northerly direction. At Lord Howe Island this species is
abundant at all seasons, and forms a staple article of food among the islanders,
either fresh, salted, or dried.

This is a common fish in the Sydney market, but does not average more
than eight inches ; it is not, therefore, of much value, and has consequently
attained a bad reputation as a food fish ; nevertheless we consider that large
examples, from twelve to fourteen inches in length, are equally as good as
the preceding species, and in fact that when cooked it would take an expert
to detect a difference between the two fishes.

Family XIX.—LABRID/.

Branchiostegals five or six: pseudobranchie present. Gills three and a
half. Body oblong or elongate. Teeth in the jaws: palate edentulous:
lower pharyngeal bones ankylosed into one along the median line, and with-
out median suture. One dorsal fin with the spinous portion as well developed
as the rayed, or more so: the anal rays generally similar to those of the
dorsal: ventral fins thoracic, with one spine and five rays. Scales cyclid.
Lateral line complete or interrupted. Airbladder present, without pneu-
matic duct. Stomach without cecal sac. Pylorie appendages absent.

Geographical distribution—Marine fishes inhabiting the shores of all
tropical and temperate seas.

As the food of the Labride consists chiefly of molluses and crustaceans,
they are provided with exceedingly strong teeth, which are admirably
adapted to crush the hard outer coverings of these animals, and even the
corals on which some species feed; many Labrids are in addition possessed
of a strong, pointed, generally curved tooth, directed forwards, and rising
from the posterior end of the premaxillary, which is supposed to be employed
for pressing shells and other hard substances against the front and lateral

I

130 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

teeth, by which they are broken up ; zoophytes enter largely into the food
supply of some species, while others, such as the Scarina, feed principally on
fuci and other seaweeds.

In many of the genera the lips are abnormally thickened, and even
folded internally, a peculiarity which has suggested for them the family name
of Labride, and, among the Germans, that of ‘‘ Lip-fishes.”’

In the majority of species beautiful tints prevail, ‘ the intensity of which,”
says Day, “are greatly augmented during the nuptial season.” The same
author continues :—‘* They are subject to great individual variations in the
mode in which they are colored, while in some the livery of the two sexes
is very dissimilar.”

Genus I.—_ CH @ ROPS.

Cherops, Riippell, Verz. Mus. Senckenb. Fisch. p. 20, 1852; Bleek. Proc.
Zool. Soc. 1861, p. 416.

Hypsigenys, Giinther, Ann. Nat. Hist. 1861, viii. p. 383.

Torresia, Casteln. Res. Fish. Austr. p. 86, 1875.

Branchiostegals five or six: pseudobranchie present. Body oblong-ovate,
compressed. Snout more or lessobtuse. Cheeks high. Preopercle serrated
or entire. Four strong free canine teeth anteriorly in each jaw : lateral
teeth confluent into a more or less obtuse osseous ridge: posterior canines
present or absent: inferior pharyngeal teeth not confluent or pavement-
like. Dorsal fin with thirteen spines and seven rays: anal with three spines
and nine or ten rays. Scales large, cyclid: cheek scales generally non-
imbricate: opercles scaly : base of the dorsal and anal fins with a low scaly
sheath. Lateral line continuous. Airbladder large, simple.

Geographical distribution—From tropical and subtropical Australia,
through Malaysia to the seas of China and Japan; and through India to the
Red Sea and the east coast of Africa.

CHGROPS OMMOPTERUS.

? Cossyphus schonleinii (Agass.) Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. xi. p. 143,
1839.

Cossyphus ommopterus, Richards. Ichthyol. China, p. 257, 1846.

? Crenilabrus leucozona, Bleek. Biliton, iv. p. 288.

Cossyphus schénleinii, Bleek. Celebes, v. p. 252.

Cherops ommopterus, Guth. Catal. Fish. iv. p. 94, 1862; Macleay, Catal.
Austr. Fish. 1. p. 72; Ogilby, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1889, p. 158.

Cherops schoenleini, Bleek. Atl. Ichthyol. i. p. 163, pl. xlvi. f. 1.

Blue-spotted Groper.

B.vi. D. 13/7. A. 3/10. V. 1/5..P.16. C.14, iL, Jat. 29-30, dL. am 9 S1o.
Vert. 11/16.

Length of head 3:50-8:90, of caudal fin 4°60—4°85, height of body 3:20-3°40
in the totallength: height of head equal to or rather more than its length.
Diameter of eye 5°00-5°66 in the length of the head, 2°40-3:00 in that of the
pointed snout, and 120-1°66 in that of the interorbital space, which is strongly
arched. Nostrils distant, minute. Jaws equal. Cleft of mouth slightly
oblique, the maxilla reaching to beneath the internasal space. Preorbital
very high: vertical margin of preopercle finely but distinctly serrated.
Anterior canine teeth very strong and curved; no posterior canine. The
dorsal fin commences above the opercular fiap, the spines are moderately

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. isl

strong and are noticeably compressed, subequal in length, the last 3°25-4:00
in the length of the head; the rays are longer than the spines, the fifth the
longest, one half longer than the last spine: the anal commences beneath the
eleventh dorsal spine, and extends further back along the caudal pedicle; the
third spine is the longest, 3°80-4°50 in the length of the head, and five
ninths of the eighth and longest ray ; all the dorsal and anal spines with a
short, free, terminal flap: ventral reaching to the vent, the two outer rays
the longest, produced considerably beyond the others, 1°50-1°70 in the length
of the head ; the spine weak, longer than the longest dorsal spine, and but
little more than half the length of the outer ray: pectoral well developed,
pointed above, rounded below, the third ray the longest, 1°10-1-20 in the
Jength of the head: caudal truncated, with the upper lobe produced; the
least height of the pedicle about one third of the height of the body. Scales
on the cheeks non-imbricate ; in four series on the opercle. Lateral line
tubes more or less ramose.

Colors —Upper part of head green, becoming gradually more tinged with
blue towards the snout; cheeks and opercles olive ; mandibular region pale
violet; chin sky blue; edge of the maxillary lip with a narrow outer golden
and inner blue stripe ; anterior margin of the preorbital very narrowly edged
with blue ; an oval sky blue spot in front of the orbit, and extending to about
one third of its diameter: body olive brown above the lateral line, rose-
colored below, most of the scales on the back and caudal pedicle with a
medium-sized, round, blue spot; a broad dark band runs from the fifth scale
of the lateral line forwards and downwards in an arcuate shape to the inferior
margin of the opercle: dorsal fin golden, the spinous portion with a basal,
median, and marginal band of blue, the two outer of which are exchanged on
the rays for wavy, anastomosing lines of the same shade ; anal fin gray, with
broad basal and marginal blue bands, bordered on the inner edge by a
narrower golden stripe; ventrals biuish, the membrane between the first and
second rays golden; pectorals gray, with two transverse golden bands in
front of the base, and the two outer rays and the basal third of the others
blue; caudal brownish with the outer rays blue, and the bases of the
remainder green: irides golden and crimson, with sky blue marginal spots:
basal half of canines and lateral teeth light blue.

Jt is only during the winter months that this fish is obtainable in the
Sydney market, as, except at that season, no consignments come to the
metropolis from the northern rivers. Of those examined only one, caught
in July, showed any signs of breeding, and in this the ova were abont half
developed, and were small and numerous. As food they are excellent, the
flesh being white, firm, and flaky, and in no case was any substance, .except
the coarsely broken up remains of shells, found in the intestines.

So far we have not received this Groper from any locality south of the
Clarence River, but as it appears to be common there, it doubtless occurs in
the estuaries of some of our more southern rivers, such as the Bellinger and
Macleay. That it does not, however, confine itself so the mouths of rivers,
or even to the vicinity of land, we are aware, from the fact that the naturalists
of the “ Rattlesnake” captured a specimen off Cape York with hook and line
at a depth of sixty three fathoms. It is strange that, notwithstanding the size
to which they grow and their excellence as food, no mention is made of this
“A = other species of Cherops in Saville Kent’s list of Queensland Food

ishes.

Beyond the Australian coasts itis found through the Molucca Sea to
those of China.

The Blue-spotted Groper attains a length of at least twenty six inches.

132 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Genus II._P LAT YCH@ROPS.

Platycherops, Klunzing. SB. Ak. Wien, Ixxx. Abth. i. p. 399, 1879.

Branchiostegals six: pseudobranchie present. Body rather short, oblong
or ovate, not much compressed. Snout moderately rounded. Preopercle
entire. Four transversely flattened canines anteriorly in each jaw : lateral
teeth connected by an osseous ridge: posterior canine present or absent.
One dorsal fin with eleven spines and ten or eleven rays: anal with three
spines and eleven or twelve rays. Scales of moderate size, those of the
cheeks non-imbricate: bases of the vertical fins partially scaly. Lateral line
continuous.

Geographical distribution.—Coasts of temperate Australia and Tasmania.

PLATYCHCROPS GOULDI

Labrus gouldii, Richards. Ann. Nat. Hist. 1843, x1. p. 353.

Cossyphus vel Lachnolaimus gouldii, Richards. Voy. Erebus & Terror, Fish.
p. 132.

Cossyphus gouldii, Richards. Ann. Nat. Hist. (2) 1851, vi. p. 288, and Proc.
Zool. Soc. 1850, p. 72, pl. ii. fig. 8; Gnth. Catal. Fish. iv. p. 111;
Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 78; Woods, Fisher. N.S. Wales, p.
74, pl. xxxi.

Platychwrops miilleri, KYunzing. SB. Ak. Wien, Ixxx Abth. i. 1879, p. 399,

pl. viii. f. 2.
Blue Groper.
Plate XXX-V.
B. vi. D. 11/11. A. 3/11. V. 1/5. P. 16. C.. 14. Ti. lat. 39-41. Sire toaiae

Length of head 400, of ae fin 5°50, height of body 3°50 in the
total length. Eye rather small, its diameter 4°60 in the length of the head,
2°00 in that of the moderately rounded snout, and 1°60 in the convex inter-
orbital space. Nostrils slightly separated, the anterior minute, rounded, and
with a low, fleshy valve, more developed behind; the posterior much larger,
oval, horizontal, and patent. Upper profile of head flat. Lips thick
and fleshy, the lower with a well developed rounded lateral flap. Upper
jaw slightly the longer. Cleft of mouth small and slightly oblique, the
maxilla “reaching to beneath the anterior nostril: intermaxillary processes
reaching to betw een the anterior margins of the eyes, their length 2°33 in
that of the head. Preorbital a little longer than deep. Preopercle entire.
Two pairs of strong flattened canines anteriorly in each jaw: lateral teeth
visible, but connected by asharp osseous ridge, beyond which the tips shghtly
protrude: posterior canine present or absent. ‘The dorsal fin commences
above the base of the pectoral and terminates above the eighth anal ray ;
the spines are somewhat curved backwards, and, with the exception of
the two or three posterior ones, strongly compressed; the last spine is
slightly longer than those preceding it, 3:15 in the length of the head, and
1°60 in the longest rays, which are situated in the posterior half of the fin :
the anal commences beneath the first dorsal ray ; its spines are stronger than
those of the dorsal, the third the longest, 2°40 in the length of the head and
1°33 in that of the longest rays: ventral small, the second ray the longest,
200 in the distance between its origin and that of the anal, and bearing the
same proportion to the length of the head; the spine stout and strongly
compressed, equal in length to the second anal spine. pectoral well developed
rounded posteriorly, 1° 40 in the length of the head: caudal truncate,

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. ise

the least height of its pedicle one half of the height of the body. Snout, pre-
orbital, interorbital space, and preopercle naked: cheek scales small, oval,
and non-imbricate ; those of the opercle of moderate size, of the occiput,
nape, and throat minute: vertical fins, partially enveloped in a deep, basal,
scaly sheath, which in the dorsal includes the three last, in the anal the two
last spines, and in both ceases about the eighth ray. Lateral line gently
eurved to the caudal pedicle, the tubes, especially the posterior ones, pro-
fusely branched.

Colors.—Above purplish-brown, sides and Jower surface yellowish-brown,
each scale with an orange spot or vertical bar; a narrow orange band encircles
the eye; sides of snout with three similar bands, one of which crosses the
cheek, separated by blue bands: fins purple, the membranes of the anterior
rays of the dorsal and anal with orange spots ; all these markings are most
conspicuous in the young, but almost totally disappear in adult examples.

The Blue Groper is essentially a rock-loving fish, its favorite haunts being
rocky points, rising from a moderate depth, and with the bottom shelving
somewhat rapidly into deep water; in such spots they may always be
found, coming in with the flood tide to search every crevice and channel
worn by the waves for the molluscs, crustaceans, echinoderms, and starfishes,
which form the bulk of their food, and retiring with the ebb to the deeper
waters in the vicinity ; they are unsociable fishes, not more than two being
found about the same spot, and that possibly only during the spawning
season, and each one appears to confine itself to its own particular stretch
of shore.

Nothing positive is known of its breeding habits, but it may be taken for
granted that the ova is deposited in crannies among weed-covered rocks, but
whether or not a nest is formed for the reception of the eggs—as has been
observed on the French coast by Moreau to be the case among members of
the typical genus, Labrus—must be left for further investigation.

Though an excellent table fish the Blue Groper, notwithstanding that it is of
common occurrence on our coast is but rarely to be seen in the market, even
though, when obtainable, it commands a high price ; for this apparent scarcity
Mr. Hill gives us the following reasons: —* The Groper, though plentiful, is not
a common market fish, neither is it much sought after by professional fisher-
men for various reasons, among which may be mentioned that it is out of the
lay for their general fishing grounds, as it is essentially a dweller among the
caves and rocks of the coast, and the rocky points within the harbor, where
their operations rarely extend, and also that the Groper may not be, from
its coarse appearance, a favorite with the general public.” Notwithstanding
its appearance, it is not difficult to persuade anyone, who has once been
tempted to make a meal off Groper, to do so again; in fact a Blue Groper’s
head and shoulders boiled with egg sauce, is equally as good as, and in the
estimation of many infinitely better than, the same portions of a Cod
(Gadus morrhua), and, if the fish were more easily obtainable, would
worthily hold a similar position on colonial dinner tables.

Blue Gropers are sometimes taken in the trammel set close along the rocks
(see p. 41), but the greater number sent to the market are caught by hook
and line, crab, squid, and cuttle being the best baits. Mr. Hill says that
these fishes are caught with hook and line along the rocks of our sea coast,
but the bait should be crabs; it is usual to wrench off the legs and shell, and
having breken them up throw them out as berley along with comminuted
oysters and oyster shells, by which means they are often decoyed from their
hiding places ; “the body of the crab is then secured to the hook witha piece
of thread or flax and thrown out; if a Groper should be at home that is the
surest way to entice it.”

134. EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

As an instance of the extraordinary patience, cunning, and dexterity of
the Aboriginals when in pursuit of so shy a fish as the Groper, and armed
with spear only, the same writer contines:—“ The Aboriginal when seeking
this fish, armed with a couple of spears, prosecutes his search with cat-like
caution, and when in view is as motionless as a statue, keeping, if necessary,
that position for a considerable time till a chance offers, when he darts one
of his spears with an unerring and powerful plunge into the fish, and fixes it
firmly to the rock or ground.”

The Blue Groper is found abundantly in suitable localities along the
whole coastline of the Colony, and according to Mr. Thomas Stewart “ there
is not a more prolific fishing ground on the east coast than the Bellinger
Bight for Snapper, Groper, and Rock Cod.”

Though first described from King George’s Sound—where it is presumably
common, since Richardson, on the authority of Neill, states that it is known
to the Aborigines of that district by no less than three distinct names,
Koojenuck, Quejuinuck, and Knowl—it has not as yet been recorded from
any intermediate point on the Australian coast, though Johnston catalogues
it as common in Tasmania, nor is it mentioned by Saville Kent as occurring
in Queensland waters.

The Blue Groper attains to a maximum weight of forty pounds, with a
length of three and a half feet.

PLATYCHCROPS BADIUS.

Red Groper.
B.. vi. D. 11/10. A. 3/11. V..1/5. P. 17. ©. 14 TL. Tat. 45. Te. te. 8/04.

Length of head 3°80, of caudal fin 6°60, height of body 3°50.in the
total length. Eye rather small, its diameter 5°33 in the length of the head,
2°50 in the elongate rounded snout: and 2°00 in the broad, shghtly convex
interorbital space. Nostrils small, the anterior opening at the extremity of a
low tube; the posterior a little larger, oval, subhorizontal, midway between
the eye and the anterior nostril. Jaws equal : lips fleshy. Cleft of mouth
short and horizontal, the maxilla not expanded behind, and not extending
beyond the anterior nostril: intermaxillary processes reaching to about the
same distauce, their length one third of that of the head. Length of preorbital
greater than its depth. Upper profile of snout slightly concave; of occiput
slightly convex; a moderate protuberance in front of and between the anterior
margins of the eyes. Two pairs of strong canines in front of each jaw: a
lateral row of conical teeth, connected together by an osseous ridge beyond
which the teeth slightly protrude, and inside of which are a number of
irregular series of minute granular teeth: a strong posterior canine curving
inwards. The dorsal fin commences above the anterior angle of the base of the
pectoral, and terminates above the eighth anal ray ; the spines are stout,
strongly compressed, especially on their upper half, and increase in length
to the sixth, which is subequal to those which follow, one fourth of the
length of the head, and four sevenths of the longest (seventh) ray: the
anal commences beneath the first dorsal ray; its spines are similar to, but
much longer and stronger than, those of the dorsal, the third the longest, not
so strong or so compressed as the second, four fifths of the longest (seventh)
ray, and 2°75 in the length of the head); the rays longer than those of the
dorsal: ventral short and rounded, its length three fifths of the distance
between its origin and the vent, equal to the distance between the tip of the

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 135

snout and the anterior margin of the eye, or 2:20 in the length of the head ;
its spine broad and strongly compressed, acute anteriorly, equal in length to
the third anal spine: pectoral rather large, rounded posteriorly, 1:40 in
the length of the head: caudal truncate, the pedicle strong and buat little
compressed, its least height two fifths of the height of the body. Snout,
preorhital, interorbital space, and preopercle scaleless ; anterior rays of the
vertical fins enclosed in a basal scaly sheath, which is more developed in the
anal than in the dorsal, and almost disappears on the posterior half of the
rayed dorsal and the last three rays of the anal. Lateral line gently curved
up to the caudal pedicle, ou which it is straight ; the tubes branched.

Colors.—Unitform dull brick red, a little lighter on the abdomen; cheeks,
opercles, and lower surface of the head washed with gold: the spinous
dorsal and the anal with a basal white band sparsely blotched with orange;
remainder of the web hyaline; spines and other fins dusky; the ventral
pale red basally.

Though this fish is but rarely brought to the market, it is so well known
to the professional fishermen under the vernacular name given above, and
cannot, therefore, be considered rare, that we have decided to. give it a place
in the present limited work, the more so that it is a large and handsome
species, and excellent for the table. The single specimen examined was
caught by hook and line off Port Jackson, and measured twenty three
inches; its stomach contained the triturated remains of crustaceans and
molluses.

It is hoped that this short notice will be the means of drawing attention
to this fine species, and by inciting captors to forward examples to the Aus-
tralian Museum, enable us ultimately to learn more concerning its habits
and distribution.

As it does not appear to have been previously described, we are compelled
to give it a specific name.

Genus III.—_ COSSYPHUS.

Cossyphus, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. xiii. p. 102, 1839.

Branchiostegals six: pseudobranchie present. Body oblong and com-
pressed, Snout more or less pointed. Preopercle serrated or entire. The
four anterior teeth in each jaw conical and free: lateral teeth free, ina
single series : a posterior canine: hypopharyngeal teeth not confluent or
pavement-like. One dorsal fin with twelve or thirteen spines and nine to
eleven rays: the anal with three spines, and from ten to fourteen rays.
Scales of moderate size, imbricate on the cheeks and opercles: bases of the
vertical fins scaly. No enlarged row of scales at the base of the candal fin.
Lateral line continuous.

Geographical distribution—Nearly all tropical and subtropical seas.

COSSYPHUS UNIMACULATUS.

Cossyphus unimaculatus, Guth. Catal. Fish. iv. p. 109, 1862; Casteln. Proce.
Linn. Soc. N.S. Wales, ii. p. 389; Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. i.
p- 77; Woods, Fisher. N.S. Wales, p. 75, pl. xxxii.

Cossyphus oxycephalus, Bleek. Notices Ichthyol. Versl. en Mededeel. Ak.
Wet. Amsterd. xiv. 1862. ;

136 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Spotted Pigrfish.
Plate XXXIV.

B. vi. D. 12/11. A. 3/12.V. 1/5. P. 17. C. 14. L. lat. 833-35. L. tr. 6/12. Vert:
11/16-17.

Length of head 3:40-3°60, of caudal fin 4°40-4°80, height of body
3°66—4-00 in the total length. Diameter of eye 4:60-5:50 in the length of
the head, 1°90-2'40 in that of the pointed snout, and 1:00-1°30 in the
slightly convex interorbital space. Nostrils but little separated, the anterior
minute, and pierced in a low tube, the posterior larger, horizontal and oval,
with a low overhanging flap. Upper profile of head straight. Jaws equal.
Cleft of mouth moderate and horizontal, the maxilla, which ?s concealed by the
preorbital, extending to beneath the anterior nostril, or even so far as the
front margin of the eye. Intermaxillary processes extending backwards to
between the middle of the orbits, their length one half of that of the head.
Length of preorbital rather more than its depth: vertical limb of preopercle
roughened. Both jaws with two pairs of anterior canines, those of the
upper subequal, the middle pair of the lower small; sides of the jaws with
a single series of conical teeth, seven or eight in each ramus of the upper,
twelve to fifteen in each of the lower jaw; inside these there is a band
of small granular teeth: one or two posterior canines. The dorsal fin com-
mences above the upper angle of the pectoral, and terminates a little in
front of the last anal ray ; the spines are strong, and the membrane extends
beyond their tips so as to forma short flap ; they increase in height gradually
to the last, which is about one half of the first, 2°S5-3°05 in the length of the
head, and 1°33 in the sixth and seventh rays, which are equal and longest; the
base of the spinous dorsal is rather more than twice the length of the rayed
portion, the outer margin of which is pointed: the anal commences beneath
the eleventh dorsal spine; the spines are much stronger and more com-
pressed than those of the dorsal, the third the longest, equal to the last
dorsal spine, and very little less than the rays, whose outer margin is slightly
convex: ventral fin reaching to the vent, or even to the origin of the anal
fin, its length 1°33-1'66 in that of the head; the spine is strong, equal to
the last dorsal spine, and 1°66 in the outer ray, which is slightly produced :
pectoral rounded behind, reaching to beneath the twelfth seale of the
lateral line, its length 1°70-1°85 in that of the head: caudal emarginate,
with the lobes produced, the least height of the pedicle 2°50 in the height
of the body. Snout, preorbital, interorbital space, and preopercle scaleless ;
vertical fins with a basal scaly sheath, whose greatest development is about
the middle. Lateral line with a gentle curvature to the caudal pedicle, the
tubes curved, but unbranched.

Colors.—Deep scarlet above, gradually changing into pink or saffron
yellow below ; each scale on the sides has a narrow median reddish streak,
thus giving the fish a longitudinally banded appearance ; a large pinkish
patch below the origin of the rayed dorsal, and some small spots of a
similar color in front of it on or near the lateral line: dorsal and caudal
fins scarlet, with a more or less broad lighter margin ; the former with a large
dark blue spot between the sixth and eighth or seventh and ninth spines,
surrounded, except at its base, by a pearly white band; similar, but small,
spots generally present on the adjoming spines; anal scarlet anteriorly,
yellowish posteriorly ; ventrals hyaline, with the outer ray golden; pectorals
reddish, with a small dark blue axillary spot: irides orange.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 137

The Pigfish, so called on account of its elongate, conical snout, and thick
fleshy lips, is, for the reasons adduced under the heading of Blue Groper,
not often obtainable in the Sydney markets; nevertheless, it occurs more
commonly than either of the Gropers, or than the succeeding species.

Nothing has been recorded as to the season of spawning, nor the places
selected for depositing the ova, nor whether any special precautions are
taken to ensure the safety thereof after its extrusion and fertilisation. From
personal observation, however, we are inclined to fix the early spring
months—such as September and the first half of October—as the period at
which this important function takes place, several specimens which have
passed through our hands within the specified time having been found dis-
tended with spawn, which could with but slight pressure be made to ooze
from the fish ; individually the ova are very minute.

In the quality of its flesh the Pigfish is as excellent as in appearance it 1s
handsome, and it is, therefore, the more regretable that the market is not
more bountifully supplied with them, since there can be no doubt that they
are common in all suitable localities in the Port Jackson district; beyond
the metropolitan district, however, we have no record of its occurrence on any
part of the Australian coast, and the specimen which formed Giinther’s type,
and which is merely labelled ‘ Australia,’ probably came from Sydney; it is,
however, included by Johnston in his supplementary list of Tasmanian fishes,
and by Sherrin in his list of New Zealand fishes.

The common Pigfish attains to a length of eighteen inches, and the author
does not remember to have ever seen one measuring less than twelve.

COSSYPHUS BELLIS.
Cossyphus bellis, Rms. & Ogl. Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S. Wales (2) 1887, ii. p. 561.

Banded Pigfish.

pave Oe ID TT. A. B/l2. V. 1/5. P..17. C. 14. L, lat. 32. L. tr. 6/18:
Vert. 11/17.

Length of head 3°33-3°60, of candal fin, 5:00-5:25, height of body 3°50-
3°70 in the total length. Eye rather small, its diameter 4°50-5°50 in the
length of the head, 1:60-2:10 in that of the conically pointed snout, and
110-1:20 in that of the slightly convex interorbital space. Nostrils small, the
anterior opening at the extremity of a low tube, the posterior a little larger,
oval, and almost horizontal. Jaws equal. Lips fleshy. Cleft of mouth of
moderate size, horizontal, the maxilla, which is almost concealed by the pre-
orbital, club-shaped, and extending to beneath the posterior nostril or the
anterior margin of the eye: intermaxillary processes extending backwards to
between the anterior margins of the eyes, their length one third of that of the
head. Lengthof preorbitalrather morethan its depth: posterior margin of pre-
opercle feebly serrated. Upper profile of snout flat, of occiput convex. Two
pairs of canines anteriorly in each jaw, those of the upper jaw subequal ;
the symphyseal pair m the lower jaw much smaller than the outer pair ; sides
of the jaws with a single series of conical teeth, six or seven in number in
the upper, twelve to fourteen in the lower jaw ; inside these are several
irregular series of small granular teeth : a posterior canine tooth curving out-
wards. The dorsal fin commences above the opercular flap, and terminates
a little in front of the last anal ray; the spines are strong, and each is fur-
nished with a skinny terminal filament ; they increase in length to the last,

.

which is from 2°50-3:20 in the length of the head, and about five

138 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

—_—

sevenths of the longest (sixth to eighth) rays: the anal commences
beneath the eleventh dorsal spine; its spines are longer and stronger than
those of the dorsal, subequal to the longest rays, but not so high
as the dorsal rays, and 2°33-2'85 in the length of the head: ventral
fins reaching to the vent, or not quite so far, equal in length to the
distance between the tip of the snout and the posterior margin of the
eye, or from 1:70-1:90 in the length of the head: pectoral rounded pos--
teriorly 1:°50-1'80 in the same length : caudal slightly emarginate, without
produced lobes, the pedicle deep and strongly compressed, its least height
2°50-3°00 in the height of the body. Snout, preorbital, interorbital space *
and preopercle scaleless ; base of the vertical fis enclosed in a scaly sheath.
Lateral line with a gentle curvature as far as the caudal pedicle, on which it
is straight; the tubes crooked, but without branches.

Colors.—Red above, the upper surface of the head brightest, gradually
passing into pale s saffron below; each series of scales with a narrow, dull,
reddish-brown longitudinal streak; three rows of oblong crimson spots on
the back and sides, the upper one just below the base of the dorsal fin ; the
median and lower rows commencing close together at the posterior margin
of the eye, the former following ie curvature of the lateral line, the latter
straight: spinous dorsal, pectorals, and ventrals pink; rayed dorsal, anal,
and caudal yellow : irides silvery, with three orange spots round the pupil.

The Spotted Pigfish is even more rarely seen in the market than is
Cossyphus unimaculatus, the same causes operating to produce the same
result.

In habits and mode of life it presents no difference to its congener, but
the spawning season appears to commence rather earlier in the year, as we
have examined specimens in which the ova were fully developed during the
latter half of July. Its flesh 1s equally nutritious and well flavored as that
of the last species.

For some time we inclined to the opinion that the differences between
Cossyphus bellis and C. unimaculatus were merely sexual, but the examination
of specimens of both sexes belonging to either form has induced us to so far
recede from that position as to present full descriptions of the two fishes to
our readers, in the hope of eliciting further information on so interesting a
subject ; it must, however, be borne in mind that, notwithstanding the fact
that the difference in the coloration is not always concurrent with the
difference in the sexes, yet we may have here two distinct varietal races
living under similar conditions and inhabiting the same waters, but which,
nevertheless, preserve intact their color variations.

Broken Bay and Shoalhaven are at present the outside limits from which
this form has been received. It does not appear to grow so large as the
blue-spotted form, the largest examined, a female with ripe ova, measuring
less than fifteen inches, while several have been observed which did not
measure ten.

Genus IV.—_PSEUDOLABRUS.

Pseudolabrus, Bleeker, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1861, p. 415; Gill, Proc. U.S. Nat.
Mus. 1891, xiv. p. 395.
Labrichthys, Giinther, Catal. Fish. iv. p. 112, 1862 (not Bleeker.)

Branchiostegals six: pseudobranchize present. Body oblong-ovate, com-
pressed. Snout rather pointed. None of the opercular bones serrated :
opercle and subopercle without a backward expansion. Jaws with a pair of
canine teeth anteriorly, those of the mandible fitting in between the maxillary

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 139

ones; and a lateral series of conical teeth, with an interior series of smaller
teeth, destined to replace those in function when lost: posterior canines
present. Dorsal fin with nine spines and eleven rays: anal with three
spines and ten rays: second ventral ray the longest. Scales large: present
on the opercle, and in a greater or less degree on the cheeks: forehead
naked: bases of the vertical fins inconspicuously squamose. Lateral line
continuous, each scale more or less branched.

Geographical distribution.—Coasts of Australia, Tasmania, New Zealand,
and the adjacent islands ; Chinese and Japanese Seas.

There can be no doubt that, as contended by Gill, the union by Giinther
of the Bleekerian genera Labrichthys and Pseudolabrus is indefensible ;
even, therefore, though it necessitates the renomination of all the Aus-
tralasian species which we have been atforded an opportunity of examining,
we are compelled to reject the generic title Labrichthys, now in common use,
for that adopted above.

The genus Pseudolabrus is abundantly represented in Australian seas, and
probably on no section of our coastline are they more numerous than on that
of New South Wales ; the great differences in coloration observable in the
same species, individually, seasonally, and sexually, have, however, led to a
deplorable multiplication of species by amateur ichthyologists, and a thorough
revision of this genus and Labrichthys is urgently required.

PSEUDOLABRUS GYMNOGENIS.

Labrichthys gymnogenis, Gnth. Catal. Fish. iv. p. 117, 1862, and Ann. Nat.
Hist. (3) 1867, xx. p. 66, 1867; Steindachn. SB. Ak. Wien. lvi. p.
342; Klunzing. SB. Ak. Wien, 1879, lxxx. p. 403 ; Casteln. Proc. Linn.
Soe. N.S. Wales, iii. p.389; Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. ii. p. 82.

White-spotted Parrotfish.

B. vi. D. 9/11. A. 3/L0. V.. 1/5. P. 18. C. 12 L. lat. 25-26. L. tr. 3/8-10;

Length of head 360-8°66, of candal fin 5:50-5°66, height of body
3:00-3°50 in the total length. Eye small, its diameter 4:33-5:25 in the
length of the head, and 1°25-1°60 in the moderately pointed snout: inter-
orbital space flat or very slightly convex, 1:00-1:25 in the diameter of the
eye. Nostrils small, the anterior preceded by a low flap, the posterior
simple. Upper profile of head almost flat, with a slight median concavity
between the front margins of the eyes. Upper jaw the longer. Cleft of
mouth small and almost horizontal, the maxilla reaching to beneath the
posterior nostril or, in small examples, the anterior margin of the eye. A
pair of anterior canines in either jaw, those of the lower subhorizontal and
fitting in between the upper pair when the mouth is closed; lateral teeth
gradually decreasing in size backwards, the outer series numbering eight to
ten in the upper, and ten to twelve in the lower jaw ; an inner series of small
blunt teeth side the laterals, probably designed to replace those, which by
the nature of their food, and the means employed for obtaining it, are liable
to be broken off or worn away ; a few small pavement-like teeth behind the
canines in both jaws: one or two posterior canines. The dorsal fin com-
mences above the margin of the bony opercle ; its spines are rather weak,
but acute, and gradually increase in height to the last, which is from 2'85—
3°15 in the length of the head, and 1:25 in that of the first ray; the pos-
terior rays of both dorsal and anal are elongated, the last being the longest:
the anal commences beneath the second dorsal ray; its third spine is the

140 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

longest, not quite so long as the last dorsal spine: ventral pointed, not quite
reaching to the vent, the second ray the longest, from 1‘90—2°10 in the length
of the head: hind margin of pectoral pointed above, cuneiform in the middle,
and rounded below, the second and third rays the longest, reaching to the
tenth scale of the lateral line, and from 1:25-1°33 in the length of the head :
caudal emarginate, the least height of the pedicle 2°25 in the height of the
body. Head naked, with the exception of the posterior half of the operele,
a series of about ten small scales on the cheek behind, and below the
infero-posterior margin of the orbit, and a single large isolated scale on the
temporal region ; dorsal and anal fins with a low scaly sheath. Lateral line
scales profusely branched.

Colors—Brick red, the upper surfaces washed with olive green; body
ornamented with more or less numerous round cream-colored spots: soft
dorsal and anal with a dark blue median longitudinal band, and a similar
marginal one, between which are a series of spots; posterior half of caudal
and pectorals yellow, the latter with a dark blue basal band.

This is by far the least variable in coloration of all our Pseudolabri, the
only noticeable differences being in the greater or less depth of the olive
green tinting on the upper surface, the number of the spots, and the amount
of rose-color with which their whiteness is suffused.

Nothing has hitherto been published regarding the breeding habits of the
members of this genus, notwithstanding their abundance on our coast, and
we are pleased, therefore, to be in a position to record the fact that this
species deposits its ova among weed-covered rocks about midwinter, that is,
the latter part of June and July.

Opinions vary as to the merits of the Pseudolabri from an edible stand-
point, many people rejecting them, seemingly for no better reason than
that, as “ Parrot-fishes,” they have gained a bad name, while others go to
the opposite extreme, and are enthusiastic in their praise. The flesh is firm,
flaky, and coarse in the fibre, with a peculiar flavor, which may or may
not be appreciated, and which probably constitutes the reason why itis held
in such different estimation. Described by Giinther from specimens labelled
“ Australia,” it was long known from the neighborhood of Port Jackson
alone; it has, however, been recorded since by Klunzinger from King
George’s Sound, the two districts being at present the only localities from
whence it is known.

The White-spotted Parrotfish grows to a length of twelve inches, but is
rarely seen of that size, seven to nine inches being about the average.

PSEUDOLABRUS NIGROMARGINATUS.
Labrichthys nigromarginata, Macleay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N. 8. Wales, iii.
p. 35, pl. i. fig. 3, 1879.

Crimson-banded Parrotfish.

B. vi. D. 9/11. A. 3/10. V. 1/5. P. 13. C. 13. L. lat. 25-27. L. tr. 3/8. Vert.
9/16.

Length of head 3°50-83°80, of caudal fin 5:00-5°50, height of body
3°40-3°60 in the total length. Diameter of eye 500-575 in the length of
the head, 1°50-1°80 in that of the moderately pointed snout, and 1:00-1°33
in the convex interorbital space. Nostrils small and slightly tubular, the
anterior with a low skinny flap behind, the posterior oval and horizontal.
Upper profile of head with a distinct concavity between the anterior margins

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 141

of the eyes. Jaws equal. Cleft of mouth small and but little oblique, the
maxilla reaching to beneath the posterior nostril, or between it and the front
margin of the orbit. Opercular bones with a broad skinny flap. Both
jaws with a pair of canine teeth in front, those of the mandible fitting in
between the maxillary teeth when the mouth is closed, and with from eight
to twelve lateral teeth on each ramus of the upper jaw, and eight to ten on
each of the lower jaw, these teeth successively decreasing in size from the
front: one or two posterior canines. The dorsal fin commences a little in
front of the margin of the bony opercle; its spines are rather weak but
acute, and gradually increase in height to the last, which is from 3°33-3°75
in the length of the head, and 1°33-1°50 in that of the first ray; the last
ray is the longest: the anal commences beneath the first or second dorsal
ray; its third spine is the longest, equal in length to the last or penultimate
dorsal spine: ventral pointed, reaching to, or not quite so far as, the vent,
the second ray the longest ; its length from 1°60-2°00 in that of the head:
hinder margin of the pectorals pointed above and rounded below, the
intervening space concave; the second ray the longest, reaching as far as
the tenth or eleventh lateral line scale, and from 1:25-1°40 in the length of
the head: caudal slightly rounded, with the upper rays produced; the
least height of the pedicle 2'40-2°66 in the height of the body. Posterior
half of the bony opercle scaly ; a single series of seven to nine small scales
on the cheeks, and a single isolated scale on the temporal region ; a moderate
scaly sheath at the base of the dorsal fin, none on the anal; skin of the
head pierced by large open pores in close proximity. Lateral line abruptly
eurved downwards beneath and behind the last dorsal ray; each tube with
from five to seven branches before and two or three behind the curve.

Colors—Head purple, darkest above; body purplish-green, gradually
assuming a yellowish tint posteriorly; a broad crimson band generally
present between the rayed dorsal and the anal; free portion of the tail dull
yellow or pale olive green: spinous portion of the dorsal yellow, either
biotched with red or with the base and two anterior rays purple; rayed
dorsal and anal crimson with a narrow purple marginal band; the anai
sometimes yellow, with a crimson blotch on the three Jast rays, and olive
green spots inside the marginal line; outer rays of the ventrals black;
pectorals yellow with a purplish blotch posteriorly, broad above and
gradually narrowing below, and the upper ray dark ; caudal orange.

In habits, food, &c., the Crimson-banded Parrotfish agrees in all respects
with the preceding species, but we are unable to record the breeding season,
no example with developed ova having as yet fallen into our hands.

Its range, so far as is known, is similariy restricted, examples having so
far been known from Port Jackson, Broken Bay, and the outer reefs in
the neighborhood only, in all of which it is common. It grows to a
larger size than Pseudolabrus gymnogenis, twelve inches being a not
uncommon length for the species to attain, while the largest hitherto
examined measured a trifle over fifteen inches. Possibly for this reason
it is held in somewhat higher estimation for the table than the other
Parrotfishes.

Genus V.—CORIS.

Coris, Lacépéde, Hist. Nat. Poiss. ii. p- 96, 1800.
Ophthalmolepis, Bleeker, Proce. Zool. Soc. 1861, p. 413.

Branchiostegals six: pseudobranchie present. Body oblong and compressed.
Canine teeth anteriorly in the jaws: lateral teeth in two or more series, those
of the outer row being much the larger: posterior canines present or absent.

142 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

A single dorsal fin with eight or nine spines: the anal with three. Scales
small, in fifty or more transverse series: head entirely naked except in
OC. lineolata. Lateral line continuous.

Geographical distribution —Tropical and subtropical zones of the Indian
and Pacifie Oceans: Mediterranean and the Atlantic seaboard from the
south coast of England to Sierra Leone.

CORIS LINEOLATA.

Julis lineolata, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. xiii. p. 436, 1839. :

Julis cyanogramma, Richards. Ann. Nat. Hist. (2) 1851, vu. p. 289, and
Proce. Zool. Soe. 1850, p. 73.

Ophthalmolepis lineolata, Bleek. Proc. Zool. Soc. 1861, p. 418 ; Kner, Voy.
Novara, Fisch. p. 258, pl. x1. fig. 1.

Coris lineolata, Gnth. Catal. Fish. iv. p. 206; Casteln. Proc. Linn. Soc.
N.S. Wales, in. p. 390.

Julis adelaidensis, Casteln. Res. Fish. Austr. p. 35, 1875.

Maori.
B. vi. D. 9/13. A. 3/13. V. 1/5. P. 13. C. 12. L, lat. 52-56. 1. tr. 6/20,
Vert. 10/17.

Length of head 4:10-4:25, of caudal fin 4:90-6:00, height of body
4-00-4'40 in the total length. Diameter of eye 6-00 in the length of the
head 2°15 in that of the pointed snout, and 1-00-1'15 in the slightly convex
interorbital space. Nostrils moderately approximate, small, rounded, and
simple, directed forwards. Upper profile of head rounded. Jaws equal. Cleft
of mouth small and but little oblique, the maxilla reaching to between the
nostrils. A pair of strong anterior canines in each jaw, those of the man-
dible fitting between the maxillary pair when the mouth is closed ; upper
jaw with an outer row of eight or nine strong conical teeth on each
ramus, inside of which are from one to three series of smaller granular
teeth; lower jaw similarly armed, but with nine or ten enlarged conical
teeth, and the inner teeth fewer in number; one or two posterior
canines on each side. The dorsal fin commences above the middle of
the opercle, and its outer margin forms a gentle curve along its entire
length; the spines are slender and flexible, increasing in height to the last,
which is one half longer than the first, 2°75 in the length of the head, and
1:33 in the height of the last ray, which is slightly elongated: the anal
commences beneath the anterior dorsal ray; its first spine is short, the third
and longest equal to the fifth dorsal spine ; the rayed portion is similar to
that of the dorsal: ventral fin pointed, reaching to the vent; the two outer
rays are elongate, 1°70 in the length of the head; the spine is equal in
length to the last dorsal spine, and five eighths of the outer ray: upper
pectoral rays the longest, 1°50 in the length of the head: caudal rounded,
the least height of its pedicle 2°10 in the height of the body. A few small
scales behind the eye, and on the extreme upper angle of the opercle.
Lateral line tubes branched.

Colors.—General colors red above, yellowish below, separated by a more or
less conspicuous pink longitudinal band, which is generally bordered above
and below by purplish bands; all the lower scales with a violet bar forming
together more or less regular vertical streaks; upper and lower surfaces of
head olive green, the sides golden, the whole traversed by blue bands which

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 143

are broadest below: dorsal with four narrow longitudinal violet bands and
small spots of the same color between them; an olive green blotch between
the second and third spines; anal with irregular rows of violet spots separated
by golden bands ; caudal with violet bars between the rays; pectorals and
ventrals immaculate : irides crimson.

How or why this fish obtained its vernacular name it would be difficult
to say, since it is not a native of New Zealand, nor indeed is the genus
represented there, so far as our present knowledge goes.

Though obtainable in the market in considerable quantities and at all
seasons of the year, nothing appears to be known definitely as to time or
place of its spawning. They frequent rocky shores, and are partial to
sheltered spots where patches of sand are interspersed among the weed-
covered rocks; in such places on a calm day they may be observed swimming
slowly to and fro, and may be caught with the greatest ease by dropping a
hook baited with crab or yellowtail in front of them.

Their food consists of small crustaceans, molluscs, and such other organisms
as they can pick up among the rocks which they frequent. As food it is
superior to the Parrotfishes.

Asis the case with so many of our Labrid Fishes, the Maori, which is
abundant on the coast of New South Wales—where, however, its range
northwards is as yet undetermined—has not so far been included in the
later lists of Victorian or Tasmanian Fishes, but reappears at Adelaide
according to Castelnau (Julis adelaidensis), and at King George’s Sound,
whence it was received by Richardson and Klunzinger, while the British
Museum contains examples from Swan River, West Australia; the type
specimens are, however, said to have been obtained by Quoy and Gaimard
at Western Port, Victoria.

The Maori grows to a length of sixteen inches.

Genus VI.—ODAX.

Odax, sp. Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. xiv. p. 298, 1839.

Branchiostegals five: pseudobranchize present. Body elongate and
moderately compressed. Snout well developed, conical. Jaws composed
of numerous teeth firmly ankylosed together, and with the edge sharp:
dentigerous plate of the hypopharyngeal triangular, much broader than long.
One dorsal fin with sixteen to eighteen flexible spines: the anal with two
or three. Scales moderate or rather small: cheeks and opercles sealy.
Lateral line continuous. Airbladder of moderate size.

Geographical distribution.—Coasts of temperate Australia, Tasmania, and
New Zealand.

ODAX RICHARDSONI.

Odazx pullus, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. xiv. pl. eceevili. (not deser. ; not
Sparus pullus, Forst.)

Odax richardsoni, Guth. Catal. Fish. iv. p.241, and Ann. Nat. Hist. 1867 (3)
xx. p. 66; Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. i. p. 155; Klunzing. SB. Ak.
Wien, 1879, lxx. p. 404; Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. ii. p. 107.

? Odax hyrtlii, Steindachn. SB. Ak. Wien, 1866, liii. p. 464; Klunzing. SB.
Ak. Wien, 1879, lxxx. p. 405.

144 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Rock Whiting.
Plate XXXVI.

B. v. D. 17-16 18-14 A. 3/11-12. V. 1/4. P.14. C. 12. L. lat. 55-58. I.
tr. 7/20.

Length of head 3°75—4:00, of caudal fin 6°00—6°80, height of body 5:50-6:20
in the total length. Diameter of eye 5°30-5°70 in the length of the head,
2°25-2°50 in that of the pointed snout, and 0°85-1°10 in the slightly convex
interorbital space. Nasal apertures widely separated, the anterior circular,
and protected by a low superior valve ; the posterior oval, simple, pierced on a
slightly higher plane than the anterior, and raised above the surrounding
epiderm. Upper surface of head almost flat. Upper jaw the longer: lips
fleshy. Cleft of mouth small and horizontal, the maxilla reaching midway
to the eye, or a little further. Vertical limb of preopercle finely serrated.
The dorsal fin commences above the base of the pectoral; the spines are
flexible, and the outer margin of the spinous portion gradually increases
in height, the anterior spine being four sevenths of the last, which is 2°80
in the length of the head ; the tenth or eleventh rays are the longest, about
one seventh longer than the longest spine, and equal to the postorbital
portion of the head: the anal commences beneath the second or third dorsal
ray; the third spine is the longest and equal to the second dorsal spine ;
the outer margin of the rayed fin is convex, the last six rays being slightly
elongated, and much less branched than those preceding them : ventral short
and rounded, its length 2°33-2°50 in that of the head: pectoral rounded,
2°10-2°33 in the same: caudal rounded, its pedicle 1°30-1'40 in its length
behind the dorsal fin, and 2:00-2:10 in the height of the body. Scales on
the cheeks in three series. Lateral line gently curved to behind the
pectoral fin. Rows of distinct pores surrounding the eyes, and a series from
the chin along the edge of the preopercle to its upper angle.

Colors.—Above purple or reddish-brown, deepest on the head; sides bright
ereenish-blue, lower surfaces bluish-white, the whole profusely spotted with
orange, and sometimes with indistinct, transverse, darker bands; cheeks
greenish-blue vermiculated with orange: spinous dorsal pale green, the
basal half immaculate, the marginal crossed by narrow, oblique, orange or
lilac bars; soft dorsal with a large black spot, often broken up into several
smaller spots, occupying the greater part of the base, and with a broad
purple marginal band spotted or streaked with orange ; anal violet with
purple and orange spots; the greater part of the ventral rays white, the
membrane and tips purplish with a few large orange spots near the base ;
pectorals gray ; caudal greenish-blue with orange spots.

This species is very similar in appearance to Odax semifasciatus C.4 V.from
which it is easily distinguished by the presence of small but constant denti-
culations on the preopercle; the two species are confounded by the fisher-
men under the common name of Rock Whiting.

It is but rarely seen in the market, its habits being similar to those of the
Drummer and Kelpfish (see p. 41) ; being, therefore, free from the operations
of the seine fisher, and preferring the shallow waters of sheltered bays and
inlets to the outside reefs, they are but little liable to fall victims to aught
but the rod and line of the amateur angler.

Their food consists of small molluscs, crustaceans, and zoophytes, and is
often intermixed with small pieces of fuci, which are perhaps excised while
attempting to disengage the animal attached thereto.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 145

The Rock Whiting is common in the Port Jackson District, but from the
want of local observers we are unable to say how far its range extends up
the coast beyond Port Stephens, from the neighborhood of which we have
received one example; to the southward it increases in numbers, and is,
remarks Castelnau, “very common all the year round in the Melbourne
market, and is moderately-esteemed as food.” In Tasmania, as in Victoria,
it is known as the ‘ Stranger,” but this name does not necessarily signify
that it is a rare fish, but more probably that, as elsewhere, itis rarely caught ;
Johnston, writing of it, remarks ;—“'The Stranger is caught occasionally in
the upper waters of the estuaries of the Derwent, and is in fair estimation
for the market.”

Giinther considers that Steindachner’s Odaxr hyrtlii is the same as the
present species, and, if this view be correct, which Klunzinger (Joc. cit. p.
405) denies, its western range must be extended to King George’s Sound.

Our Rock Whiting attains to a length of sixteen inches, and individuals
measuring over twelve inches are of common occurrence.

Genus VII.—OLISTHEROPS.

Olisthops, Richards. Ann. Nat. Hist. (2) 1851, vil. p. 290, and Proc. Zool. Soe.
1850, p. 74.

Olistherops, Giinther, Catal. Fish. iv. p. 248, 1862.

Branchiostegals five: pseudobranchize present. Body oblong and com-

ressed. Snout of moderate extent. Jaws composed of numerous teeth

firmly anchylosed together, the extreme tip only being free; no distinet
teeth anteriorly : dentigerous plate of the hypopharyngeal triangular, much
broader than long, with a narrow anterior process, bearing about four strongly
compressed conical teeth on its anterior half; body of the bone with a
median transverse band of minute pavement-like teeth, and an outer series
of rudimentary teeth. One dorsal fin, with seventeen or eighteen flexible
spines; the anal with two or three. Scales of moderate size; head with a
few scales on and above the opercle. Lateral line continuous.

Geographical distribution.—Coasts of temperate Australia.

OLISTHEROPS CYANOMELAS,

Olisthops cyanomelas, Richards. Ann. Nat. Hist. (2) 1851, vii. p- 290, and
Proe. Zool, Soe. 1850, p. 74; Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. ii. p.

Olistherops brunneus, Macleay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S. Wales, iii. p. 36, play.
fede ’

Herring Cale.

aye Li/10, A. 2/10. V. iff. P13. C. 138.1. lat. 50 TE. tr. 7/15.
Vert. 19/20.

Length of head 5:25, of caudal fin 5°40, height of body 4:75 in the total
length. Eye small, its diameter 5°60 in the length of the head, 1:90 in that
of the pointed snout, and 1°66 in the slightly convex interorbital space.
Nasal apertures moderately close together, the anterior pierced in the centre
of a circular depression, larzerand on a slightly higher level than the posterior,
which abuts upon the orbital ring; the openings of both concealed by skin.
Snout strongly convex in front, the upper surface of the head flat ; upper
jaw the longer. Cleft of mouth small and horizontal, the maxilla reaching to

beneath the anterior nostril. The dorsal fin commences above the base of
K

146 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

the pectoral ; the spines are very flexible; the outer margin of the spinous
portion is de -eply concave, that of the rayed being convex ; the first four spines
are subequal in length. 2-40 in the length of the head ; from thence they
decrease to the eleventh or twelfth, which are 1°60 in the longest, the last spine
being 1:10 in the same, and 1°30 in the anterior ray; the fifth, sixth, and seventh
rays are the longest; the anal commences beneath the second dorsal ray ;
the second spme is the longest, equal to the sixth and the last dorsal spines:
the outer margin is truncated, the height gradually decreasing from the first
to the penultimate ray: ventral short and rounded, its length “about one-half
of thatof the head: pectorals rounded, 150 in ‘the same length: caudal
emarginate, with the lobes produced considerably in male, less so in
female examples; the pedicle long, its least weight 2°25 in its length behind
the dorsal fin, and in the height of the body. A small patch of scales in
two series on the upper margin of the opercle, and from one to three scales
on the temporal region. Lateral line with a gentle curve to a little behind
the pectoral fin, thence straight.

Colors.—o Uniform bluish-black above, lighter below: a bright blue band
near the outer margin of each caudal! lobe; a similar one near the upper
margin of the pectoral, and a few spots of the same color sometimes present
above the lateral line (O. cyanomelas, Richards.) 9 Rich brown, lighter
below; all the body scales with a narrow orange margin, and generally
with a dull blue central spot: head above blackish, the opercles and sides
with orange and bluish vermiculated bands ; below gray, with large orange
spots: dorsal and anal fins reddish-brown, the former with faint olive
green spots, the latter with zig-zag orange bands; ventrals and pectorals
orange, with the rays blue, the latter with three blue cross bands ; caudal
reddish-brown with irregular blue cross bands (O. brunneus, Mcl.).

In habits, food, and all other characteristics this species differs in no wise
from the preceding, but from examination of female specimens we are able
to fix the date of the deposition of the ova approximately in August.

The type specimen was sent to Richardson from King George’s Sound,
where it is known to the natives by the name of “ Toobitoet, ” or “ Toobitooet, *,
and is said to frequent rocky places and to be rarely captured. It is common
on the New South Wales coast at least as far north as Broken Bay, beyond
which we have no record of its occurrence, though it is doubtless found in
suitable localities. Castelnau states that it is common in Victorian waters,
but Johnston omits it from the Tasmanian list.

This species grows to a length of eighteen inches.

Family XX.—GERRIDZ.

Branchiostegals six: pseudobranchiew present. Body ovate or elevated,
compressed. Eyes rather large, lateral. Opercle without spine: preopercle
finely serrated or entire. Mouth in front of the snout, very protractile,
directed downwards when extended. Villiform teeth in the jaws: vomer,
palatines, and tongue edentulous: lower pharyngeal bones firmly united by
a suture. Dorsal fin continuous: ventrals thoracic. Scales moderate,
cyclid or minutely serrated, deciduous. Lateral line continuous. Airbladder
present. Pyloric appendages in small numbers.

Geographical distribution.—Tropical and temperate seas of both hemis-
pheres.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 147

Genus.—_GERRES,

Gerres, Cuvier, Régne Anim.; Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. vi. p.
44.6, 1530.

Branchiostegals six: pseudobranchie present. Body oblong-ovate or ele-
vated, compressed. Mouth very protractile, and descending when produced.
Eyes rather large. Preopercle usually entire. Teeth in the jaws villiform:
hypopharyngeal bones firmly united. One dorsal fin, subequally divided
into nine or ten spines and ten or eleven rays, the anterior spines more or
less elevated : anal with three spines and seven to nine rays: caudal forked.
Seales of moderate size, cyclid or ciliated. Airbladder simple. Pyloric
appendages few.

Geographical distribution.—Tropical and temperate seas, entering fresh
waters.

GERRES OVATUS.

Gerres ovatus, Gnth. Catal. Fish. i. p. 343, 1859, and iv. p. 257; Casteln.
Proe. Linn. Soc. N. 8S. Wales, iii. p. 391; Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish.
ps VB.

Silver Belly.
B. vi. D. 9/10-10/9. A. 3/7. V. 1/5. P. 15. C. 17. L. lat. 36-41. L. tr. 5/10.
Cec. pyl. 3. Vert. 10/13.

Length of head 460-490, of caudal fin 4°00-4°50, height of body 3:00-
3°33 in the total length. Eye large, with an anterior adipose lid, its
diameter 2°75-3°00 in the length of the head, and 1:10-1:20 in the inter-
orbital space, which is convex: snout short, obtusely rounded, 1-10-1°20 in
the diameter of the eye. Nostrils oval, approximate, pierced on a level
with the upper fourth of the eye, the posterior a little the larger, and
slightly higher up. Jaws, equal. Cleft of mouth, small; maxilla pyriform,
extending to beneath the anterior fifth of the orbit: intermaxillary processes
reaching backwards to between the middle of the orbits, their length being
four ninths of that of the head. Breadth of preorbital two thirds of its
depth: preopercle entire. A slight concavity on the snout; occiput convex.
Jaws with a broad band of villiform teeth in front, the outer row being
slightly enlarged; the band narrowing to a single row laterally : inferior
pharyngeal teeth in the shape of an equilateral triangle, formed by the
coalescence of the inferior pharyngeal bones; they consist of a central
patch of granular teeth, broadly margined by a band of acute cardiform
teeth. Dorsal fin slightly notched, the spines slender, flexible, and curved,
the anterior one being strongly compressed; the second spine a little longer
than the third, 1:40-1°70 in the length of the head; the remaining spines
grow gradually shorter, the last being five ninths of the length of the second,
and three fourths of that of the first ray ; all the rays provided with a short
filamentous appendage ; the anal commences beneath the fifth dorsal ray ;
its spines are straight, stronger than those of the dorsal, the second the
strongest and compressed, the third the longest, 2°33-2°75 in the length of
the head: the length of the ventral is two thirds of the distance between
its origin and the vent, and three fourths of the length of the head: pectoral
elongate, sickle-shaped, not quite or oaly just reaching to the vertical from
the vent, its length one third more than that of the head: caudal deeply
forked, the least height of its pedicle two sevenths of the height of the
body. Snout, preorbital, maxilla, and interorbital space scaleless; dorsal
and anal fins without basal scaly sheath. Lateral line gently curved. Air-
bladder large, bifid posteriorly, and with two short horns anteriorly.

148 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Colors.—Silvery, the back washed with bright green, which gradually dies
away on the sides: fins opaline, the posterior third of the ventral golden.
Irides brown.

Nothing is accurately known as to the places selected by these fishes for
the deposition of their ova, but as it is well known that they are to be found
only on shallow sandy flats or gently shelving shores we may conclude that
it is in such localities that they spawn. This 3 important function takes place
twice in the year, the principal season being the months of December
and January, this being supplemented by a winter season in July and
August.

If obtained perfectly fresh they are delicious little fishes, but being very
delicate they quickly deteriorate when kept, and become soft and flavorless.
Their food consists of minute shellfishes, crustaceans, entomostraca, foramini-
fera, and the like.

They are not known to take a bait, but are sent to market in large numbers
by the seine fishermen, especially during the breeding seasons; they are,
however, to be found all the year round.

This species does not appear to run up estuaries to any great extent, asis
said to be the case with certain of its congeners.

The range of the NSilverbelly is limited to the south-eastern shores of
Australia, and extends northwards at least as far as Moreton Bay, its place
on the Queensland coast being taken by numerous other species; it has
not been recorded from Victori ia, being replaced on the southern coast b
the allied Chthamalopteryx melbournensis. (See Proc. Zool. Soc. 1887, p.

616, fig.)
They attain to a length of eight inches.

———$—————

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 149

Order I1.—_ANACANTHINI.

All the fin rays (except in Gadopsis) articulated: ventral fins, when
present, jugular or thoracic. Airbladder, w hen present, without pneumatic

duct.
Group T—ANACANTHENYE GADOIDEL.
Both sides of the head symmetrical.

Family I.—GADOPSIDZ.

A portion of the dorsal and anal fins formed by true spines: ventrals
jugular. Gill-openings wide.

Referring to the position of this unique Anacanth, Giinther writes :—
“ Before entering into an account of the true Gadid fishes we must inter-
calate the type of a separate family, which, although having e ery character
of a Gadid, has true spines in the dorsal and anal fins, thus forming a
connecting link between the Acanthopterygians and Malacopterygians.
The structure of the dorsal fin, the presence of pyloric appendages, &c.,
prevent its being placed among the Blenniids.”

One genus only.

Genus.—GADOPSIS.

Gadopsis, Richards. Voy. Erebus & Terror, Fish. p. 122, 1846.

Branchiostegals six : pse -udobranchiz present, glandular. Body moderately
elongate, compressed. Snout of moderate extent, obtuse, with the upper
jaw overlapping the lower. Cleft of mouth of moderate width. Gills four,
with a narrow slit behind the fourth: gill-openings wide: eill-membranes
not united. Both jaws with a band of small cardiform teeth, and an outer
enlarged series of conical ones: small teeth on the vomer and palatine
bones: tongue edentulous. One dorsal fin, the spinous portion not so long
as the rayed: ana! spines three: ventrals jugular, composed of a single bifid
ray: caudal free. Scales very small, cyclid. Airbladder present. Pyloric
appendages in moderate numbers.

Geographicai distribution.-Temperate Australia and Tasmania; fresh
waters only.

GADOPSIS MARMORATUS.

Gadopsis marmoratus. Richards. Voy. Erebus ‘a Terror, Fish. p. 122, pl.
lix, ff. 6-11, 1846; Gnth. Catal. Fish. iv. p. 318; Casteln. Proc:
Zool. Soc. Vict. 1872, 1. p. 160; Macleay, Catal, Austr. Fish. ii. pe Li2;
Johnston, Proc. Roy. Soc. Tas. 1882, pp- 60, 124; Woods, Fisher. N.S
Wales, p. 105. ,

Gadopsis gracilis, McCoy, Prodr. Zool. Vict. dee. iii. pl. 27, f. 2

Gadopsis gibbosus, | McCoy, Prodr. Zool. Viet. dee. i.

Marbled River Cod.
iba: 1O= 13/ 28-25. A. 3/17-19. V.1. P. 15. C. 16. Vert. 18/28.
Length of head 4:50-5:00, of caudal fin 6:10-6:60, height of body 5:50-
6°25 in the total length. gained of eye 4°80-5°20 in ie length of the

head, and 1°33- 1:50 in that of the snout: interorbital space slightly
convex, 1°10-1'30 in the length of the head. Upper profile of head slightly

150 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

concave before, convex behind, the eyes. Upper jaw the longer. Cleft of
mouth oblique, the maxilla extending to the posterior fourth of the orbit, or
between that and the hinder margin. A small, flattened, opercular spine.
Both jaws with a band of small ecardiform teeth and an outer series of much
enlarged, widely set, conical ones; small teeth in a patch on the vomer, and
in bands on the palatine bones. ‘The dorsal fin commences above the anterior
third of the pectoral ; the spines increase in length to the last, which is one
sixth shorter than the first ray, and 3°50—4°00 in the length of the head; the
longest dorsal and anal rays are immediately in front of the last ray: the
anal commences beneath the fourth dorsal ray ; the spies are much stronger
than those of the dorsal, the third the longest, equal in length to the last
dorsal spine : ventral fin divided to the base, the inner lobe filamentous,
1°75-2°10 in the length of the head, and 2°75 in the distance between its
origin and the vent, which is situated slightly in front of the middle of the
total length: pectoral well developed, rounded, 1°S5-2°10 in the length of
the head : caudal rounded, the least height of the pedicle 2°75 in the height
of the body. Seales concentrically sculptured, Lateral line following the
curvature of the back, its tubes simple.

Colors.—Pale olive green or yellowish-brown on the back and sides, marbled
with more or less numerous, irregular, dark brown blotches ; abdominal
region pale yellow, with or without blotches : vertical fins yellowish-brown
blotched with darker brown ; ventrals and pectorals immaculate, the latter
with or without a basal yellow band : irides silvery.

This species is so variable, not only in its coloration, but also in its com-
parative measurements, and the number of spines and rays in the dorsal fin,
that we consider the differences between the typical form and the two
species described by McCoy, great as they may appear individually, to be
only such as might be expected to occur in a freshwater species of wide
range, and w hich exists under such varying conditions of life and diversities
of climate. Referring to the same ‘subject Johnston writes :—‘ Having
closely studied the vari iability of the Tasmanian G. marmoratus | am unable
to admit that the characters which distinguish @. gracilis and G@. gibbosus
are sufficient to separate them from Richardson’s G. marmoratus, for the
individual variations of the latter species in the North Esk and other rivers
of Tasmania are greater than the differences which Prot. McCoy considers
to form distinct specific characters.’ He then proceeds to enumerate the
variations in seven individuals taken together from a spot near Corra Lynn
on the North Esk; these are as follows :—VDorsal fin, 11—13/26-28 ; head
to total length 40-49. From these data he concludes that neither of
McCoy’s species can be admitted, and goes on to say :—‘‘ lt is very hazardous
in this genus to create a new species based upon the examination of only
two or three individuals ” ; with which remark we cordially agree.

No mention is made anywhere, so far as we have been able to ascertain,
of the breeding season or the place of the deposition of the spawn of ‘ine
fish, but the former doubtless differs considerably with the latitude;
specimens, however, from the Bell River, Wellington, were shedding ines
spawn when obtained during the month of October. The ripe ova are few
in number, of large size, and orange colored.

Their food consists of worms, small molluses and crustaceans, insects,
and entomostraca. They take a bait freely ; but, according to Tenison
Woods are “generally caught by emptying the waterholes, when the heat

of summer has partially dried them up.” ‘hey are said to be good eating,
but, like all mud fishes, very rich and oily.

;
5

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 151

This curious fish is common in many of the rivers of the Colony,
inhabiting both those of the eastern and western watersheds. It is
generally known as the “ Fresh-water Blackfish” ; but this is so complete a
misnomer that we have changed it to that given at the head of this article.
At Guntawang, [ am informed by Mr. Alexander G. Hamilton, it is known
as the “ Tailor.” They are also abundant in all the streams of Victoria and
South Australia, as far west as the Murray River, beyond which we have no
record of their occurrence.

“Tn Tasmania,” writes Johnston, ‘they are abundant in the Ringarooma,
Forrester, Piper, and other rivers of the north-east, where they grow to a
considerable size, and are highly esteemed as food. The species has been
introduced from the north-east into the North and South Esk Rivers, and
probably other streams, where they are now abundant, and afford ample
sport to the angler, who cares to linger over a calm still waterhole during
the hours of the night. The angler must be careful, however, to provide
himself with a lantern, or his labors will be fruitless.”’ Elsewhere the
same author remarks :—‘ The Blackfish somewhat resembles a small Ling
(Genypterus australis) in markings and general appearance. It is much
esteemed as food, and is a welcome addition to the fare of bushmen and
settlers who are far removed from the centres of population. The fishes
are usually taken in considerable numbers by rod and line all the year
round, the hook, baited often with the large white grub of a species of
moth obtained from the ‘wattle’ or ‘honeysuckle’ (Acacia dealbata— Banksia
marginata). A good take can always be relied upon in most of the northern
streams, especially in the Ringarooma. * * * * ‘The average weight
runs from three to four pounds, except in the North Esk, where they run
smaller than elsewhere.” In connection with the natural distribution of
this species in Tasmania, Johnston remarks:—‘ The Blackfish is found in
nearly all the rivers of Tasmania which flow into Bass’ Straits; their original
absence in some northern streams, such as the South Esk is somewhat
puzzling ; but the total absence from all the other rivers and streams of
Tasmania where conditions are identical, can only be explained on the principles
of geographical distribution as illustrated by Darwin and Wallace.” With
the latter part of this quotation we cannot agree, and we think the solution
of the “ puzzle” will be found in the different character of the geological
formations through which the stream flows, or the different composition of
the water constituting such streams. As somewhat confirming this view
Johnston’s remark that in the North Esk, into which they were introduced,
they do not grow to such a size as in their natural streams, may be quoted
against him.

Discussing the sexual characters of Gadopsis, he tells us:—“ Mr. Brown
and others, who have observed our freshwater fishes closely, assert that they
cannot distinguish the male from the female, although they have purposely
opened hundreds of them. I have opened a good number myself, but at the
time I dia not know of the fact, and naturally supposed that they were ordi-
nary females. I am inclined now to consider that they are bisexual.”’ With
this view we cannot coincide, since the specimens from Wellington men-
tioned were both normally developed, full-roed females,

These fishes are sometimes taken in the brackish water of tidal rivers.

The Marbled River Cod attains to a length of twenty five inches in the
southern colony, but in New South Wales half that size would be considered
very large.

152 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Family Il.—GADIDA.

Pseudobranchix, when present, glandular and rudimentary. Body more
or less elongate. Gill-openings wide: gill-membranes generally not attached
to the isthmus. One, two, or three “dorsal fins, occupying as a rule the
entire length of the back, the rays of the last fin well developed: one or two
anal fins: caudal usually free: ventrals jugular, composed of several rays,
or if reduced to a filament the dorsal is divided into two. Seales cyclid, of
moderate or small size. Airbladder and pyloric appendages usually present.

Geographical distribution.—Cosmopolitan, but found in the greatest abun-
dance in the northern temperate zone.

Giinther writes :—‘ The family of ‘Codfishes’ consists partly of littoral
and surface species (and they form the majority), partly of deep-sea forms.
The former are almost entirely confined to the temperate zones, extending
beyond the Arctic Circle ; the latter have, as deep-sea fishes generally, a
much wider range, and hitherto have been found chiefly at considerable
depths of rather low latitudes. Only two or three species inhabit fresh
waters.”

Although the last sentence is undoubtedly true, it does not follow that
many of the species most valuable to man do not exist in purely fresh water,
and could not be artificially bred and retained therein. Day gives instances,
on the authority of Lord Ducie, of Cod, Coalfish, and Pollack residing from
choice in freshwater lakes fed by snow streams; while, on account of the
want of ossicles connecting the airbladder with the internal ear, he advances
the theory of a probable marine ancestry for the well known and highly
esteemed Burbot (Lota vulgaris), which is nowa native of the fresh waters
of the temperate parts of the northern hemisphere, and never descends to
the sea.

This is one of the most important families to the human race.

Genus.—LOTELLA.
Lotella, Kaup, in Wiegm. Arch. 1858, p. 88.

Branchiostegals seven (or six): pseadobranchize absent. Body of mode-
rate length. Chin with a barbel. Both jaws with a series of widely set
conical teeth: the upper with an inner band of villiform teeth: none on the
vomer or palatine bones. Two dorsal fins, the anterior with from four to
nine rays: one anal fin: ventral fins with a flat base, and composed of
several rays: caudal free. Scales small. Pyloric appendages in moderate
numbers.

Geographical distribution—Coasts of south-eastern Australia and Tas-
mania; New Zealand and Japan.

LOTELLA CALLARIAS.

Lotella callarias, Guth. Ann. Nat. Hist. (3) 1863. xi. p. 16; Casteln. Proc.
Linn. Soc. N.S. Wales, iii. p. 391; McCoy, Prodr. Zool. Vict. dec. ii.
pl. 19; Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. 11. p. 114.

Lotella schuettii, Steindachn. SB. Ak. Wien, 1866, liii. p. 456.

Lotella Waieeee Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. i. p. 114, 1881; Woods,
Fisher. N.S. Wales, p. 76, pl. xxiii (lower figure).

? Lotella swanii, Johnston, Proc: Roy. Soc. Tas. 1882, p. 126.

Lotella limbata, Ogilby, C Catal. N.S. Wales Fish. p- 47, 1886.

|
|

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 153

——

Beardie: Ling.
Plate XXX VII.

B. vii. D. 5. 60-65. A. 56-59. V. 7. P. 23. C. 23. Cec. pyl. 16. Vert. 14/34.

Length of head 4°40, of caudal fin 10°00, height of body 4-40-4°55 in the
total length: breadth of head 1°55 in its length. Eye moderate and sunken,
its diameter 4°75 in the length of the head, and 1:10-1°25 in that of the
snout, which is broad, very obtusely rounded, and vertically truncated in
front: interorbital space flat, 1:15-1:25 in the length of the head. Nostrils
pierced ina nasal fossa, approximate, the anterior circular and slightly
tubular, the posterior longitudinally oval and simple. Upper profile of head
slightly concave in front. Upper jaw the longer. Cleft of mouth large, the
maxilla extending to or a short distance beyond the orbit : mandibular barbel
half the length of the pectoral. Upper jaw with a narrow band of villiform
teeth, and an outer enlarged series of rather widely set incurved conical
ones ; lower jaw with a similar enlarged series, but with no villiform band,
that being replaced by a limited number of small sharp teeth interspersed
between the larger teeth, and forming a patch at the symphysis. The first
dorsal commences midway between the origin of the pectoral and the
opercle ; the middle ray is the longest, 2-40-2'66 in the length of the head:
the two outer ventral rays are filamentous, the second the longer, not quite
reaching to the vent, and from 1°50-1°60 in the length of the head: pectoral
rounded, most of the rays terminating in hair-like filaments, its length 1°40—
1:55 in that of the head: caudai rounded, the pedicle strongly compressed
and attenuated, its height nowhere so great as the diameter of the eye.
Fins scaly.

Colors.—Rich chestnut brown above, paler below, especially on the
thoracic region: fins darker, with a narrow white marginal band; the two
outer ventral rays white.

Nothing is known as to the breeding of this species, but as in an example
obtained during the first week in August the lobes of ova were only just
becoming apparent we may conclude that the spawn is deposited during the
summer months.

The Beardie, though common enough, is not often brought to market,
since from its frequenting weedy and rocky localities, it never or very rarely
comes within the scope of the operations ot the seine fishers, and it is, there-
fore, only the few specimens which fall to the lot of the hook and line men
which ever appear there.

Their food consists of small fishes, crustaceans, molluses, and such like,
and its flesh is white, flaky, and of moderate flavor, but being rather soft
it is preferable, when baked, to any other mode of cooking.

It is common along the New South Wales coast south of Broken Bay, but
we have no certain knowledge of the distance to which it pushes in a northerly
direction, more than that it has not been recorded from the coast of Queens-
land. The Beardie frequents our harbors and inlets as well as the coastal
reefs and bomboras, and is readily taken with a fish, crab, or prawn bait.
It is “rather rare” says McCoy “in Victorian waters, but is caught with hook
and line during the colder months in Port Phillip on rocky reefs in five or
six fathoms water ; it is sold in the markets commonly for the table, but the
flesh is soft and not very good. The fishermen report the spawning time to
bein April.” If we are right in considering that Johnston’s Z. swanii is not
specifically distinguishable from Z. callarias, the range of that fish extends
to Tasmania, where, however, it is not common.

The Beardie grows to a length of sixteen inches.

154 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Group IIl.—ANACANTHINI PLEURONECTOIDEI.

Sides of the head asymmetrical.

Family II.—PLEURONECTID&.

Branchiostegals six to eight: pseudobranchiz well developed. Gulls four.
Body strongly “compressed and flattened, with one of the sides, which is
always turned upwards, colored, while the other is colorless, or at the most
spotted. Both eyes (except in the ver y young) situated on the upper surface:
sometimes they are rudimentary. The bones of the two sides of the head,
though present, are not equally developed or symmetrical. The jaws and
dentition may be nearly equally developed on both sides, or more so on the
blind side. Dorsal and anal fins very Jong, undivided: pectorals present,
rudimentary, or absent: caudal free, or confluent with the dorsal and anal
fins. Scales present or absent. Lateral line on the colored side single,
double, or triple. No airbladder.

Geographical distribution.— All temperate and tropical seas.

The “ Flatfishes,” as the members of this family are generally termed on
account of their greatly compressed bodies, undergo remarkable changes
during the earlier stages of their existence; when born they swim on edge,
with the dorsal fin above and the anal below, in the same way as do most
other fishes, and have then an eye on each side of the head. In a short
time, however, one of the eyes makes its way round to the other side, which
then becomes the upper, and subsequently the colored side, but how this
transmigration is effected, whether by passing beneath the integument or by
forcing its way through the intervening cartilage, is not yet clearly known.

Almost all the Pleuronectide are littoral fishes, very few species being
found at any considerable depth; they are inhabitants of sandy shores or

sandy and muddy estuaries, and though asa rule strictly marine, many species
penetrate rivers far beyond the influence of the tide, while some have per-
manently established ‘themselves in fresh water, and others have been
acclimatized therein through human agency.

Like the preceding this family contains many species of great importance
to mankind.

Genus I.—PSEUDORHOMBUS.

Pseudorhombus, Bleeker, Compt. Rend. Ac. Se. Amsterd. 1862, xiii. Pleuro-
nect. p. 5.
Teratorhombus, Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. ii. p. 126, 1881.
Branchiostegals seven: pseudobranchie present. Cleft of mouth wide.
Gill-membranes united beneath the throat, but not attached to the isthmus.
Eyes on the left side, without a free orbital edge: interorbital space not
concave. Jaws and dentition nearly equally developed on both sides: teeth
in both jaws of unequal sizes, andin asingle row : vomer, palate, and tongue
edentulous. The dorsal fin commences on the snout: its rays and those of
the anal are simple. Scales of moderate size or rather small, extending on
to the dorsal and anal fins. Lateral line with a strong curve anteriorly.
Geographical distribution.—Coasts of Australia, through Malaysia, to the
seas of China and Japan, eastward through the Indian seas to the east
coast of Africa, and westward to the Pacific coasts of Central and South
America.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 155

PSEUDORHOMBUS ARSIUS.

Pleuronectes arsius, Ham. Buch. Fish. Ganges, p. 128, 1822.

Platessa russellii, Gray. Ilustr. Ind. Zool. pl.—f. 2; Cantor, Catal. Malace.
Fish. p. 214.

Rhombus lentiginosus, Richards. Ann. Nat. Hist. 1843, xi. p. 495; Bleek.
Pleuronect. p. 15.

Platessa chrysoptera, Richards. Ichthyol. China, p. 278.

- Platessa balteata, Richards. Ichthyol. China, p. 278.

Rhombus arsius. Bleek. Beng. en Hind. p. 76.

? Rhombus polyspilus, Bleek. Batav. p. 203.

Pseudorhombus russellii, Guth. Catal. Fish. iv. p. 424; Kner, Voy. Novara,
Fisch. p. 283 ; Day, Fish. Malab. p. 172; Bleek. Atl. Ichthyol. Pleu-
ronect. p. 6, pl. cexxxilil. f.2; Macleay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S. Wales,
i. p. 362, and Catal. Austr. ‘Fish, it. p. 124; Casteln. Proc. Linn. Soe.
N.S. Wales, iii. p. 391 ; Woods, Fisher. N.S. Wales, p. 76, pl. xxxiil.

Pseudorhombus arsius, Guth. Catal. Fish. iv. p.426; Day. Fish. Ind. p. 423,
pl. cx. £..5.

? Pseudorhombus polyspilus, Bleek. Atl. Ichthyol. Pleuronect. p. 7. pl.
eexxxvii. f. 3; Klunzing. SB. AK. Wien, 1879, p. 406.

Teratorhombus excisiceps, Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. iL. p: 126.

Large-toothed Flounder.

B. vii. D. 73-78. A. 55-60. V. 6. P. 11-12. C.15. L. lat. 73-80. L. tr. 37/24—
27. Coee. pyl. 4. Vert. 9/28.

Length of head 4:33-4:50, height of body 2°33-2°50 in the total length.
Hyes large, the upper slightly in advance of the lower, which is situated
above the angle of the mouth, and whose diameter is 4°66—5'00 in the length
of the head, and 1:00-1'20 in that of the snout: interorbital space reduced
to a narrow elevated bony ridge. Nostrils simple; the anterior sinistral
nostril small and oval, separated by a considerable space from the posterior,
which is situated in front of the interorbital ridge, and on a lower level than
the anterior; dextral orifice single, round. Jaws equal. Cleft of mouth
oblique, the maxilla reaching to beneath the hind margin of the orbit or not
quite so far, its length from 2°10—2°33 in that of the head. Upper jaw with
from three to five strong conical pointed teeth anteriorly, and a single series
of about twenty smaller teeth laterally ; lower jaw with six strong teeth on
the colored, and nine to eleven on the blind side, the two anterior pairs being
the largest. |The dorsal fin commences above the anterior margin of the
upper eye; the longest rays are between the fiftieth and sixtieth, their
length being from 2-25-2°50 in that of the head: ventral fins of equal

: SIZe, separated from the anal by an interspace which almost equals their

own length, which is from 2-66-3-00 in that of the head : the anal commences
beneath the base of the pectoral: pectorals well developed, reaching to
beyond the curve of the lateral line, the length of the left one 1°50-1: 66 in
that of the head: caudal cuneiform, the least height of its pedicle 4°50 in
the height of the body. Scales on the colored side ctenid, on the blind
side cyclid: head sealy, with the exception of the snout, preorbital,
maxilla, and interorbital space; a row of small seales between each pair
of fin rays. Lateral line arched above the pectoral fins, the height of
the arch 2°75 in its length; it is continued forwards by a double branch on

156 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

to the front of the head, one branch passing above, the other below the eyes ;
a third branches upwards to about the base of the ninth dorsal ray. Gill-

rakers rather short, placed at a moderate distance apart, one third of the
diameter of the orbit in length.

Colors.—Yellowish-brown with or without darker blotches, which are
most constant, and frequently edged with white, on the lateral line.

Although this is a common fish on our coasts, and occurs in the market at
all seasons of the year, no reliable information in regard to its breeding, has
hitherto been published, As, however, several specimens examined during
the month of September were found to contain ova in a moderate state of
development, it would appear that this is more or less a summer-breeding
fish ; nevertheless, it is worthy of remark that an equal number of fishes taken
at the same time as those referred to above showed no trace whatever of
breeding ; all these examples were taken in Port Jackson by the trawl on
the same day ; it remains, therefore, for future investigation to decide whether
these fishes are semi-annual or biennial breeders. Young flounders, up
to two or three inches in length, are but rarely taken either by seine, dredge,
or trawl, within Port Jackson, and it is, therefore, improbable ‘that thes spawn
is deposited i in shallow water near the shore ; and this is borne out in some
degree by the fact that but few of those sent to market contain ripe ova ;
from these negative data we may perhaps be allowed to draw the conclusion
that, like many other Pleuronectids, the spawn is shed in the open sea, and
the ova float.

These fishes show a decided preference for sandy ground at a small or
moderate depth, whether on banks or on shelving shores: and although they
are occasionally taken by the trawl on a muddy bottom, such an occurrence
is the exception with this and the succeeding species, while it is the
rule with the Black Sole (see p. 161). As might be expected, such a difference
of feeding grounds induces a corresponding difference in flavor, those captured
in pure sea water on a clean bottom being incomparably superior to those
taken in muddy estuaries. In point of delicacy and sweetness we consider
this fish far beyond the Sole, which has been so cried up by a very few
writers that it now bears a ridiculously inflated value in the market. The
food of those examined consisted solely of crustaceans and molluses.

Like many other Flatfishes, such as the English Plaice (Plewronectes
platessa), our Flounders are at certain seasons gregarious and migratory ;
these periodical movements have, however, no connection with the functions
of reproduction, but are merely caused by a common movement from deeper
water shoreward and back again, and the schools consist principally of small-

sized fishes.

The principal supply sent to market is taken locally with hook and line,
the bait used being mackerel or yellowtail, crab, or prawn. They are not often
captured by the seine, as they “bury aipaiselves so deeply in the sand that
the ground rope passes over without disturbing them ; with the otter trawl,
however, many fine fish have frequently been caught by various scientific ,
parties.

From the metropolitan district northward this Flounder is common in our
waters, frequenting as well the harbors and estuaries, as the shelving shores
of, and the sandbanks off, the coast; it is essentially a tropical species and
becomes, therefore, more common as we proceed in a northerly direction. It
is found along the coasts of Queensland and Northern Australia, through
Malaysia to the Chinese and Japanese seas, and westward through India to
the Red Sea and the east coast of Africa, at least as far south as Natal.

It attains a length of fifteen inches.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. £57

PSEUDORHOMBUS MULTIMACULATUS.

Pseudorhombus multimaculatus, Guth. Catal. Fish. iv. p..427, 1862; Macleay,
Catal. Austr. Fish. 11. p. 125.

Small-toothed Flounder.
Plate XX XVIII.
B vii. D: 69. A. 52-55. V. 6. P. 12. C. 15.

Length of head 4°40-4°70, height of body 2°33-2'50 in the total length.
Eyes prominent, the upper very slightly in advance of the lower, which is
situated entirely behind the angle of the mouth, and whose diameter is
4°50-4°75 in the length of the head, and one tenth more than that of the
snout: interorbital space reduced to a narrow bony ridge. Both sinistral
nostrils with a low skinny margin, highest on the hinder edge of the anterior
nostril, which is transversely oval, the posterior one being longitudinaliy
oval ; dextral nostrils simple, the anterior small and round, with a posterior
bilobate tentacle, its lower lobe being half as long as the diameter of the
orbit ; the posterior much larger and cordiform. Upper jaw a little the
longer. Cleft of mouth large and oblique, the maxilla reaching to beneath
the posterior margin of the orbit, its length 2°50 in that of the head. Jaws
with a single series of small conical teeth, a few on either side of the
symphysis in the upper being the stronger, while in the lower none are
enlarged ; upper jaw with twenty five to twenty seven teeth in each
ramus, the lower with from eighteen to twenty, The dorsal fin commences
in front of the upper eye; the longest rays are between the thirty fifth
and fiftieth, their height being from 2°15-2°40 in that of the head ; all the
rays have their tips produced, the anterior ones considerably so: ventral fins
of almost equal size, that on the coloured side reaching backwards to the
fourth anal ray, the second ray the longest, and more distinctly filamentous
its length 2°33—2°50 in that of the head: the anal commences beneath the
opercular flap: pectoral well developed, reaching to beyond the curve of the
lateral line, its length from 1°50-1'80 in that of the head: caudal cunei-
form, the least height of its pedicle 4°20 in the height of the body. Seales
on the upper side ctenid, on the lower cyclid: head scaly, with the excep-
tion of the snout, preorbital, and interorbital space ; left maxilla with several
series of small scales on its postero-superior margin; a tow of small scales
on each of the dorsal and anal rays. Lateral line arched above the pectoral
fins, the height of the arch 2°50 in its length ; it is continued forwards to the
upper eye, where it curves downwards to the lower one, ceasing at the junction
of the maxilla and the suborbital ring; a short curved branch passes upwards
from the opercle, but does not as a rule reach the dorsal fin. Gillrakers

short, stout, and widely set, about one fifth of the diameter of the eye in
length.

Colors.—Rich brown above, the edges of the scales with a rusty tinge,
with numerous small, round, milk white spots, which are sometimes confluent,
and with five dark spots on the lateral line, the second and fourth of which
are the most conspicuous, each spot being closely dotted with yellow: the
anterior portion of the dorsal faintly marbled, posterior with dark blotches,
which are more pronounced on the outer two thirds of the fin; anal

similar, but more richly colored ; caudal clouded with light brown ; lower
surfaces white.

158 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

In several characters this species differs from the description given by
Giinther of his P. multimaculatus, to which it has been referred, and of
which the habitat of the type specimens is unknown, the most important of
these differences are,—the constantly larger eye, the greater number of the
teeth in each ramus of the lower jaw, the character of the scales, and the
different shape and length of the gillrakers; we are not, therefore, by any
means satisfied that we are correct in continuing to assign to our species
Gintber’s name.

In habits, &e., it is similar to P. arsiws, but in the Port Jackson District it
is individually more abundant, while the principal spawning season seems to
be the earlier months, specimens with the ova half developed being common
in the market during February and March, while an occasional example may
be found in the market during May and June, in which the ova are ready
for extrusion. Along with the usual molluscan and crustacean contents of
the stomach we have frequently detected remains of fishes, among others
Sillago maculata and Hippocampus novehollandie, the presence of this latter
proving that these Flounders sometimes seek their prey among weeds,

This species would appear to have but a limited range, the limits within
which we can with any certainty record it being narrowed to the seaboard of
New South Wales, between Botany Bay and Cape Hawke. It is true that
Saville Kent records it from Queensland waters, but, if we turn to his figure,
we find a fish without any resemblance to the species now under consider-
ation ; the initial point of the dorsal fin, the continuance of the membranes
of the anterior rays to their tips, the shape of the ventral fin, and the small
size of the pectoral fin, at once prove to anyone conversant with the fish in
question, that whatever the illustration may really represent, it certainly
bears little on no affinity to P. multimaculatus, and though our species
doubtless ranges as far north as the coast of Queensland, the evidence which
we have before us is not, we submit, sufficiently conclusive to warrant us in
adding that colony to its habitat.

The Small-toothed Flounder grows to a length of sixteen inches.

Genus II.—SOLEA.
Solea, Cuvier, Regne Anim.

Cleft of mouth narrow, twisted round to the left side. Nostrils variously
formed. Eyes on the right side, the upper being partially or entirely in
advance of the lower. Teeth on the blind side only, where they form villiform
bands: no vomerine or palatine teeth. The dorsal fin commences on the
snout: pectorals present or absent: caudal free. Scales very small, ctenid.
Lateral line straight.

Geographical distribution.—All temperate and tropical seas, except the
southern portion of the south temperate zone; some specimens entering or
permanently inhabiting fresh water.

In connection with this latter propensity Day remarks of the European
Sole (Solea vulgaris) *—“ On retaining some in fresh, and others of a like
weight in saline water, the first at the end of a year were found to have
increased at twice the rapidity of those which were kept in salt water.”
Experiments tending in this direction should be tried with all our Flatfishes.

* For a full account of this valuable fish, see Cunningham, ‘‘ Treatise on the Common Sole.”

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 159

———a

The various members of the genus Solea differ greatly in the development
of the pectoral fin, and the genus has been in consequence subdivided as
follows :—

A. Pectorals well developed, Microbuglossus.

a. Nostrils on the blind side not dilated, Solea.
b. One of the nostrils on the blind side dilated and broadly fringed,
Pegusa.

B. Pectorals on both sides rudimentary or small, Buglossus.

C. Pectorals absent, Aseraggodes.

It is to the last of these sections that our species belongs.

On this subject Giinther writes :—‘“ Although the extreme forms of this
genus show differences of apparently sufficient importance for generic dis-
tinction, the intermediate species are so numerous, and form so gradual a
transition from the true Soles with the pectorals fully developed to the
Achiri proper, that we prefer to consider them as one genus.”

SOLEA MACLEAYANA.
Solea macleayana, Ramsay, Pree. Linn. Soc. N. 8S. Wales, v. p. 462, 1881.

Narrow-banded Sole.

Siege Ae 49, V5. C. 18. L. lat. 102. L. tr. 36/46. & Vert. 9/27.

Length of head 6:25, height of body 2°75 in the total length. Eyes small,
the upper one half of its diameter in advance of the lower, which is situated
above the angle of the mouth, and whose diameter is 2°50 in that of the snout,
the length of which is one fourth of that of the head: interorbital space broad
and slightly convex, about one tenth more than the diameter of the eye. Cleft
of mouth erescentic. Lips naked. Dextral nostrils rising from the margin of
the upper lip, the anterior one witha thick lip, the posterior opening trom a
tube whose length is fully two thirds of the diameter of the eye; they are
situated close together, and a little nearer to the eye than to the end of the
snout; sinistral nostril tubular. A few short filaments on the chin. Both jaws
on the blind side with a band of minute teeth. The dorsal fin commences in
front of the upper eye: two ventral fins, the right connected with the anal, the
left free: the anal commences beneath the posterior margin of the gill-
covers: caudal rounded, its length rather less than that of the head; the
distance between the posterior dorsal, and anal rays three tenths of the height
of the body. Head and body scaly, each scale strongly ctenid, bearing on
both sides from six to eight strong, sharp, spinate points. Lateral line
slightly arched behind the head.

Colors.—Right side rich purplish-brown, with numerous narrow lighter
bands, which frequently branch and connect with the neighboring bands,
and are extended on to the margins of the fins; left side white.

This Sole, which, for reasons previously given, does not appear in our
market as regularly as its abundance warrants, is an excellent fish for the
table, much preferable in our opinion to the next species. They are,
however, occasionally found in considerable numbers, especially during the
spring months, when they come in apparently from the open sea in shoals, all
being of large size and about the same length; these school fish are
very thick and firm, and of delicious flavor, but are without rudiments of
spawn. Small examples measuring less than three inches are not infrequently
taken in the harbor by trawl and dredge.

160 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

So far, this species has only been recorded from the limited district lying
between Port Hacking and Lake Macquarie.
The Narrow-banded Sole attains to a length of eleven inches, but does not
average more than eight or nine.

Genus IJI—SYNAPTURA.
Synaptura, Cantor, Catal. Malay. Fish. p. 222, 1850.

Cleft of mouth narrow, twisted round to the left side. Nostrils variously
formed. Eyes on the right side, the upper in advance of the lower. Teeth
on the blind side only, villiform forming bands: no vomerine or palatine
teeth. Vertical fins confluent, the dorsal commencing on the snout: pectorals
present or absent. Scales small, ctenid. Lateral line straight.

Geographical distribution—Indian Ocean and Archipelago; Chinese,
Japanese, and Australian seas; Cape of Good Hope; Mediterranean, and
the coast of Portugal. Though normally marine fishes, some species are
permanantly resident in fresh water, and these forms are without pectoral fins.

The species have been subdivided thus :—

A. One of the nostrils on the blind side dilated.

B. No dilated nostril on the blind side.

a. Pectoral fins well developed, the right being more or less the longer,
Synaptura.
b. Left pectoral fin rudimentary, Msopia, pt.
e. Lett pectoral fin longer than the right, Anisochirus.
d. Pectoral fins absent, Achiroides.
Our species belongs to section A.

SYNAPTURA ap

Synaptura nigra, Macleay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N. 8. Wales, v. p. 49, 1881;
Woods, Fisher. N.S. Wales, p. 77. :

Black Sole.
Plate XX XIX.

B. vi. D. 57-62. A. 44-52. V. 4. P. d.7, 8.5. C. 14. L. lat. 74-80. L. tr.
ee een Cec. pyl. Vert. 10/28.

Length of head 5-00-5:20, height of body 2°20-2°33 in the total length.
Eyes small, the a. one half of its diameter in advance of the lower, which
is situated above the angle of the mouth, and whose diameter is 2‘00-2°50 in
the length of the snout, which is about 3:40 in that of the head : interorbital
space narrow, 1:60-2:00 in the diameter of the eye. Cleft of mouth crescentic.
Lips of both sides fringed with simple papille of moderate length. Dextral
nostrils simple and tubular, situated close together, immediately in front of
the lower eye ; anterior sinistral nostril dilated, pierced in the centre of an
isolated patch, which, except at the antero-superior angle, is entirely sepa-
rated from the surrounding epiderm by a deep fossa, which is connected
with the upper lip, and the margins of which are densely fringed with simple
papillz : posterior sinistral nostril situated in a depression which also enters
the fossa, and is protected inferiorly by a densely papillose skinny flap.
Inferior margin of head with numerous short simple papille, the posterior
pair of which is much larger and more conspicuous than those preceding
them. Both jaws on the blind side with a band of minute teeth. The
dorsal fin commences in front of the upper eye: two ventral fins, separate
from the anal, which commences beneath the middle of the gillcovers ; vent
with a conspicuous papilla at its postero-supericr angle: pectorals small and

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 161

rounded, the right from one third to three sevenths, the left one fourth of
the length of the head: caudal of moderate size and rounded, its length five
sevenths of that of the head. Head, body, and fin rays scaly, each scale
strongly ctenid, bearing on the right side from six to eight, on the left from
three to five strong, sharp spinate points, which are much more conspicuous
in young than in adult examples. Lateral line single, straight, along the
middle of the body on both sides, duplicated above the middle of the gill-
covers, the lower branch extending forwards a short distance along the sides
of the head, the secondary branch directed upwards at right angles to the
main branch, its upper half being gently arched forwards, but not quite
reaching to the base of the dorsal fin.

Oolors.—Right side rich dark olive brown with some large round darker
blotches, and occasionally with small round yellowish or cream white spots ;
left side white, not unfrequently clouded with yellowish-brown or slate blue
in irregular patches; vertical fins narrowly margined with white or pale
straw-color; posterior half of the dextral pectoral black.

Double examples are occasionally vbtained; a beautiful example of such,
having the left side equally richly colored as the right, passed through the
writer's hands some years ago; it was taken in the Parramatta River by
shrimpers.

This fish is the Sole of the Sydney market, and is one of the most
highly priced fishes brought thither ; it is tolerably common, though if the
account published by the late Rev. J. E. Tenison Woods, on the authority of
Mr. Edward Hill, be accurate, their numbers must have lamentably decreased
within the last few years, since that gentleman mentions having taken “a
hundred pairs in one morning at Woniora,” up George’s River, by spearing.

The Sole appears to be a purely estuary fish, never, so far as we can ascertain,
having been recorded from the open sea, while Mr. Smithers, Travelling
Inspector of Fisheries, states that he has on several occasions and in
several localities obtained both Soles and Flounders (Psewdorhombus) in water,
to use his own expression, “ sufficiently fresh for the cattle to drink.” The
same gentleman specially mentions having caught them “in the Bega River
well up to the Jellat-Jellat Flats,” and refers to the frequent closure of the
embouchure of that river, which, when lasting for any considerable time,
necessarily causes the water in the upper reaches to become almost, if not
absolutely, fresh, owing to the continued supply of water from the river and
the shutting out of further supplies from the ocean. The Wonboyn River,
which flows into Disaster Bay, is also mentioned as prcducing Soles,
Flounders, and other marine fishes “right up to the falls”; and, refering
to the freshness of the water, he further writes that “the same may be said
of all the small lakes to the southward, whose outlets are nearly always
closed,” special reference being made to the Wallagoot and Curallo Lakes.

Returning to Port Jackson it is a somewhat significant fact that in no
single instance was a Black Sole captured down the harbor on any one of
the scores of trawling and dredging excursions undertaken by the authorities
of the Australian Museum, though Flounders (Pseudorhombus), True Soles
(Solea), Crested Flounders (Lophonectes), and less commonly Lemon and
Marbled Soles (Plagusia and Pardachirus) were obtained ; while on the other
hand, when working riverwards the genera above mentioned were absent, but
specimens of S. nigra were almost invariably captured. The Black Sole
frequents localities where the bottom is formed of soft mud in preference to
sandy, shelly, or mixed ground, and it is consequently a very local species,
and not addicted to wandering away from its haunts.

* Erroneously ‘‘ Wallanora” in Tenison Woods.
L

162 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

In three adult female specimens examined during the last week in
May the ova were in an advanced stage of development, so that it may
reasonably be concluded that the spawning season is about midwinter; in a
paper, however, sent to the Royal Commission on the Fisheries of New South
Wales, Mr. Lee Lord states that the best lot he ever procured were full of
roe on the 2lst of February; the truth of this I have verified, so that as
with most, if not all, of our fishes there are two distinct breeding seasons
annually, and, in the case of the Sole, the short space of time separating the
two ascertained seasons points to the possibility of a third season about the
end of spring. The ova are very small and numerous.

Their food principally consists of small crustaceans and molluscs, worms,
and brittlestars.

As food they are undeniably good, but they do not by any means merit
the high price which they always bring i in the Sydney markets.

The greater number of Soles exposed for sale in Port Jackson come to hand,
through the agency of the prawn fishers, from the estuaries of the rivers
and creeks which fall into the headwaters of Port Jackson, Botany and
Broken Bays ; but there can be little doubt that if the otter trawl were in
more general use in the estuaries of our rivers, the supply would be greatly
augmented, and the present prohibitive price to the consumer proportionately
lessened.

According to the author of the “ Fish and Fisheries of New South Wales”
the spear is the most prolific means of effecting its capture, but, of hundreds
examined I have not noticed a single specimen in the market, which had
been obtained by this means. Hill’s remarks on this species, published in
the above mentioned work must be received with grave suspicion, as he has
evidently mixed up several species, and it is palpable that plate xxxiv of
Woods’ work, labelled ‘‘ Sole” is a flounder (Psewdorhombus arsius) and
plate xxxiui, labelled Pseudorhombus russellii is really P. multimaculatus. So
far as I can ascertain this fish has never been known to take a bait.

The Black Sole has been recorded from the estuaries of the New South
Wales coast, along the entire length of its coastline; to the northwards it
occurs at least as far as Moreton Bay, according to Saville Kent, while we
have Mr. Smithers’ assurance of its presence in the Wonboyn river, close to
the Victorian border. Mr. Lucas does not, however, include it in his
“Census” of Victorian fishes; buta record ofits occurrence in the Gippsland
lakes is probably a mere question of time.

The ordinary marketable size of this species is from six to ten inches; but
specimens of larger size are not of infrequent occurrence, especially during
the summer of 1891-92, in the latter part of which Soles were more
plentiful, and of a larger size than in any of the six preceding years; the
largest specimen examined measured thirteen and a half inches.

Genus 1V.—PLAGUSIA.

Plaqusia, pt. Cuvier, Regne Anim.

Upper part of the snout produced backwards into a long hook, covering
the mandible: cleft of mouth asymmetrical, rather narrow : lips of the
colored side with tentacles. One nostril on the left side, before the angle of
the lower orbit: none between the eyes, Eyes on the left side. Gill-
opening very narrow. Teeth minute, on the blind side only : no yomerine or
palatine teeth. Vertical fins confluent : pectorals absent. Seales small,
ctenid. Lateral line on the colored side double or triple.

Geographical distribution.—Indian, Malayan, Australian, and Japanese seas

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 163

PLAGUSIA UNICOLOR.
Plagusia unicolor, Macleay, Catai. Austr. Fish. 1. p. 188, 1881.

Lemon Sole.

B. vi. D. 107-109. A 81-85. V. 4. C. 8. L. lat. 102-105. L. tr. 22/28.
Vert. 9/42.

Length of head 5:00-5:40, height of body 4:00-4:25 in the total length.
Eyes small, the upper eye half of its diameter in advance of the low er, which
is situated in front of the angle of the mouth, and whose diameter is from
3°50—3°80 in the length of the snout, which is 2'25—2°33 in that of the head :
interorbital space narrow, about one third of the diameter of the orbit,
slightly concave. A tubular nostril in front of the lower eye on the left side,
anda similar one vertically above the anterior angle of the mouth on the right
side. Rostral hook of moderate length, extending slightly beyond the lower
eye. Cleft of mouth crescentic. Lower lip and anterior moiety of upper
lip on the colored side fringed with stout papille. A distinct band of
small teeth in the lower jaw on the blind side, and a few scattered minute
teeth on the posterior half of the upper jaw of the same side. The dorsal
fin commences in front of the upper eye ; a single ventral fin confluent with
the anal, which commences beneath the posterior margin of the gillcovers ;
caudal small and pointed, one third of the length of the head. Headand body
scaly, the scales on the colored side uniformly and finely etenid, those on the
blind side with a semicircular ctenid patch on the middle of the posterior
margin: fins scaleless. Two lateral lines on the left side, separated at their
point of greatest distance by sixteen longitudinal series of scales, the lower
one extending in an almost straight line from the tip of the snout to the base
of the caudal fin, the upper from the posterior dorsal rays to the tip of the
rostral hook followimg the curvature of the body, the two joined above the
opercles by a short line traversing eleven scales ; other more or less eccentric
lines run from the median line downwards across the opercular region, from
the chin to the inferior angle of the gill-opening, and from the base of the
rostral hook to the interorbital space ; right side without lateral line.

Colors—Upper side pale yellowish-brown, the body ornamented with round
spots of an even lighter shade : fins profusely ornamented with brown and
milk white spots, the latter disappearing in alcohol; below bluish-white.

We have included this species in the present work in the belief that with
proper appliances it will be found to be common along the greater part of
our seaboard, and because its flesh is firm and delicate. It is rarely taken by
the seme, as it buries itself so deeply in the sand, and is so strongly com-
pressed, that the ground rope of that net passes over it except in accidental
eases; with the trawl, however, we have known it to be captured on several
occasions, when the net was worked on shallow sanay flats, such being the
only localities which they affect. Even if the small size of the mouth, and
the shape of the elongated snout would allow of it, the nature of their ‘food
would prevent them taking any bait which would be likely to be offered to
them ; their stomachs generally contain a quantity of sand, among which are
found numerous foraminifera, entomostraca, and such like minute organisms.

On our coast they inhabit sandy beaches and banks, on which there is but
a moderate depth of water; they occur as far to the south as Wollongong,
and doubtless become more plentiful as we proceed northwards. It is also
included by Saville Kent in his list of the food fishes of Queensland, but he
gives no information as to the extent of its range on that coast. We have
also seen an example from Lord Howe Island.

The Lemon Sole grows to a length of twelve inches,

164 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Order IIT —PH YSOSTOWI.

All the fin rays articulated, with the exception of the first in the dorsal
and pectoral fins, which are frequently more or less ossified (some genera,
belonging to the Sternoptychide, have a rudimentary first dorsal) : ventrals,
when present, abdominal and spineless. Airbladder, when present, with a
pneumatic duct (except in the Scombresociform Fishes).

Family I.—SILURIDZ.

Margin of upper jaw formed mainly by the premaxillaries. Maxilla
rudimentary, frequently constituting the base of a barbel. Barbels always
present. No subopercle. Adipose fin present or absent. Skin scaleless,
either smooth or covered with osseous plates, or with small tubercles. Air-
bladder, when present, either free in the abdominal cavity, or more or less
enclosed in bone, and communicating with the organs of hearing through the
medium of the auditory ossicles.

Geographical distribution.—Inhabitants of the fresh waters of the temperate
and tropical regions, some species entering the sea, but not venturing far
from land.

Group I—PLOTOSINA.

Gill-membranes not confluent with the skin of the isthmus, or united to
it by a narrow strip only, remaining more or less separate. Dorsal divided
into two portions; a short anterior with a strong spine, and a long posterior
which, like the anal, is confluent with the caudal: ventrals multiradiate.
A dendritic postanal apparatus.

Genus.—CNIDOGLANIS.

Cnidoglanis, Giinther, Catal. Fish. v. p. 27, 1864.

Branchiostegals eleven? Gill-openings wide, the membranes united below
the throat, and attached to the isthmus along the entire median line; the
second and third branchial arches with a series of long cartilaginous pro-
cesses covering the base of the gill lamine on the sides facing each other.
Head depressed. Cleft of mouth transverse. Eyessmall. Nostrils remote,
the anterior tubular and on the front edge of the snout, the posterior simple.
3arbels eight. Teeth conical in the upper jaw, molariform on the vomer,
and mixed in the lower jaw. Two rayed dorsals, the first with one spine
and four or five rays: a pectoral spine.

Geographical distribution —Rivers and coasts of Australia.

CNIDOGLANIS MEGASTOMA.

Plotosus megastomus, Richards. Voy. Erebus & Terror, Fish. p. 31, pl. xxi, ff.
1-3.

Cnidoglanis megastoma, Guth. Catal. Fish. v. p. 27, and Study of Fish. f. 258 ;
Casteln. Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S. Wales, iii. p. 392; Macleay, Catal. Austr.
Fish. ii. p. 144; Woods, Fisher. N.S. Wales, p. 81.

Cheroplotosus decemfilis, Kner, Voy. Novara, Fisch. p. 300, pl. xiii, f. 1. (an
Plotosus limbatus, Cuy. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. xv. p. 422.)

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 165

a i a

Estuary Catfish.

Box. 1 D. 1/4.2 D. + C. + A. 222-234. V. 10. P. 1/9. Vert. 12/52.

Length of head 4°15, height of body beneath the origin of the second dorsal
8-00 in the total length. Head broad and depressed, its breadth 1°30 in its
length. Eye small, entirely covered by the skin: interorbital space a little
concave mesially. Nostrils widely separate, the anterior, which is pierced
on the summit of aslight eminence, small, circular, and situated on the
front of the snout; the posterior a narrow longitudinal slit pierced behind
the base of the nasal barbels which reach to or slightly beyond the posterior
margin of the orbit; all the barbels rather short, those of the maxilla
reaching as far or not so far back as the nasal barbels ; the outer mandibular
barbels are the longest, and are compressed and broad basally, as also are
the inner; their length is equal to the postorbital portion of the head.
Lower lip broad and pendent, with a pair of lateral lobes on each side, the
upper of which, situated at the angle of the mouth, frequently resembles a
small barbel. Premaxillary teeth conical, forming two small circular patches;
mandibular teeth molariform, with an outer conical series, in two much
larger spatuliform patches ; a large subcordate patch of molariform teeth on
the vomer. The first dorsal fin when laid back reaches slightly beyond the
origin of the second ; its spine is moderately strong, feebly serrated in front,
its length 2°00 in the postorbital portion of the head: ventral fin not quite
reaching to the origin of the anal, its breadth at the base 1°60 in its length:
pectoral spine feebly serrated, longer and stronger than that of the dorsal.

Colors —Dark brown above shading into dirty white below, when fre-
quenting muddy estuaries: stone gray or clouded yellow blotched and
marbled with deep rich brown when on sandy ground.

The Estuary Catfish breeds during the spring months, and the ova
are few in number and of large size. Hill's account of the breeding
habits refers to the River Catfish, Copidoglanis tandanus, and is copied
by Tenison Woods. It is common in our bays and estuaries, and,
although a well flavored fish, is unsaleable except at a nominal price
to foreign sailors or Chinese, owing to a prejudice caused by its appear-
ance. Their food consists of small fishes, squid, cuttlefishes, and other
molluses, prawns, &e. It is taken by hook and line, seine, and trawl, and is
nocturnal in its habits; care should be taken in handling these fishes, as
they are both able and willing to inflict a severe wound by means of the
serrated spines of both the first dorsal and the pectoral fins. Mr. Hill
remarks, “ Not only is the pain intense, but the after consequences are
generally grave,” and he gives an instance from personal knowledge, of an
Aboriginal whose hand having been wounded by one of these fishes, had,
through inflammation having set in, to have his arm amputated; that so
extreme a case as this is very rare, is, however, undoubted, as we have our-
selves on one occasion been rather badly cut, and have seen others of our
party similarly injured, while incautiously searching among the débris of the
trawl or dredge, and in no case were the after effects more unpleasant than
might be conjectured when the saw-like nature of the weapon is taken into
consideration ; it is probable, however, that, should any of the mucus
remain in the wound, it would produce considerable irritation in the part
affected ; immediate and careful washing would, however, obviate this.

This species is common in all the estuaries and bays of the metropolitan
district, but, owing to its unsaleable qualities, it is dificult to trace the limits
of its distribution. It has not, however, been recorded by the naturalists of

166 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.
—— eee

«

Queensland, Victoria, or Tasmania, nevertheless, an element of uncertainty
on this subject is imparted by the fact that the British Museum possesses a
specimen from Kangaroo Island, and the only recognised island of that name
hes off the coast of South Australia

This Catfish grows to a length of thirty inches.

Family II.—_SCOPELID@.

Branchiostegals generally numerous: pseudobranchiz well developed. |
Margin of upper jaw formed by the premaxillaries. Opercular apparatus
sometimes incomplete. Gill-openings very wide. Barbels absent. Two
dorsal fins, the posterior adipose. Scales present or absent. Eggs enclosed
in the sacs of the ovaries, and excluded by oviducts. Intestinal canal short.
Airbladder present or absent. Pyloric appendages normally few.

Geographical distribution.—Pelagic or deep sea fishes, chiefly of the tropical
and temperate zones.

Genus.—AULOPUS.

Aulopus, Cuvier, Régne Anim.

Branchiostegals numerous: pseudobranchiz well developed. Gill-openings
very wide. Head and body rather elongate, slightly compressed. Cleft of
mouth very wide: maxilla well developed, dilated posteriorly. Eye. of
moderate size. Teeth small and cardiform, present on the jaws, vomer,
palatine and pterygoid bones, and on the tongue. Dorsal fin situated mid-
way along the body, rather elongate, with fifteen or more rays, some of the
anterior being produced into a “long filament in the male: a small adipose
dorsal: anal of moderate length : ventral and pectoral fins well developed,
the former with nine rays, and inserted close behind the pectorals, beneath
the anterior dorsal rays: caudal forked. Seales of moderate size. Air-
bladder absent. Pyloric appendages in small numbers or numerous.

Geographical distribution.-—Seas of temperate Australia; Mediterranean
and the neighboring parts of the Atlantic.

AULOPUS PURPURISSATUS.

Aulopus purpurissatus, Richards. Icon. Pise. p. 6, pl. i. fig. 3, 1843; Gnth.
Catal. Fish. v. p. 403; Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. 1872, i. p. 172';
McCoy. Prodr. Zool. Viet. dec. vi. pls. 54,55; Macleay, Catal. Austr.
Fish. ii. p. 157 ; Woods, Fisher. N.S. Wales, p. 82, pl. xxxv:

Aulopus milesii, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. xxii. p. 519, pl. pez.

Sergeant Baker.
Plate XL.

B. xiv.-xv- D. 19-21. A. 12. V.9. P.11. C. 18. L. lat. 49) Ti) tr. S/7—8e
coec. pyl. numerous. Vert. 32/16.

Length of head 3°75—410, of caudal fin 5:50-6:00, height of body 6:00-6°33
in the total length. “Bye rising above the upper surface of the head, its
diameter 5:20-5°50 in the length of the head, 1:60-1:80 in that of ‘the
moderately long and pointed snout, and 1°C0-1°33 in the interorbital space,
which is deeply concave. Nostrils large and approximate, the anterior
circular and with a broad, skinny valve on its hinder margin ; the posterior,
oval, horizontal, and patent. Upper profile of head, along the median line,
flat. Lower jaw very slightly projecting. Cleft of mouth “large and oblique,
the maxilla extending to beneath the posterior margin of the eye or a little
beyond it. Both jaws with a band of cardiform teeth, the i inner series being

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 167

much the larger; vomer and palatines with similar teeth biserially arranged,
those of the latter being the largest in the mouth, and with an anterior ‘and
lateral row of much smaller teeth ; pterygoids with an oval, tongue with an
elongate, patch of villiform teeth. The dorsal fin commences above the fifth
scale of the lateral line, and ends above the twenty fifth; the length of its
base is rather less than the distance between its origin and the tip of the
snout; the first ray is short, two sevenths (in the @ ‘i of the second, which is
the longest, 1:90-2:00 in the Jength of the head; the middle rays are the
shortest, one or two of the posterior ones being as long as the third or fourth
rays, the outer margin of the fin being thus concave; za the o the second
and third rays are produced into long filaments, the length of the second
being equal to the distance between its base and the adipose fin or between
that and the base of the last ray ; the adipose fin is small and rounded, three
times as high as long, and situated above the thirty sixth or thirty seventh
scale of the lateral line: the anal commences slightly behind the termination
of the dorsal, and the length of its base is equal to the space between its
origin and the base of the last dorsal ray; the second ray is the longest, not
equal in length to the middle dorsal rays; its outer margin is slightly « convex :
the ventral reaches to the vent; the four outer rays are simple, the fourth
the longest, 1:20-1°33 in the length of the head : pectoral rather small,
reaching to the twelfth orthirteenth lateral line scale, 1:75-1:90 in the same :
caudal forked, the least height of its pedicle equal to its breadth immediately
in front of the fin, and about one third of the height of the body. Seales:
moderate, cyclid, adherent; occiput, snout and preorbital scaleless: basal
two thirds of adipose fin scaly, the other fins without scales. Lateral line
straight, the tubes unbranched.

Colors.—Upper surfaces purple with a more or less prevailing tinge of red
and with the edges of the scales crimson, and the top of the head sometimes
spotted with the same color; back and sides with large irregular crimson
spots or transverse bands covering two or three scales in width, not reaching
across the abdomen; the sides are of a paler purplish-red than the back,
and gradually merge into the pearly white of the abdominal region: dorsal
and caudal fins pale yellowish-red obliquely banded with rows of crimsom
spots, which are frequently confluent on the caudal lobes; adipose fin
basally purple, terminally crimson; anal white or pale straw-color with
orange longitudinal bands ; ventrals and pectorals yellow with crimson trans-
verse bands.

The Sergeant Baker—so named probably from having been first obtained
atter the founding of the settlement by a sergeant of that name—frequents
moderately deep water on the outside reefs, but is rarely taken inside Port
Jackson. It is not an uncommon fish, but as those which find their way to
the Sydney market are with rare exceptions taken by the Snapper fishers
the supply is never equal to the demand. In examining a series of fresh
specimens taken at all seasons of the year two points are likely to strike the
observer, namely, that the stomach is almost invariably empty, and that it is
exceedingly rare to find ova in any stage of development in the ovaries; in
the few cases in which we have been able to detect such the ova were in a
very early stage, and these occurred during the spring months. Itis a good
fish for the table, the flesh being white, firm, flaky, and well flavored.

The range of this beautifiul fish is very imperfectly known ; so far it has
only been “recorded from the coast line of New South Wales south of
and including the metropolitan district, and it is omitted from the lists of
Queensland and Tasmanian fishes, while McCoy states that it is rare in
Hobson’s Bay.

The Sergeant Baker attains to a length of twenty four inches.

168 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Family III.—SCOMBRESOCIDA.

Branchiostegals variable : pseudobranchix glandular, concealed. Margin
of upper jaw formed mesially by the intermaxillaries and laterally by the
maxillaries. Barbels present or absent. Hy popharyngeals united into
a single bone. Dorsal fin opposite to the anal, in the caudal section of the
vertebral column, with or without posterior finlets : no adipose dorsal. Body
scaly : a keeled row frequently present along each side of the free portion of
the tail. Airbiadder generally present, simple, sometimes cellular internally,
without pneumatic duct. Stomach not distinct from the intestine, forming
together a straight undivided tube with or without pyloric appendages.

Geographical distribution. —Carnivorous and herbivorous fishes, belonging
to the tropical and temperate zones, for the most part marine, but with
many species entering or even inhabiting fresh water.

Genus I.—BELONE.
Belone, Cuvier, Régne Anim.

Branchiostegals generally numerous. Gillopenings wide. Body elongated,
subeylindrical or compressed. Eyes lateral. Jaws prolonged into aslender
beak, the upper of which is formed by the premaxillaries, which are united
by a longitudinal suture. Both jaws with fine teeth or roughened, and with
a single series of long, pointed, widely set teeth: vomer and palatines with
or without teeth. The anterior dorsal rays may or may not be elevated,
while the middle and posterior ones may be short or elongate : no finlets.
Seales small. Lateral line on the free portion of the tail with or without a
keel. Airbladder large. No pyloric appendages.

Geographical distribution. —Temperate and tropical seas of both hemi-
spheres ; many species entering and some resident in fresh waters.

As food the members of this genus which find their way to the Sydney
market are excellent, but here, as elsewhere, a prejudice exists against them
in many quarters on account of the green color of the bones, a character
which appears to be constant in all the known species. ‘They are exceedingly
voracious, and being very swift in their movements are correspondingly
destructive to all small fishes sw imminy high in the water.

Both of the species here described belong to the section in which the gill-
rakers are wanting, and for which the name Zy/osurus has been proposed.

BELONE FEROX. :

Belone feror, Guth. Catal. Fish. vi. p. 242, 1866; Casteln. Proc. Linn. Soe.
N.S. Wales, iii p. 239, and iii p. 394; Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. il.
p- 176; Woods, Fisher. N. 8. Wales, p. 83; pl. xxxvi.

Slender Long Tom.
B. xi. D. 21-22. A. 25-26. V. 6. P. 12. C. 15- Vert. 57/82.

Length of head 3°33-3°75, of caudal fin 11°50-12:00, height of body
15'00-18'66 in the total length: breadth of body 120-140 in. its height.
Diameter of eye 2°75-3'00 in the postorbital portion of the head, 6°00-6°80 in
the distance between its anterior margin and the tip of the upper jaw, and from
1:10-1°25 in the interorbital space, which is flat. Preorbital elongate, with
the inferior margin straight, its height 4°00—440 in its length. Maxilla searcely

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 169

expanded behind, with an acutely rounded angle posteriorly, its hinder portion
partially concealed by the preorbital, and reaching to beneath the anterior
third of the orbit. Lower jaw the longer. Upper surface of head flat,
with a median groove, broadest in front, between the base of the upper
jaw and the occiput: supraciliary and occipital strie feeble or obsolete:
lateral margins of occiput sharply ridged. No well marked preorbital pores.
Jaws with an outer band of minute teeth, and an inner band of strong conical
teeth twenty-five to twenty-nine in number in the upper, twenty fourortwenty
five in the lower jaw. ‘The distance between the origin of the dorsal and
the base of the caudal is 4°60 in that between the same point and the tip of
the upper jaw, or equal to that between the anterior margin of the eye and
the same ; the dorsal commences above the seventh or eighth anal ray ; hoth
fins are falciform, the second ray the longest, that of the dorsal 1°40 in the
anal ray ; the posterior dorsal rays are not elongate, the length of the last
being about one third of the distance between its base and that of the
caudal ; the base of the dorsal is 1°30 in that of the anal, and the distance
between the origin of the two fins is but a trifle less than the longest anal
ray: the distance between the origin of the ventral and the base of the
caudal is 1°50-1°75 in that between the same point and the tip of the lower
jaw; its length is rather less than the height of the body, 2°25 in the distance
between its origin and the vent, and 1°33 in the postorbital portion of the
head: the pectoral is rounded behind, its length equal to the distance
between its base and the posterior margin of the orbit, 3:33-3:80 in the
length of the head, and one third longer than the height of the body:
caudal truncated, the lower lobe the longer; its pedicle broad and depressed
above and rather acutely rounded below, its height much less than its width
immediately behind the dorsal fin, and without lateral keel. Scales small,
thin, and adherent; cheeks and entire cephalic groove scaly. Gillrakers
absent.

Colors.—Above bright green with violet reflections, below silvery ; a broad
well marked steel blue band from the axil of the pectoral to the base of the
caudal, becoming fainter beyond the origin of the anal; a bright blue band
in front of the vertical margin of the preopercle: dorsal, caudal, pectoral,
and elongated rays of anal fins purplish; rest of anal and ventrals gray.

Both species of Long Tom are common on our coast, and are to be found
in the Sydney market during every month of the year, coming in to the bays
and harbors at irregular intervals in shoals of greater or less magnitude;
they are, however, always present during the spring and early summer months,
at which time they are engaged in spawning, and for this purpose they appar-_
ently frequent the shallower parts of harbors, while the ova are of large
size, and consequently few in number. During the months of September
and October we examined four specimens of this fish, from each of which
the ova were exuding, and in each case the right ovary was found to be fully
developed, while that on the left side was empty. Nothing is known about
the deposition of the spawn in our species: but it is doubtless similar to
that of the common European Garfish*, of which Day gives the following
account :—“ The eggs of many have filaments springing from their outer
covering, which enable numerous ova either to adhere together in a mass or
attach themselves to contiguous objects, preventing thus their subsidence
into the mud.” And again :—‘* These eggs when extruded must float in the

* This name properly belongs to Belone, but with the usual perversity of the fishing community they
persist in according it to the Hemirhamphus, which should more correctly and naturally be termed the
Halfbeak.

170 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

sea with their long filaments waving about until they meet with some object
to which they can attach themselves ; or they may serve io bind together
large numbers of eggs into one mass and fix such to some suitable substance.”

_ Like all predacious forms, which swim high in the water with great velo-
city, necessitating great muscular exertion, these fishes are very voracious, and
their digestion being equally rapid they are among the worst enemies of all
such species as they are able to swallow ; nor, according to reliable authorities
do they hesitate to attack much larger fishes than they could by any means
make a meal of, since the conformation of their jaws would prevent them
tearing the body of their victim to pieces; as an instance Day relates, fide
Clogg, Zoologist, June 1874, p. 4160, how a Salmon, Peal was entirely
transfixed by a Garfish (Belone vulgaris) through the thickest part of the
body. Asa rule the specimens which we have examined have the stomach
empty, but in some cases small fishes were found.

In the report of the Royal Commission the statement is made, and. sub-
sequently reiterated by Tenison Woods and others that the Long Tom will
not take a bait; this may be the case, but such abnegation would be entirely
subversive of the nature and known habits of the genus, and there can be
little doubt that if whiffing—as practiced for Mackerel, Yellowtail, and the
Tasmanian Barracouta, and Kingfish (Zhyrsites)—were indulged in when
Long Toms were about, many would be caught and good sport would result
to the amateur fishermen, with the addition to the menu of a firm and well
flavored, though rather dry fish; it is hardly necessary to say that the
color of the backbone, which is bright green both before and after cooking,
does not in any way affect the wholesomeness of the flesh. This peculiarity
is apparently common to most of, if not all, the species of Belone.

The slender Long Tom has not been recorded as yet beyond the limits of
New South Wales, for though Saville Kent states that eight species occur
on the Queensland coast, he considers that Belone depressa, Poey, is the
common Moreton Bay form, the “remaining species being most abundantly
represented in the intertropical zone,” which could hardly be the case with
so common a New South Wales fish.

They attain to a length of three feet.

BELONE MACLEAYANA.
Belone gracilis, Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. ii. p. 179, 1881 (not Lowe
nor Schlegel).
Belone macleayana, Ogilby, Catal. N. 8. Wales Fish. p. 58, 1886.

Stout Long Tom.

Plate XLI.
B. xiii. D. 20-21. A. 19-21. V. 6. P. 18-14. C. 15. Vert. 52/28.

Length of head 3°33-3°50, of caudal fin 10°00-10°50, height of body 13:00-—
15°75 in the total length: breadth of body 1:00-1'33 in its height. Eye
rather small, its diameter one third of the pestorbital portion of the head,
from 6°50—-6°90 in the distance between its anterior margin and the extremity
of the upper jaw, and from 1°33-1°66 in the interorbital space, which is flat.
Preorbital elongate and curved, its height 2:00-2°60 in its length. Maxilla
expanded behind but with an acute postero-inferior angle, its posterior two.
thirds completely concealed by the preorbital. and reaching to beneath the
anterior two thirds of the orbit. Lower jaw the longer. Upper surface of

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 1

head with a shallow median groove between the occiput and the upper
jaw: occiput moderately striated, the strie diverging from a pair of lateral
centres: posterior half of occiput deeply grooved laterally. A series of
large pores near the hinder margin of the preorbital. Jaws with an outer
band of fine teeth and an inner series of moderately stout conical ones. The
distance between the origins of the dorsal and the caudal is 3:30-3:75 in that
between the same point and the tip of the snout, and equal to or less than that
between the posterior margin of the eye and the tip of the lower jaw; the anal
commences in front of the dorsal ; both fins are falciform, and the anterior rays
of the former are one sixth higher than those of the latter; the posterior dorsal
rays are elongate, and extend backwards to the base of the caudal; the bases
of the two fins are subequal, and the distance between their origins is 1°33-1°66
in the height of the longest anal rays: the distance between the origin of the
ventral and the base of the caudal is 1'40-1°66 in that between the same point
and the tip of the lower jaw; its length is rather more than the height of
the body, from 1:75-2:20 in the distance between its origin and the vent, and
five sixths of the postorbital portion of the head: the pectoral is rounded
behind ; its length is equal to or not quite so much as the distance between
its base and the posterior margin of the orbit, 8°25—-3°50 in the length of the
head, and from ove eighth to two fifths longer than the height of the body:
caudal emarginate, with the lower lobe produced; its pedicle much de-
pressed, about as high as wide, one third of the height of the body, and with-
out, or with hardly recognisable lateral keel. Scales small, thin, and
deciduous ; cheeks and anterior half of cephalic groove scaly.

Colors.—Dark green above, silvery below, the snout blackish: dorsal
and caudal fins yellowish-green more or less distinctly tipped with black, the
pectoral yellow with the outer third distinctly black ; elongate anal rays and
ventrals pale yellow, the latter more or less clouded.

This species differs in no wise in its habits, breeding, &., from Belone
Jerox, and is equally common and equally irregular in its appearance, while
the ova are shed during the same months.

Their distribution, so far as is known, and the size to which they grow is
also similar.

Genus II._ HEMIRHAMPHUS,

Hemirhamphus, Cuvier, Régne Anim.
Arrhamphus, Gunther, Catal. Fish. vi. p. 276, 1866.

Branchiostegals numerous. Gill-openings wide. Body elongate, slender,
and slightly compressed. Eyes lateral. Lower jaw more or less produced
beyond the upper, which is short, the premaxillaries forming a triangular plate.
Both jaws with a narrow band of minute teeth: no vomerine or palatine
teeth. All the dorsal and anal rays connected by a membrane. Scales
large or of moderate size. Intestinal tract simple. Airbladder large. No
pyloric appendages.

Geographical distribution—Tropical and temperate seas, many species
entering fresh waters.

We do not think that the single unimportant character of a less produced
lower jaw in Arrhamphus sclerolepis is sufficient to separate that species
generically from Hemirhamphus, the transition from the long and slender-
beaked forms to the short-beaked being gradual. Young Hemirhamphi have
both jaws short.

172 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

HEMIRHAMPHUS INTERMEDIUS.

Hemirhamphus intermedius, Cantor, Ann. Nat. Hist. 1842,ix. p.485; Richards.
Ichthyol. China, p. 264; Guth. Catal. Fish. vi. p. 260; Macleay, Catal.
Austr. Fish. ii. p. 181; Johnston, Proc. Roy. Soc. Tas. 1882, pp. 91,
132; MeCoy, Prodr. Zool. Vict. dee. xiv. pl. 185 ; Sherrin, Handb. N.Z.
Fish. p. 33; Woods, Fisher. N. 8. Wales, p. 84, pl. xxxvil. (upper
Jigure.)

Hemirhamphus melanochir, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. xix. p.41 (18 );
Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. i. p. 179, 1872, and Proce. Linn. Soe.
N.S. Wales, ii. p. 394.

Sea Garfish.

Plate X LIT.
B. xiv. D. 15-16. A. 18. V. 6. P. 12. C. 15. Vert. 36/20.

Length of head 3:20-3:40, of caudal fin 8:50-9:00, height of body 11°50-
12°33 in the total length: breadth of body 1:15-1:2 25 in its height: length
of lower jaw beyond the extremity of the upper one half or more than one
half of the length of the head, and 610-6740 in the total length: the
length of the upper jaw measured along the median line, is from 1:00-
1:20 in its breadth at the base. Eye moderate, its diameter 1°66-1:90 in
the postorbital portion of the head, from 1:60-2:00 in the distance between
its anterior margin and the tip of the upper jaw, and from 1°'10-1°25 in
the flattened interorbital space. Height of preorbital equal to, or but little
less, than its length. Maxilla expanded behind, completely concealed pos-
teriorly by the pr reorbital when the mouth is closed, and extending to beneath
the middle or the posterior margin of the nasal fossa, which is pyriform in
shape, with a rounded posterior angle, which does not extend beyond the
anterior margin of the orbit. Both jaws witha broad band of small tri-
cuspid teeth, the median cusp being the longest. The distance between the
origin of the dorsal fin and the base of the caudal is 3°90 in that between
the same point and the tip of the upper jaw, or equal to the length of the
head without the lower jaw; the anterior dorsal rays are not quite so high
as those of the anal, and are about three fourths of the distance between
the origins of the two fins: the anal commences a little behind the origin
of the dorsal, and the bases of the two fins are of equal length: ventral
small, the distance between its origin and the base of the caudal equal to
that between the same point and the posterior angle of the base of the pee-
toral ; its length less than that of the postorbital portion of the head:
pectoral pointed, its length equal to the height of the body, and 3:25-3°60 in
the length of the head: caudal fin moderately forked, the lower lobe the
longer; the least height of the pedicle 3°33 in “the height of the body. All
the scales very deciduous, except those posterior to the origins of the ver-
tical fins, which are more or less persistent. Lateral line with sixty perfo-
rated scales, which are profusely branched inferiorly.

Colors.—Back bright green, ‘with three narrow dark brown streaks from
the occiput to the origin “of. the dorsal, immediately in front of which the
three meet; asilvery lateral band, bro: dest posteriorly, and margined above
by a narrower lead-colored band ; lower surfaces pale greenish-silvery :
posterior part of the ventrals and the pectorals dusky.

In the Report of the Royal Commission we find the following statement :—
“The ordinary Sydney Garfish (H. reqgularis) comes in from the sea in the
latter end of summer to deposit its spawn in suitable spots in the harbor.”
As we have pointed out in our accout of the River Garfish (see p. 174), the

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. ny

authors of the above report have apparently confused the two species, and
the season given as that in which the ova are shed is too late, for these fishes
may be found distended with ripe ova at any date between the latter half of
September and midsummer. The ova are very large, globular, and of a
pale yellow colour.

These fishes are greatly and deservedly esteemed as one of the most
delicious forms belonging to the Colony; the flesh is white, flaky, and
delicate. Their food, so far as can be ascertained from the many hundreds
examined by us consists almost entirely of a small green weed, among which,
however, minute crustaceans and molluscs are frequently to be found, but
whether these latter are taken in accidentally along with the weed, or that
the latter is swallowed for the sake of the animal life is not quite apparent ;
Australian writers, however, seem to prefer the former theory ; be this as it
may, it will be seen below that the Sea Garfish can be caught with fish bait.

In this Colony we are indebted for our supplies entirely to the seine net,
and so important is the fishery that special provision is made to allow of a
small-meshed net for the capture of these fishes during the winter months ;
they are abundant along our coasts throughout the year, but are in best
condition and most plentiful from January or February to about October, at
which time they for the most part retire to the open sea. Hill states that
this species is known to the professional fishermen as “ Ballahoo.”

It is found in large quantities along our whole seaboard, and is always in
demand at remunerative prices. Its range is very wide, comprising the
whole coast line of Australia, Tasmania, and New Zealand; it is abundant at
certain seasons round Lord Howe Island, where they are taken in vast
numbers, and are greatly esteemed; they are also found throughout the
Malay Archipelago, northward to the Chinese seas. Castelnau states that it
is “ one of the commonest fishes in the Melbourne market, during all seasons
of the year,’ and he also records that young specimens are often found in the
brackish waters of the lower Yarra. Johnston says of its presence in
Tasmanian waters :—‘ It is found in great abundance in the shallow waters
of estuaries during the summer months, and is most highly esteemed in
the market. It does not ascend within the influence of the fresh water so
freely as the other migratory fishes, and its capture by the seine is not
affected by the closing of the upper waters of the estuaries. * * * The fish
may be captured at any time between April and October.”

Among the Maories this Garfish is known as the “Thi” or “ Heihe,” while in
Aucklund it goes by the name of Piper. Sherrin, quoting from a writer in
the field, tells us how angling for Garfish is carried on there :—‘ In many
parts of New Zealand they swarm in the estuaries at certain seasons of the
year, and may be caught three and four at atime with a light, stiffish rod
and fine tackle. I look on the Piper as the float fish of New Zealand, for,
though you may have plenty of fun with others here and there, it is the only
one which really requires a float to keep the bait in proper position. The
bait to begin with is a tiny bit of beef or mutton, wherewith you catch, most
probably, a so-called “herring,” which is not a herring at all, but which
serves your purpose. Scaling it and cutting a wee triangular bit out of its
side, and hooking it so as to make it play nicely, you fish till you catch a
Piper, and then you cut little triangular bits out of Azs side to entrap his
brethren.” He further remarks:—“In Dunedin they are most plentiful
during the months of October and November according to Mr. Thompson’s
records ; and in some years are remarkably abundant, large shoals being in
the lower harbor for several days together, when they are caught in nets.”
He also notices their gradual diminution in Auckland Harbor of late years.

The Sea Garfish attains a length of eighteen inches.

174 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

HEMIRHAMPHUS REGULARIS.

Hemirhamphus regularis, Gnth. Catal. Fish. vi. p. 261, 1866; Casteln. Proc.
Linn. Soc. N. 8. Wales, iii. p. 394; Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. ii. p.
181; Woods, Fisher. N. S. Wales, p. 84, pls. xxxvii. (lower figure) and

XXXVI.
River Garfish.
Plate X LIII.

B. 1. D. 15. A. 17. V. 6. P. 11-12. C. 15. L. lat. 58. L. tr. 8. Vert. 34/19.

Length of head 3°20-3°33, of caudal fin 7-00, height of body 10:00-10°66 in
the total length: breadth of body 1:33-1:50 in its height: length of lower jaw
beyond the extremity of the upper one half of the length of the head: the
length of the upper jaw, measured along the median line is from 1:40-1:60
in its breadth at the base. Eye large, its diameter 1°40 to 1°60 in the
postorbital portion of the head, and from 1°25-1°50 in the distance between
its anterior margin and the tip of the upper jaw: interorbital space flat,
equal to or very little less than the diameter of the orbit. Height of pre-
orbital about four fifths of its length. Maxilla broadly expanded behind,
the expanded portion entirely concealed by the preorbital when the mouth
isclosed, and extending to beneath the anterior margin of the nasal fossa, which
is corditorm, with the posterior angle acute, and reaching to above the anterior
margin of the pupil. Both jaws with a broad band of small tricuspid teeth,
the median cusp being much the longest. The distance between the origin
of the dorsal and the base of the caudal fins is from 3°50 in the distance
between the same point and the tip of the upper jaw, or equal to the length
of the head without the lower jaw; the anterior dorsal rays are equal in
length to those of the anal, and eight ninths of the distance between the
origins of the two fins: the anal commences on the same vertical plane as
the dorsal: ventral small, the distance between its origin and the base of
the caudal equal to that between the same point and the posterior margin
of the eye; its length equal to that of the postorbital portion of the
head: pectorals pointed, from 2°66—3:00 in the length of the head, and equal
to the distance between the anterior margin of the eye and the hinder margin
of the opercle: caudal fin moderately forked, the lower lobe a little the
longer; the least height of the pedicle three eighths of the height of the
body. Scales onthe anterior two thirds of the body deciduous, on the
last third persistent.

Colors.—Back pale green, the upper surface of the head darker with
zolden reflections; three narrow black vertebral streaks not extending back-
wards to the dorsal; two similar but irregular and broader streaks between
these and the broad lateral silvery band, which is bordered above by a
narrow orange streak ; a faint black spot at the base of the pectoral.

The River Garfish is said to deposit its ova in still lagunes or the brackish
water near the mouths of rivers among thick weeds to which the ova pro-
bably adhere by means of filamentous appendages; as with its congener the
ova are of large size and consequently few in number.

This species, probably through the uncertainty caused by the lax way in
which the trivial name is used in the Royal Commission Report, and which
laxity and its concomitant error has been perpetuated to the present day, is
frequentiy said to be a better flavored, fish than H. intermedius ; this is not
the case, the flavor of the ocean species being undoubtedly much more deli-
cate than that of the present species which being a permanent resident in
muddy estuaries and lagunes retains a flavor of its surroundings.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW_SOUTH WALES. 175

In habits, food, &c., this Garfish differs in no way from the preceding, but
it has not so extensive a range, the tropical and subtropical parts of
Australia being so far the only recorded habitat of the species. On our own
coast it is abundant at least as far south as Illawarra, but beyond that place
the limit of its range is undefined. It is not recorded from Victoria or
Tasmania; there is a specimenfrom West Australia in the British Museum.

The River Garfish rarely exceeds twelve inches in length.

HEMIRHAMPHUS SCLEROLEPIS.

Arrhamphus sclerolepis, Gnth. Catal. Fish. vi. p. 260, 1866; Macleay, Proce.
Linn. Soc. N. 8. Wales, il. p. 864, and Catal. Austr. Fish. ii. p. 184.

Hemirhamphus krefftii, Steindachn. SB. Ak. Wien, 1867, lvi. p. 332, pl. i.

Short-beaked Garfish.
Plate XLIV.

B.x. D. 13-15. A. 15-17. V.6. P. 138-14. C.15. L. lat. 48-53. L. tr. 9.
Vert. 31/17.

Length of head 4:66-4:85, of caudal fin 5°40—-5°80, height of body 7:00
to 7°50 in the total length: breadth of body 1:38-1:50 in its height: the
length of the lower jaw beyond the extremity of the upper is equal to that
of the latter measured along the median line, which is 1°66 in its breadth at
the base. Diameter of eye 1°66 in the postorbital portion of the head,
1:50-1°66 in the distance between its anterior margin and the tip of the
upper jaw, and 1:25-1°50 in the interorbital space, which is very slightly
convex. Height of preorbital equal to its length. Maxilla expanded behind,
completely concealed posteriorly by the preorbital when the mouth is
closed, not extending to the vertical from the middle of the nasal fossa,
which is subcircular in shape and broadly enters the eye. Both jaws with
a broad band of small tricuspid teeth. ‘The distance between the origin of
the dorsal fin and the base of the caudal is 3°45—3'60 in that between the same
point and the tip of the upper jaw, and a little less than the length of the
head without the lower jaw; the anterior dorsal rays are equal in length to
those of the anal, and are five sixths of the distance between the origins of
the two fins: the anal commences slightly in front of the origin of the
dorsal, and the bases of the two fins are of equal length: ventral moderate,
the distance between its origin and the base of the caudal but a fraction less
than that between the same point and the tip of the lower jaw: its length
equal to that between the orbit and the upper angle of the base of the
pectoral: pectoral pointed, its length equal to the height of the body, and
1:50-1°66 in the length of the head: caudal fin moderately forked, the lower
lobe the longer; the least height of the pedicle 2°25 in the height of the
body. Scales everywhere persistent. Lateral line tubes with small branches
inferiorly.

Colors —Bright green above, the head darkest, pale green below; sides
with a broad well defined silvery band.

The Short-beaked Garfish occurs occasionally in large numbers during the
winter months among consignments sent to market from our northern rivers.
Those which we have examined in August had the roe very slightly developed,
and we may therefore conclude that the deposition of the spawn takes place
during the early summer months,

176 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

It is a much stouter and more fleshy fish than either of its congeners, and
is quite as delicious for the table as /. intermedius. The contents of the
stomach were similar to that of the others.

This species was first described by Giinther from examples supposed to
have come from New Zealand, but it is doubtful if that locality is correct.
On our coast odd examples are occasionally taken in Port Jackson and
Botany Bay in company with the Sea Garfish, but they are not found in any
numbers south of the Richmond and Clarence Rivers district. In Moreton
Bay, Saville Kent says “ that it is taken, but that it is more plentiful further
north.” The collectors to the Challenger Expedition obtained this species
in fresh water in the Mary River.

The Short-beaked Gartish attains a length of fourteen and a half inches.

Family IV.—GALAXIIDA.

Branchiostegals in yarying numbers: pseudobranchie absent. Margin of
the upper jaw formed chiefly by the premaxillaries, which are short and con-
tinued by a thick lip, behind which are the maxillaries. Barbels absent.
Belly rounded. No adipose fin: dorsal fin opposite to the anal, in the
caudal section of the vertebral column. Body naked. Airbladder large and
simple. Pyloric appendages in small numbers. The ova fall into the cavity
of the abdomen before extrusion.

Geographical distribution —Freshwater fishes of small size, belonging to
the southern hemisphere.

Genus.—_GALAXIAS.

Galaxias, Cuvier, Régne. Anim.
Mesites, Jenyns, Voy. Beagle, Fish. p. 118, 1842.

A series of conical teeth in the jaws, on the palatine bones, and along
each side of the tongue: teeth on the tongue hook-lke.

Geographical distribution Southern half of Australia, Tasmania, New
Zealand, southern portion of south America, and the Falkland Islands.

GALAXTIAS COXI.
Galaxias coxii, Macleay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N. 8. Wales, v. p. 45, 1880.

Cox’s Mountain Trout.

B. vi. D. 11. A. 18. V. 7. P. 13. C. 16. Vert. 35/24.

Length of head 5'25-5°33, of caudal fin 6°33-6°75, height of body
5°40-6'33 in the total length: greatest breadth of body 1:50 in its height.
Bye small, its diameter 5:00-5'50 in the length of the head, 1:60-1°75 in
that of the obtusely rounded and depressed snout, and 1:80-2:00 in the
interorbital space, which is flat. Lower jaw a little shorter than the upper :
cleft of mouth deep and oblique, the maxilla reaching to the vertical from
the middle of the eye, or rather beyond. Body stout. The dorsal fin is
rather pointed, its height being 133-1'50 in the length of the head, and
slightly less than the distance between its origin and that of the anal: the
latter fin commences beneath the middle of the dorsal, and is a little higher
and has a more rounded margin than that fin, and when laid back reaches
to or beyond the origin of the caudal: the base of the ventral fin is rather
nearer to the origin of the middle caudal rays, than to the tip of the snout,
and its length is 1:75 in the distance between its base and the vent, and 140—
1°50 in the length of the head: the length of the pectoral is equal to ora

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. U77

trifle more than the distance between its origin than that of the ventral:
caudal emarginate in half grown, truncated in adult, examples ; the least
height of the pedicle 1:6 in the distance between the dorsal and caudal fins.

Colors.—Upper surfaces yellowish-brown the head darkest, with the
operculum dusky, and an inconspicuous, oblique, dark bar below the eye ;
sides pale greenish-yellow, with numerous, narrow, irregular, vertical stripes,
which are frequently broken up into spots especially on the caudal region ;
abdominal region pinkish-white ; a conspicuous black spot above the base
of the pectoral, and a dusky blotch in front of the caudal; under the lens
the entire body, head, and fins appears to be powdered with dusky dots:
fins orange, the dorsal, caudal, and pectorals more or less dusky basally :
irides orange.

During the latter part of March and the beginning of April the ova, which
are small and exist in very large numbers, are ready for extrusion ; at this
seagon they conceal themselves and refuse to take a bait, though during the
summer months they greedily snap at any flesh bait offered, and are even
said to rise at any small substances floating on the surface; it is probable,
therefore, that they would rise to a small trout fly. As the waters in the
deep gullies which they frequent is very cold during the spawning season,
it is probable that the ova do not mature until the succeeding spring.

Their food consists principally of small water insects, but portions of
worms, grasshoppers, crickets, and such-like are eagerly seized when used
as bait. They are excellent little fish for the table.

Cox’s Mountain Trout was originally described from examples taken in
the streams flowing from Mount Wilson and emptying into the Grose River ;
we have since received it from streams in the neighborhood of Springwood,
and since these empty into the Nepean, Macleay’s conjecture that it does
not occur in the tributaries of that river is not borne out ; 1t is more probable
that this species is common to all suitable streams in that section of the Blue
Mountains. Their favorite haunts are the cool, shady pools, margined by
overhanging rocks, in the clear streams flowing down the deep and secluded
gullies of that district. At Springwood it is known as the Mud Gudgeon, a
most inappropriate name.

This species attains to a length of eight inches, and finds its nearest allies
in the Tasmanian G. truttaceus and the New Zealand G. fasctatus.

Family V.—CLUPEID&.

Clupeide, pt. Cuvier, Régne Anim.
Clupeoidei, Miller, Arch. f. Natur. 1843, p. 324.

Gill-openings usually very wide: pseudobranchiz, when present, well
developed. Abdomen generally compressed into a sharp edge, which is
usually serrated. Opercular apparatus complete. Eyes lateral, with or
without an adipose lid. Margin of the upper jaw formed mesially by the
premaxillaries, and laterally by the maxillaries, which are composed of
three pieces not, ossified together. The mouth may have a deep cleft, with
small premaxillaries, an elongated maxilla, and either the upper or the lower
jaw projecting; or it may be transverse. Fin rays articulated. A single
dorsal with a moderate or small number of weak rays: anal sometimes many-
rayed. Body covered with scales: head generally naked. Lateral line
usually absent. Stomach with a blind sac. Airbladder more or less simple.
Pyloric appendages, when present, numerous.

Geographical distribution —Almost all seas, many species periodically
ascending rivers, and some permanently resident in fresh water. é

M

178 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Group I—CHATOESSINA.

Mouth transverse, inferior or subinferior, narrow, and toothless; upper
jaw overlapping the lower. Abdomen serrated.

Genus L_-CHATOESSUS.

Chatoéssus, sp. Cuvier, Regne Anim.
Chatoéssus, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. xxxi. p. 94.

Branchiostegals five or six: pseudobranchie present. Body compressed,
oblong-ovate, with the abdominal serrature extending forward into the
thoracic region. Mouth anterior, the cleft small and more or less transverse :
snout obtuse or obtusely conical, more or less projecting beyond the jaw:
maxillary coalescent with the ethmoid, its upper portion being behind the pre-
maxillary. Teeth none. Eyes with free adipose lids. Dorsal fin situated
opposite to the ventrals: anal of moderate length, or rather long. Seales of
moderate size.

Geographical distribution —Coasts and fresh waters from Australia,
through Malaysia, eastward to India, and northward to China and Japan ;
North and Central America.

CHATOESSUS RICHARDSONTI.

Chatoéssus erebi, Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. i. p. 184 (not Gunther).

Chatoéssus richardsonii, Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. ii. p. 144; Macleay,
Proc. Linn. Soc. N. 8. Wales, iv. p. 8369; Woods, Fisher. N. 8. Wales,
p- LO6.

Bony Bream.
B.vi. D. 15. A. 20. V. 7. PL 15. 0.17. DL. lat. 45. Lote Av,

Length of head 5:10, of caudal fin 4°75, height of body 3:00 in the total
length. Eye rather small, with the adipose lid moderately developed,
though not reaching the pupil, in front, rudimentary behind ; its diameter
4°50 in the length of the head, a little longer than the rather obtuse snout,
and 1°25 in the convex interorbital space. Nostrils approximate, pierced in
a lateral groove midway between the tip of the snout and the orbit; the
anterior small, elliptical, and vertical; the posterior: large and subcircular.
Upper profile of head flat, bordered by an elevated hexagonal ridge, which
commences on the snout, and touching the supraciliary ridge, passes on to
the extremity of the occiput, where it forms an obtuse angle with its
fellow. Upper jaw the longer. Cleft of mouth small and transverse,
the maxilla reaching to beneath the anterior third of the orbit. Opercle
feebly striated. The distance between the origin of the dorsal and the
tip of the snout is 1:15 in that between the same point and the base of the
caudal; the first dorsal ray is minute, the second short; thence they increase
in length to the fifth, which is but little longer than the fourth and sixth,
and 1°25 in the length of the head ; the last ray is divided to the base, the
anterior portion being short and branched, the posterior filiform, expanded
at the base, and extending back to above the termination of the anal fin: the
anal is falciform, the third ray the longest, 2:00 in the length of the head ;
the last ray is similarly constructed to that of the dorsal, but the filiform
portion is short, barely half as long as the longest ray: the ventrals are
inserted beneath the anterior dorsal rays; the upper rays are the longest,
1:80 in the length of the head: pectoral pointed, its length equal to that of

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 179

the longest branched dorsal ray: caudal forked, the least height of the
pedicle 3°60 in the height of the body. Scales pitted and feebly carinated,
each with a low vertical basal ridge: a triangular scale, about equal in length
to the diameter of the orbit, above the insertion of the ventral; abdominal
scutes well developed, seventeen in front and thirteen behind the origin of the
ventral. Gullrakers short, fine, and closely set, eighty five on the lower limb
of the outer branchial arch, the longest one third of the diameter of the eye.

Colors.—Silvery, the back with a bluish tinge; head with a golden gloss
tip of the ventrals dusky.

Except that in the only fresh specimen which we have been able to obtain
while engaged on this work, there are six branchiostegal rays, and that the
ventral fins are situated beneath, not in front of the anterior dorsal rays,
we should have unhesitatingly placed Castelnau’s species as synonymous
with C. erebi, but until we have the opportunity of examining a series of
authenticated examples from the rivers of New South Wales we conceive it
to be in the best interests of the science to keep them provisionally distinct.

None of the authors who have written of this species make any mention
of its breeding habits, and we are, therefore, left entirely in the dark as to
this important function. These fishes are only taken by net, and, though
well flavored, are but little used by the white population on account of the
excessive number of bones contained by them. Castelnau, however, remarks.
that it is much esteemed in the Melbourne market, where it sells at a high
price, but is very scarce. Blandowski states that the Murray River Aborigines.
eallit “ Manur”; and adds that it “ leaps frequently out of the water, and
is easily caught by its elongated ray in thin, fine nets laid by the natives
horizontally on the water. * * * In June and July it is considered a
delicacy by the natives and forms their principal food during these two
months.” Macleay says :—‘‘ The name in the Wooradjerie language” (that
of the Murrumbidgee Aboriginals) “is ‘Ka-ee-ra’ ; it is not common, and is
considered too bony to be an article of food. I never tasted it but once,
and then I found that, though the flavor was delicate enough, it was such
a mass of bones as to make it useless as an article of food.”

This species, in the restricted sense in which we are here keeping it, is a
native of the Murray River and its tributaries.

It grows to a length of sixteen inches.

Group I1—CLUPEINA.

Upper jaw not overlapping the lower. Abdomen serrated.

Genus II.—CLUPEA.

Clupea, sp. Artedi, Gen. Pisce. 1738.
Clupea, Cuvier, Régne Anim.

Branchiostegals five to ten: pseudobranchie well developed. Body com-
pressed, oblong or somewhat elongated, with the abdominal serrature extend-
ing forward into the thoracic region. Mouth anterior or antero-superior,
the cleft small or of moderate width ; upper jaw not projecting beyond the
lower. Eyes with free adipose lids. Teeth, when present, rudimentary or
deciduous. Dorsal fin situated opposite to the ventrals: anal of moderate
extent, with less than thirty rays: caudal forked. Scales of large, moderate,
orrarely of small size. Pyloric appendages in large, moderate, or small
numbers.

Geographical distribution—Cosmopolitan ; many species entering, and
some residing in, fresh water.

180 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

CLUPEA SAGAX.

Clupea sagax, Jenyns, Voy. Beagle, Fish. p. 1384, 1842; Gnth. Catal. Fish.
vii, p. 443; Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. 1872, i. p. 187; Macleay,
Proc. Linu. Soc. N. 8S. Wales, iv., p.371; Woods, Fisher. N. S. Wales,
p. 86; Sherrin, Handb. N.Z. Fish. p. 71. \

Alosa melanosticta, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. xx. p. 444 (not Schlegel).

Meletta cerulea, Girard, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sc. Philad. 1854, p. 188, and
U.S. Pacif. R.R. Exped. Fish. p. 330, pl. Ixxv. ff. 5-7.

Alosa musica, Girard, Proc. Acad. Nat. Se. Philad. 1854, p. 199, and U.S.
Nay. Astron. Exped. Zool. p. 246, pl. xxxi. ff. 1-4.

Harengula punctata, Bleek. Verh. Bat. Gen. xxv. Japan, p. 49 (not Cuv. §
Val.)

Alausa californica, Gill, Proc. Acad. Nat. Se. Philad. 1862, p. 281.

Alosa fimbriata, Kner. & Steindachn. SB. Ak. Wien, 1867, liv. p. 386, pl. xv.
(not Spratella fimbriata, Cuv. § Val.)

Pilchard.
Plate XLV.

B. vii. D. 18-20. A. 18-20. V. 8. P. 15. ©.17. L. lat. 50-55. 1. tr. 12-18.
Vert. 19/31.

Length of head 4:33-4:75, of caudal fin 5°50-6:00, height of body 5:75—
6°75 in the total length. Eye moderate, with well developed adipose lid
reaching to the pupil both in front and behind, its diameter 3°66—4-00 in the
length of the head, and 1:10-1'25 in that of the snout, which is compressed
and moderately pointed: interorbital space flat, 1:50-1:80 in the diameter of
the eye. Nostrils with a single orifice oniy, which is situated a little nearer
to the tip of the snout than to the orbit. Upper surface of head flat, with a
median longitudinal groove and lateral ridges, which form two groups of
strie on the occiput. Lower jaw very slightly projecting. Cleft of mouth
moderate and oblique, the maxilla reaching to the vertical from the anterior
third of the eye. Opercle with very distinct radiating strie, descending
towards the subopercle. Teeth none. The distance between the origin of
the dorsal and the snout is from 1:05-1:15 in that between the same point
and the base of the caudal; fifth and sixth dorsal rays the longest, 1°75-2:00
in the length of the head; outer edge of the fin slightly emarginate ; its
basal length not so long as the longest rays: anal fin low, with the anterior
rays the longest, and the last two slightly produced ; its basal length rather
more than that of the dorsal: ventral inserted slightly behind the middle of
the base of the dorsal, its length 2:75-3:00 in that of the head: pectoral
pointed, truncate posteriorly, 1°60-1°75 in the same length: caudal deeply
forked, the least height of its pedicle 2°50-2°75 in the height of the body.
Scales deciduous, finely striated: abdominal scutes not much developed,
about seventeen in front of, and eleven behind the origin of the ventrals.
Gillrakers fine, long, and closely set, equal in length to the diameter of the
eye.

ae ee blue above, changing rather abruptly into the silvery of the
sides ; a series of round blackish spots along the middle of the sides.

Though in all probability but few of the inhabitants of New South Wales
are aware of the fact, we have off our coast two species of Clupeid fishes,
the Southern Pilchard and the Maray (see p. 186) which annually pass
northwards along our shores in what is described as incredible multitudes ;
these are allowed to go absolutely free, and thus a valuable source of national

~~

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 181

wealth, and an almost exhaustless supply of excellent food is allowed to
escape without an effort to utilise it, nor need we hope to see any improve-
ment on the present deplorable state of affairs until we import a race of
fishermen who will not be afraid of venturing to sea to reap the abounding
harvest there awaiting them.

Though the great abundance of this species has been known for many
years, it will probably astonish and perplex the members of less sleepy
communities—we are referring to matters connected with our fisheries only —
to hear that during a constant attendance on our market for a space of eight
years we could count on the fingers of one hand the number of Pilchards
which have found their way thither.

Giinther states that “this species is so closely allied to the European
Pilchard that it might be more properly described asa climatal variety,” and
this error is copied again and again by subsequent writers on Australian
fishes ; as, however, there are not more than thirty series of body scales in
C. pilchardus, nor less than fifty in C. sagax it is manifest that there can be
no possible resemblance between the two species. Day also points out that
whereas Giinther gives seven as the number of pyloric appendages in the
Pilchard that species possesses them in large numbers, and deduces therefrom
that the example from which Giinther took his description was a Sprat, that
being the only British species of Clupea in which so small a number is found.

Macleay remarks :—‘“ The usual time, so far as I can ascertain from the
fishermen, of its annual visit to the coast of New South Wales is in June and
July, but it is not easy to fix the time within a few weeks. . . . . The
shoals are described as enormous, covering miles of sea and accompanied by
flights of birds and numbers of large fishes. These shoals are generally
observed from one to three miles from the land,and are always proceeding
in a northerly direction.” Tenison Woods, alluding to their scarcity in our
market, says :—‘‘ Herrings are rarely seen in our markets, but this is due to
the fact that the shoals do not, as a rule, enter our harbors, and to fish for
them in the open sea requires appliances not at present in the possession of
our fishermen.”

On the Victoriam coast, McCoy and Castelnau notice the occurrence of
this lish at various dates between August and January, and the former, in
the International Exhibition Essays, 1866-67, gives an account of an extra-
ordinary visitation which took place in Hobson’s Bay during August of the
former year ; he writes:—“ They arrived in such countless thousands that
carts were filled with them by simply dipping them out of the sea with large
baskets. Hundreds of tons of them were sent up the couutry to the inland
markets, and through the city for several weeks, they were sold for a few
pence the bucketful, while the captains of the ships entering the bay reported
having passed through closely packed shoals of them for miles. As to how
far west of Victoria it extends its wanderings we have no means of ascer-
taining, but it is common on the coast of Tasmania, but not so much so as
the Sprat.”’

Speaking of its abundance in New Zealand waters, Hector remarks :—
“This is a true representative of the Herring kind in these seas, and it visits
the east coast of Otago every year in February and March, and when the
schools migrate they extend as far as the eye can reach, followed by a multi-
tude of gulls, mutton birds, barracouta, and porpoises. So densely packed
are they in some years, that by dipping a pitcher in the sea, it would contain
half fish; so that if large boats and suitable nets were employed, thousands
of tons could be caught. In the beginning of April they appear in Queen

182 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Charlotte Sound, and are caught in large numbers, and converted into the
highly esteemed Picton Herring. * Mr. Fell is quoted by Sherrin as
saying :—* The fish is found all round Queen Charlotte Sound, and also the
adjoining Pelorus, but is only caught here (Picton). Generally it is believed
that they do not extend outside, but my half-caste fisherman maintains that,
if sought for properly, they would be found all round Blind Bay, and in the
Strait. They are not easy fish to find unless they are rushing to the
surface, which is not often, and is a most peculiar sight. These Her-
rings are in Queen Charlotte Sound during the whole year, but only
come into shallow bays during the winter. At that time of year they keep
together in large shoals, but in summer time they keep more apart, and are
sometimes caught then, though rather hard to find. No systematic fishing
goes on during ‘the summer; the fish prefer colder water, and thus leave the
shallow bays when spring sets in. They spawn during summer, and are
always full of roe about Christmas time, and then keep i in small shoals. As
to the probable numbers visiting the Sound it is difficult to say, but four
smoke-houses were kept going all last winter (1882). The hauls made
average from one and a half to two tons, but at times ten tons have been
landed.” Sherrin remarks :—‘* They appear only occasionally in the Dunedin
market. They are very abundant in the Auckland waters, and especially so
at the Thames, which Mr. Wilson considers to be one of the best fishing
stations in the Colony. They come in large shoals, but no attempts have
been made to catch them.” Mr. Donald Sutherland states that “ there are

arge shoals of Pilchards at the head of Milford Sound. They are from six
to ten inches long, and finished spawning cn the second or third of Decem-
ber. Tons of them are on the beach in Freshwater Basin.”

The above is practically all we know of a species which, with little expen-
diture of energy and capital, might be made a source of almost incalculable
wealth to those Colonies on whose shores it occurs in such prodigious
numbers.

Beyond the limits of the Australasian Colonies this species has still a
wide range, being found in the seas of Japan, and along the Pacific coast of
America, from the shores of California to those of Chile.

They attain a length of at least ten inches.

CLUPEA SUNDAICA.

Clupea sundaica, Bleek. Atl. Ichthyol. Clup. p. 105, pl. eclxxi. £.5;
Macleay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N. 8. Wales, iv. p. 873; Woods, Fisher.
N.S. Wales, p. 86.

Herring.
Plate XLVI.
B. vi. D. 18. A. 20-21. V. 8. P. 15. C. 19. L. lat. 44-45. L. tr. 12.

Length of head 4°90-5'25, of caudal fin 3°66-4°25, height of body 3°60-
400 in the total length. Eye rather large, with the adipose lid equally
developed before and behind, just or not quite reaching to the pupil, its
diameter from 2°90-3:10 in the length of the head: snout obtuse, 1°30-1-40
in the diameter of the eye: interorbital space flat, 1:20-1:40 in the same.
Nostrils approximate, situated nearer to the tip of the snout than to the
orbit, the anterior minute and circular, the posterior large and subcrescentic.
Upper surface of head flat, bordered by a raised ridge, which is split up into
numerous striz on the outer mar gins of the opercles. Chin prominent. Cleft

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 183

of mouth small and transverse, the maxilla reaching to beneath the middle
of the orbit. Opercle and preopercle feebly striated inferiorly. A single
series of minute teeth on either side of the symphysis in both jaws; a
few small teeth anteriorly on the palatines; tongue with a median toothed
ridge. The distance between the origin of the dorsal and the tip of the
snout is 1°20 in that between the same point and the base of the caudal;
the fourth dorsal ray is the longest, 1:25-1:40 in the length of the head;
the outer margin of the fin is subtruncate, the posterior rays being the
shortest ; the basal length of the fin is a little less than the longest ray: the
anal is low, the anterior rays the longest, the posterior ray thickened; its
basal length 1:20-1°33 in that of the dorsal: the ventrals are inserted
beneath the middle of the dorsal fin, the outer ray is the longest, 2:00-2:15
in the length of the head: pectoral pointed, its length 1°25 in the same:
eaudal deeply forked, the least height of the pedicle 2°75-3-00 in the height
of the body. Scales deciduous, each with four or five irregular vertical
strie: a triangular scale, about four sevenths of the diameter of the orbit
in length, above the insertion of the ventral: abdominal scutes strongly
developed, seventeen or eighteen in front of and twelve or eleven behind the
insertion of the ventrals. Gillrakers moderately stout and closely set,
about half the diameter of the eye in length. Airbladder large and simple.

Colors.—Upper surface blue, the head brownish-yellow, sides and lower
surtaces silvery, from one to three more or less distinct golden bands along
the upper half of the sides: fins hyaline, the tip of the dorsal and of the
caudal lobes blackish: irides golden.

The Herring, though passing northwards in enormous shoals during the mid-
winter months, but rarely enters our harbors and inlets in any numbers, and
though a few may be seen in the market during any month of the year,
generally associated with Gerres ovatus, no attempt is made to obtain a
regular supply, and these vast communities, from whence come and whither
bound we know not, pass on their way untithed. At this season they are in
fine condition and full of roe, and are delicious for the table, its flesh being
beautifully white and delicate.

Tn his paper on the Clupeide of Australia Macleay says:—“ Like Olupea
sagax this species visits our coasts in winter in enormous shoals, which are
also always travelling in a northerly direction. It seems probable, however,
from what the fishermen tell me, that its breeding grounds are not far distant,
as some of them are to be found in the Hawkesbury, about Mullet Island,
at all seasons of the year, and the young fry of apparently the same species
are sometimes very abundant there.” Alluding to the subject of the latter
part of this quotation, Tenison Woods adds :—‘‘ The same Herring is rather
common in the Upper Hunter at all seasons, but it is small. At West
Maitland the anglers value the fish for sport, though it very seldom exceeds
seven inches in length ; but it is delicious eating. It is best caught with the
common house-fly dropped gently upon the water and moved along the
surface with caution.” We have never seen the species here referred to, and
are sceptical as to its being C. sundaica, while the fry, mentioned by Macleay
are possibly Diplomystus sprattellides* or young D. novehollandie, the
former of which is sometimes very abundant in the Hunter River.

This species, which was originally described from the Celebes and Java by
Bleeker, is found along the northern and eastern seaboard of Australia, and
grows to a maximum length of nine inches.

* See Records of the Australian Museum, ii. p. 24.

184 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Genus III.—_DIPLOMYSTUS.
Diplomystus, Cope, Bull. U. 8. Geol. Surv. Terrs. 1877, p. 808.

Branchiostegals eight: pseudobranchix present. Body elongate and com-
pressed, with the abdominal serrature extending forward into the thoracic
region, and with a corresponding dorsal serrature between the occiput and
the origin of the dorsal fin: the dorsal scutes with a single median tooth.
Jaws equal, or the lower slightly projecting. Cleft of “mouth moderate.
Adipose lid not much developed. Teeth present on the jaws, palate, and
tongue, or absent. Ventrals inserted in front of, or beneath the anterior
fourth of the dorsal: anal of moderate length : caudal forked. Scales of
moderate size. Pyloric appendages in moderate numbers.

Geographical distribution.—Rivers and estuaries of south-eastern Australia
and Chile.

The above diagnosis is taken from the species now existing in Australia,
without regard to the fossil forms for which Cope established the genus.

The genus Diplomystus was originally separated from Clupea by Cope for
the inclusion of six species of Tertiary Clupeids from the Green River portion
of the Wasatch Beds situated in the central region of the United States.

He points out that the genus is divisible into two sections, characterised
by the form of the dorsal scutes. ‘In section i,” says he, “ these shields
are transverse, and their posterior borders are pectinate, a median tooth
being especially prominent. In section 11, the scuta are not wider than
long, and have but one, a median, tooth, w hich is the extremity of a median
longitudinal carina. * * * The species of section 1 display a longer anal
fin than those of section ii. The species of this genus were more numerous
than all others combined during the period of the Green River Lake.”

DIPLOMYSTUS NOVAHOLLANDIA.

Meletta nove-hollandie, Cuv. & Val. Hist. Nat. Poiss. xx. p. 376.

Clupea nove-hollandie, Guth. Catal. Fish. vii. p. 431; Macleay, Proc. Linn.
Soc. N.S. Wales, iv. p. 378.

Meletta nove-hollandie, Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. 1872, i. p. 189 (noé
Cuv. § Val.)

Meletta vittata, Casteln. Res. Fish. Austr. p. 46, 1875.

Clupea piseaene Macleay. Proc. Linn. Soc. N. 8. Wales, iv. p. 379 (not
Mitchell).

Clupea richmondia, Macleay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N. 8S. Wales, iv. p. 380.

Freshwater Herring.
Plate XLVIT.

B. viii. D. 16-17, A. 16-17. V. 8. P. 15. C. 19. L. lat. 45-48. L. tr. 11-12.
Coec. pyl. 14. Vert. 46.

Length of head 5:20-5°33, of caudal fin 5°33-5-66, height of body 4°66-
4:80 in the total length. Eye moderate, the adipose lid about equally
developed in front and behind, not reaching to the pupil; its diameter,
2-90-3°10 in the length of the head: snout short and moderately pointed,
1:20-1:40 in the diameter of the eye: interorbital space nearly flat, 1:33-1:50
in the same. Nostrils small and approximate, equidistant from the eye and
the tip of the snout, the anterior circular, the posterior crescentic. Upper

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 185

profile of head flat. Jaws equal. Cleft of mouth moderate, the maxilla
reaching to beneath the anterier fourth of the orbit. Opercles smooth ;
subopercle narrow, tapering behind. Lower jaw with a band of small teeth
anteriorly ; asmall anterior patch on the palate; and a series along the
median ridge of the tongue. The distance between the origin of the dorsal
and the tip of the snout is four fifths of that between the same point and the
base of the caudal; the third and fourth rays are the longest, from 1°20-1°33
in the length of the head, and much higher than the base of the fin; the
outer margin of the fin is truncate, or but slightly concave: anal low, the
longest rays subequal to the diameter of the eye: ventrals inserted on a
line with the anterior fourth of the dorsal, their posterior margin rounded,
and their length equal to the distance between the tip of the snout and the
posterior margin of the orbit: pectorals rounded behind, their length three
fourths of that of the head: caudal deeply forked, the least height of the
pedicle 2°66-2-90 in the height of the body. Scales thin, smooth, and
firmly adherent: a triangular scale rather more than half the diameter of
the orbit in length, above the insertion of the ventral: abdominal scutes
well developed, sixteen to eighteen in front, and fifteen behind the origin of
the ventrals; well developed scutes along the median line of the back
between the occiput and the dorsal fin. Gullrakers fine and closely set, half
as long as the diameter of the eye.

Colors.—Back and sides straw-color or olive green, belly silvery ; a broad
silvery dark-edged longitudinal band down the middle of the sides: fins
hyaline : irides silvery.

Though abundant in many of the coastal rivers of New South Wales and
Victoria, nothing whatever appears to be known concerning the breeding
habits of this species, nor have we succeeded in eliciting any information on
the subject from our correspondents. With regard to the supposed differences
in color and size between specimens from the Hawkesbury and its tributaries
and those from the Richmond River, we may mention that the Freshwater
Herrings from the former drainage area have the silvery lateral band quite
as well developed as those from the latter, and that we have seen numbers
from both localities which exceeded seven inches in length. We have not
seen specimens of Castelnau’s C. vittata, but the description is not sufficiently
full to enable us with any certainty to establish its identity or otherwise
with ©. novehollandie ; nevertheless the position of the ventral, if correctly
stated, the increased number of rays in the anal fin, and the small size, suggest
a close alliance with D. sprattellides.*

Macleay tells us that angling for this fish is a favorite sport in some of
the upper waters of the Nepean, and that it is of no great value as a food fish.

Castelnau writing of the Melbourne market says :—‘ This little fish is
very abundant at times; its length is about four inches. It is known in
Melbourne as the Smelt. This species is never found in the Sydney market.”

The Freshwater Herring grows to a length of nine inches, and the largest
examples seen as yet were forwarded from the Richmond River.

* See foot-note p. 183. Should Meletta vittata and Diplomystus sprattellides prove identical, the latter name
must stand, since that of Castelnau has been previously utilised by both Mitchell and Valenciennes.

186 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Group IJI.—DUSSUMIERIINA.

Mouth anterior and lateral: upper jaw not overlapping the lower:
abdomen neither keeled nor serrated : no osseous gular plate.

Genus IV._ETRUMEUS,

Etrumeus, Bleeker, Verh. Bat. Gen. xxv. Japan, p. 48.

Branchiostegals numerous: pseudobranchie well developed. Gill-mem-
branes entirely separated. Body elongate and subcylindrical: abdomen not
compressed or serrated. Snout pointed: supplementary bones of the
maxilla very narrow. Eyes with adipose lids. Jaws with small, fixed teeth,
which are not deciduous: patches of villiform teeth on the vomer present or
absent, on the palatine and pterygoid bones and on the tongue. Dorsal fin
situated entirely in advance of the ventrals: anal fin short. Pyloric
appendages in large numbers.

Geographical distribution—Seas of eastern Australia and Japan ; Atlantic
coasts of the United States.

ETRUMEUS JACKSONENSIS.

Ltrumeus jacksoniensis, Macleay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S. Wales, ii. p. 36
pl. iv. fig. 1, and iv. p. 882.

Maray.
B; xvi. D.. 19. A. 11. Vo 40: B: 1G. C. 1%,

Length of head 4°75, of caudal fin 6°40, height of body 6°75 in the total
length. ye very large, entirely covered by adipose tissue, its length 2°75
in that of the head: snout compressed and moderately pointed, its length
1:50 in the diameter of the eye, and equal to the interorbital space. Nasal
openings inconspicuous, pierced at the opposite ends of a low, rounded,
skinny prominence. Upper surface of head very slightly convex, with a
median longitudinal ridge and lateral grooves, which latter joining on the
occiput where the ridge disappears, form an acutely triangular space, the
sides of which are scalloped. Lower jaw very slightly projecting. Cleft of
mouth moderate, clupeiform, and a little oblique, the scimitar-shaped maxilla
just reaching beyond the anterior margin of the eye. Preopercle with four
branched poriferous tubes passing backwards and downwards from the angle.
Teeth in the jaws ina single series ; those in the upper jaw exceedingly minute ;
on the sides of the lower jaw much larger, conical, and compressed ; a pyriform
patch on the vomer ; palatine bones and tongue rough. The distance between
the origin of the dorsal and the tip of the sno ut is 1:15 in that between the same
point and the base of the candal; fifth dorsal ray the longest, 1°75 in the length
of the head ; outer edge of the fin emarginate ; its basal | length longer than its
height : anal fin short and low, the last ray produced and equal i in height to

the. long anterior rays, leav ing the outer margin deeply indented ; its basal
length 2-75 in that of the dorsal: ventrals small, equal in length to the
diameter of the eye; they are inserted entirely behind the dorsal fin, the
distance between their origin and that of the anal being 1:15 in that between
the same point and the origin of the dorsal, which latter distance is equal to the

fy
h
,

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 187

length of the head: pectoral pointed, concave posteriorly, 1°66 in the same
length : caudal forked, the least height of its pedicle 2°50 in the height of
the body. Scales very deciduous, obscurely carinated: a lanceolate axillary
scale, almost as long as the pectoral fin. Gillrakers fine and closely set,
one third of the diameter of the eye.

Colors.— Dark blue above, silvery on the sides and below.

We have included this species on the strength of Macleay’s statement that
it is one of those known to the fishermen as ‘ Maray,’ and that it passes
northwards every winter in enormous shoals ; he concludes :—* Itis said also
to be very much appreciated as food by the few who have had the opportunity
of tasting it.” Specimens of this fish are unknown, with the exception of the
one mentioned by Macleay and taken in Port Jackson, and two or three
others in the Australian Museum, the largest of which measures seven and
two thirds inches,

They are very closely allied to the Clupea micropus, Schlegel, of the
Japanese Seas.

Family —_MURANIDE.

Murenoidei, Miller, Abhandl. Ak. Wiss. Berl. 1845, p. 193.

Body elongate, cylindrical, or band-shaped. Humeral arch not attached
to the skull. The branchial openings in the pharynx may be wide or narrow
slits. Margin of upper jaw formed anteriorly by the premaxillaries, which
are more or less coalescent with the vomer and ethmoid; laterally by the
tooth bearing maxillaries. Vertical fins, when present, confluent or separated
by the projecting tip of the tail: ventrals absent: pectorals present or
absent. Scales, when present, rudimentary. Vent situated at a great
distance from the head or near to the base of the pectoral fins. The heart

__ may be approximate to or remote from the gills. Stomach with a blind sae.

No pyloric appendages. Ovaries destitute of oviducts.

Geographical distribution —Seas and fresh waters of all temperate and
tropical regions.

Genus I.— ANGUILLA.

Anguilla (Thunberg), Cuvier, Régne Anim.

Body moderately elongated. Gill-openings of moderate extent, situated
near the base of the pectoral fins. Upper jaw not projecting beyond the
lower. Teeth small,forming bands. Dorsal fin commencing at some distance
behind the occiput: pectorals present. Small scales imbedded in the skin.

Geographical distribution.—The genus Anguilla appears to be resident in
the fresh waters and estuaries of the habitable globe, the circumpolar
regions, and certain localities lying at so high an altitude as to be subject to
intense cold, being the only exceptions.

ANGUILLA REINHARDTI.

Anguilla reinhardtii, Steindachn. SB. Ak. Wien, 1867, lv. p. 15; Guth.
Catal. Fish. viii. p. 27; Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. 11. p. 203, and Proc.
Linn. Soc. N. 8S. Wales, viii. p. 210.

188 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Long-finned Hel.
B. xu. D. C. & A. 488. P. 17. Vert. 43/63.

Length of head 2°30-2°50 in the distance between the extremity of the “%

snout and the origin of the dorsal fin, 3°20 between the chin and the origin
of the anal, and a trifle more than that between the origins of the two fins.
Eye small. Snout depressed and spatulate, its breadth immediately in front
of the eyes rather more than its length. Nostrils remote, the anterior
situated on the outer angle of the snout, tubular ; the posterior in front of
the middle of the orbit, oval and longitudinal, Lips moderately fleshy. Lower
jawa little the longer. The angle of the mouthsituated a short distance behind
the posterior margin of the orbit. Teeth cardiform on the jaws and vomer ;
the maxillary bands are nowhere so broad as the anterior three fifths of the
vomerine band, but extend considerably further back than does that band ;
the mandibular bands are equal in length to the maxillary, and are divided
into an outer and aninner series by a narrow longitudinal groove. Pectoral
small and rounded, its length 3°25-3°60 in that of the head: the length of
head and body is 1:10 in that of the tail.

Colors.—Above dark olive, more or less spotted and streaked with black ;
below white: fins rather darker: irides orange: teeth purple.

o

The breeding habits of Eels is a subject as yet so imperfectly understood that —

it is needless to say more here than that it is known that they are obliged to
descend from the fresh water to the brackish or pure sea water in order to
develop their spawn; that the young migrate to the upper waters of rivers
and creeks in countless thousands, overcoming in their course obstacles
seemingly insurmountable; that they increase in such places in size, but not
in numbers; that the adults, after spawning, either become permanently
resident in the tidal waters to which they have descended, or return to their
freshwater haunts irregularly and individually ; and that they are unisexual
and not, as was long supposed, hermaphrodite.

This is the common Eel of the Sydney markets, and is the species figured
as Anguilla australis by Tenison Woods. They occur in greater or less
numbers at all seasons of the year, and should be present much more
abundantly but that, strange as it may appear when we take into consider-
ation the very high price which they can always command in the market,
there is no regular fishery for them, such as are offered for sale being the
produce of the seine and prawn net, taken accidentally when seeking other
prey, in much the same way that the markets are supplied with that other
abnormally high-priced fish, the Black Sole, Synaptura nigra (see p. 160).

In addition to the above mentioned method, it may be easily taken with
hook and line, for, being exceedingly voracious, it will greedily snatch at
almost any bait, provided always that it shall be fresh, or better still, living ;
tainted meat they will avoid unless pressed by hunger. They take the bait
best during the night time, and a live frog, worm, or singing locust (Cyclochila
australasi@) ,* a piece of fresh fish or meat, and the entrails of fowls or fishes,
will all be found excellent baits. Eels are also taken in wicker or wire fish
creels, the former for preference, baited with fish or any fresh offal, and by
spearing.

It is almost needless to mention that as a food fish the Freshwater Eel
has few rivals, being rich, wholesome, and nutritious; though of excellent
flavor, by whatever method it may have been cooked, it is perhaps best when
stewed.

* The scientific name has been given to me by Mr. Skuse, of the Australian Museum.

}

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 189

Eels are very tenacious of life, and given favorable circumstance, can
remain for a long time out of their natural element without inconvenience ;
and the fact is well attested that should they for any reason take a dislike to
their surroundings, such, for instance, as from the pollution of the water, or the
imminence of a prolonged drought, they will leave any such localities as
isolated ponds, and migrate overland to the nearest pure water; while it has
also been asserted that they voluntarily leave the water on damp cool nights
and traverse the surrounding pastures in search of frogs, snails, worms, and
similar food. When on migration they are not easily turned from their path,
crossing even ploughed fields in their effort to reach more suitable quarters.

Eels are very susceptible of cold, and in localities subject to a low winter
temperature are accustomed to bury themselves deeply in the mud during the
continuance of the cold season ; nevertheless, that they can bear great cold
without life becoming extinct is evident from the following extract, quoted by
Day, from “Chamber’s Edinburgh Journal,’ for November 29th, 1851:
“Dr. Kirkland, of Cleveland, states that last winter as the frost set in, a
number of eels in a millpond, incommoded by the subsidence of the ice,
migrated to other ponds, trom which he obtained eight or ten bushels half
frozen. Having been placed in a cold, exposed room, they were as stiff and
almost as brittle as icicles in the morning. A tub was filled with them, and
water from a well added; then they were placed in a warm storeroom for
the purpose of thawing. In the course of an hour or two they were resus-
citated and as active as if just taken during the summer.”

In the streams which rise in the Blue Mountains, and flow into the
Nepean, Eels are in some places common in summer, but they totally
disappear about the month of March, probably making their way down
stream tothe deeper and warmer waters of the parent river, though it is
possible that some may remain concealed during the winter months under
rocks or among driftwood and other débris ; the water of these streams is
clear and intensely cold.

The Long-finned Eel is. common in all the rivers and estuaries which drain
the eastern watershed of New South Wales, but whether this or any other
species of Eel inhabits the rivers and lagunes of the vast territory lying to
the westward of the mountains is still an open question. They have on
many occasions been reported from thence ; nor is there any reason why
they should not be plentiful, nor any obstruction in the main river system
of the Murray, which could effectually bar their passage from its enbouchure
to the interior, since we have received from Bourke a species of Toadfish
(Letrodon inermis). When on a visit to the Cooma district, the author was
informed that Eels were plentiful in the Umaralla River, which empties into
the Murrumbidgee, but no specimens were obtained, nor have examples ever
been sent to either the Australian or the University Museum, the preponderance
of evidence is, therefore, against any Eel being a resident of our western
waters. It has been suggested that many of these reports arise through the
ignorance of their captors causing them to mistake the common Freshwater
Catfish (Copidoglanis tandanus)—not, as erroneously asserted by Tenison
Woods, Plotosus anguillaris Lacép., which is a marine littoral species
for an Eel, though this suggestion is apparently supported by the name
“ Kelfish,” applied to C. tandanus by Sir Thomas Mitchell.

Though not alluded to by Saville Kent, this species is found along the
entire Queensland coast, north to Cape York, from whence were obtained
several specimens now in the British Museum collection, while Macleay
records it from the Mary River, and the Lillesmere Lagunes. By Castelnau
it is noticed as from Western Port and the Mordialloc River.

190 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

These Eels attain to a length of at least three feet, with a weight of twelve
or even more pounds.

This species should be carefully compared with typical specimens of
A, aucklandii, A. amboinensis, and ‘A. Jidjiensis, and, in the event of these
proving to be but varietal Somme. A. aucklandi would be the oldest name.

Genus II.—MUR/ENA.

Murena, sp. Artedi, Gen. Pisce. 1738.

Body moderately or greatly elongated. Gull-openings reduced to narrow
slits. Two nostrils on each side of the upper surface of the snout, the
anterior tubular, the posterior a round orifice with or without a tube. Teeth
well developed, either acute or molariform: maxillary teeth in one or two
rows. Dorsal and anal fins elevated or low: pectorals absent. Scales none.

Geographical distribution —Seas of the temperate and tropical regions,
some species ascending tidal rivers.

According to Giinther the “number of s species known exceeds eigh
The majority « are armed with formidable pointed teeth, well suited for
seizing other fish on which they prey. Large specimens thus armed readily
attack persons in and out of the water ; and ay some species attain a length
of six or eight feet, they are justly feared by fishermen. The minority. of
species have obtuse and molar-like teeth, their food consisting chiefly of
crustaceans and other hard-shelled animals. Most of the Murenas are
beautifully colored and spotted, some in a regular and constant manner,
whilst in others the pattern varies in a most irregular fashion ; they have
quite the appearance of snakes.”

In connection with the subdivision of the genus Murena the same author
remarks: —“ Sir John Richardson has divided the species of this genus into
smaller groups, distinguished by the dentition. Dr. Kaup has done nothing
beyond adopting these groups and attaching generic names to them. How-
ever, only in a comparatively small part of the species is the arrangement of
the teeth of systematic value, as the dentition changes to. a considerable
extent with age. Young examples have generally more series of teeth than

mature or old individuals. Especially with regard to the one, two, or three
rane teeth, forming an inner maxillary series, it ¢ appears that normally these
teeth enter the outer series as the age of the individual advances. This
change is by no means regular, and one or two inner teeth are sometimes found
in examples of considerable size. Further, in some species the biserial
arrangment appears to be persistent through life; in other species, which are
known from a few examples only, we have no means of judging of the
extent of change. The uni- or biserial arrangement of the vomerine teeth is
also subject to much variation.”

Carrington in the Zoologist,commenting on their reputed savage disposition, |
expresses : the opinion that they do not deserve the character ; our Green Eel,
however, richly deserves it, as they will without hesitation attack a foot or
hand incautiously placed in the water in the neighborhood of their haunts.

MURANA AFRA.

Gymnothorax afer, Bloch, Ausl. Fisch. ix. p. 85, pl. eecexvii; Bl. Schn. p.
526.

Murenophis afra, Lacép. Hist. Nat. Poiss. v. p. 642.

Gymnothorax funebris, Ranz. Noy. Comm. Ac. Se. Inst. Bonon. iv. 1840, p.
76.

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 191

a ———

Murena lineopinnis, Richards. Voy. Erebus & Terror, Fish. p. 89.

Murena prasina, Richards. Voy. Erebus & Terror, Fish. p. 93.

Murena boschii, Bleek. Mur. p. 52, and Sumatra, p. 103.

Murena monochrous, Bleek. Ternate, p. 384.

Murena tristis, Kaup, Catal. Apod. p. 62.

Thyrsoidea lineopinnis, Kaup, Catal. Apod. p. 82.

Thyrsoidea boschit, Kaup, Arch. Natur. xxii. i. p. 82, and Catal. Apod. p.
87.

Murena infernalis, Poey, Mem. Cuba, i. pp. 347, 354.

Teniophis westphali, Kaup. Aale Hamb. Mus. Nacht. p. 1.

Gymnothorax boschi, Bleek. Atl. Ichthyol. Mur. p. 105, pl. xlvi. £. 3.

Gymnothorax monochrous, Bleek. Atl. Ichthyol. Mur. p. 106, pl. xlvii. f. 2.

Gymnothorax jacksoniensis, Bleek. Verst. en Meded. Ak. Wet. Amsterd.
1863, xv. p. 450.

Gymnothorax infernalis, Poey, Fis.-nat. Cuba, 11. p. 258.

Murena afra, Guth. Catal. Fish. p. vii, p. 123; Day, Fish. Ind. p. 671;
Steindachn. Denk. Ak. Wien, xliv. p. 59; Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish.
wp. 217.

Green Hel.
Vert. 59/66.

The distance between the tip of the lower jaw and the anterior margin of
the gill-opening 7°90 in the total length, and 4°30 between the same and the
origin of the anal: height of body 14°00 in the total length. Eye small,
its diameter 14°75 in the length of the head, and 2°50 in that of the snout,
which is narrow, pointed, and but moderately produced. Both nostrils
tubular, that of the anterior the longer, two fifths of the diameter of the
eye. A series of large pores along each jaw. Upper profile of head
gibbous. Lower jaw much the longer. Cleft of mouth wide, 2°85 in the
length of the head. Angle of the mouth about two diameters of the eye
behind its posterior margin. The diameter of the eye is 1°50 in that of the
gill-opening, which forms a horizontal slit. Teeth in both jaws biserial, the
inner series much the larger, compressed, pointed, and curving inwards and.
backwards, each with a shallow notch in front and a deep one behind,
twenty one or twenty two on each ramus of the maxilla, and twenty five on
each mandibular ramus, the three or four anterior ones the largest; a
triangular patch of three strong teeth on the head of the vomer anda
double row posteriorly. Finslow. Length of tail 1°20 in that of the trunk.

Colors.—Ground color yellowish-brown, almost hidden by purplish-brown
spots. When first taken from the water bright green.

Though the Green Eel is very common along the New South Wales coast,
frequenting the crannies and crevices among the rocks, and the larger rock
pools on the shore reefs, it is not often brought to market, its habits and the
peculiar localities which it frequents not leading the professional fisherman
to seek for it. It is an excellent food fish, its flesh being white, delicate, and
of good flavor. They are said to be easily taken in the rock pools with a
prawn or fish bait, by the use of a short, stout rod, and short line, but the
moment they are hooked they must be jerked out of the water, for if once
allowed to retreat into their crevice great difficulty is experienced in inducing
them to come out again.

192 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

As an instance of the ferocity of this species, we may quote Macgillivray
(see Richardson, Voy. Erebus § Terror, Fish. p. 93, as M. prasina), who
speaks of it as follows :—‘ It frequents weedy pools among the rocks on the
north side of Bondi Bay, near Sydney. It is very savage when irritated,
and once, when I was collecting corallines in that locality, a large individual
made a dart at my arm, and returned repeatedly to the attack, swimming
slowly about, winding among the seaweeds, and raising its snout to the
surface.”

These Eels are common on the east coast of Australia, as far south as the
metropolitan district, beyond which their range has not been accurately
defined. They occur all along the north coast, and doubtless are found to
about the same latitude south of the tropics on the west as on the east
coast. From the southern Colonies it has not been recorded.

At Lord Howe Island this is the most common Eel on the shore, and is
easily obtained under stones between tidemarks, up to a length of two feet. *

Beyond the limits of these colonies it has been recorded from many parts
of the Indian and Atlantic Oceans, within the tropics, while the British
Museum contains specimens from such widely-separated localities as Sumatra,
Jamaica, and the Niger.

The Green Eel grows to a length of thirty three inches.

* Zoology, &c., of Lord Howe Island Austr. Mus. Mem. No. 2, 1889,

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 193

Order IV.— PLHCTOGNATHTI.

Skeleton incompletely ossified with the vertebre in small numbers. Gill-
openings narrow, situated in front of the pectoral fins: gills pectinate.
Mouth narrow: the bones of the upper jaw usually firmly united, and some-
times produced into the form of a beak. Teeth in the jaws may be distinct
or absent. A soft dorsal fin, situated opposite to the anal, and belonging
to the caudal portion of the vertebral column : elements of a spinous dorsal
also present in some genera: ventral fins none or reduced to spines. Skin
smooth, or with rough scales, or ossified in the form of plates or spines.
Airbladder without pneumatic duct.

Geographical distribution—Mostly pelagic, but some inhabit large rivers,
while many are resident in the estuaries and tidal waters of the tropical and
temperate zones.

Family. BALISTIDA.

Body compressed: snout somewhat produced. Jaws armed with distinct
teeth in small numbers. Spinous dorsal reduced to one, two, or three spines:
ventral to a single pelvic prominence or entirely absent. One genus with a
barbel. Skin covered with scutes, or rough, or spinate.

In the genus Balistes the consumption of the flesh is at times attended
with symptoms of acute poisoning; this, according to Dr. Mennier, is
caused by the action of the poison on the nervous tissue of the stomach,
which occasions virulent spasms of that organ, and shortly afterwards of all
the muscles of the body; the usual symptoms of poisoning soon follow, and
the patient frequently expires in a paroxysm of suffering. No attempt
appears to have been made to locate the seat or distribution of the poison
in Balistes ; this, however, has been successfully demonstrated, in the case
of another Plectognathous genus, Tetrodon, by a series of experiments
conducted in Japan by Drs. D. Takahashi and Y. Inoko, whose researches
conclusively prove that the chief seat of the toxic power lies in the ovaries
and liver. The Leatherjackets (Monacanthus) are, however, free from all
poisonous properties and are excellent as food.

Genus.—_MONACANTHUS.

Monacanthus, Cuvier, Regne Anim,

Body compressed. Barbel absent. Upper jaw with a double series of
incisiform teeth, six in the outer and four in the inner series ; lower jaw
with a single series of six similar teeth. The first dorsal reduced to a spine,
which may be strong or feeble, barbed or merely rough ; behind this a second
rudimentary spine is generally present: ventral reduced to a fixed or movable
osseous process, which may be rudimentary or even entirely absent. Scales
minute and rough: some species with cutaneous filaments: adult males of
some species with a peculiar armature of the sides of the tail, which in
females is much less developed or entirely absent. Vertebre 7/11—14.

Geographical distribution.—Tropical and temperate seas.

Alluding to the edible qualities of the Leatherjackets—by which name the
Monacanthi are universally known in the Colonies—Saville Kent, in bis
Preliminary Report on the Food Fishes of Queensland, writes :—“ Although
not incorporated among the ordinary food fishes, it is worthy of mention here
that many of the species of the Leatherjackets (Monacanthus), which abound
in the Queensland and other Australian seas, are in many instances most
excellent eating, their flesh when cooked—the skin being previously

N

194 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

removed—having been compared to that of the Sole and Flounder.” On
the same subject Castelnau remarks :—‘‘ Those of the Victorian waters are
not generally used as food, although the fishermen say that when their thick
skin has been removed they are not to be despised.” Johnston, too, referrimg
to its estimation in Tasmania, says :—‘‘ Some of them are said to be very
good for the table when skinned; but they are not held in esteem in the
market, and consequently are seldom seen there.”

MONACANTHUS HIPPOCREPIS.

Balistes hippocrepis, Quoy & Gaim. Voy. Uranie, Zool. p. 212.

Aleuterius variabilis, Richards. Voy. Erebus & Terror, Fish. p. 67, pl. lii. ff.
1-7.

Monacanthus hippocrepis, Holland, Ann. Se. Nat. 1854, 11. p. 338 ; Stemdachn.
SB. Ak. Wien, 1868, lvii. p. 1002; Gnth. Catal. Fish. vii. p. 246;
Casteln. Proc. Linn. Soe. N.S . Wales, iti. p. 399; McCoy, Prodr. Zool.
Vict. dec. xiii. pl. 125.

Variable Leatherjacket.
Plate XLVILLI.
D. 39, A. 37. P. 13. C. 12.

Length of head 3°80, of candal fin 6°33, height of body 3°25 in the total
length. Eye moderate, its diameter 420 in the length of the snout, and
1-20 in the interorbital space, which is convex. Nostrils small, approximate,
oval, subequal. Snout long, obtusely rounded, its upper surface slightly
convex. Gill-opening situated beneath the posterior half of the orbit, its
length 2°85 in that of the snout. Dorsal spine strong and straight, its length
1:40 in the same ; it is situated above the posterior half of the orbit, and is
compressed and transversely expanded; anteriorly it is rounded, and bears -

a double row of small spinate points, with a narrow, mostly naked, space
between them; the hinder lateral margins are armed with muchstrongerspies.
pointing outwards and downwards, and the space intervening between the
two sets of spines is covered by minute conical points. Soft dorsal and
anal fins rather low, with the outer margins convex, and the middle rays the —~
longest, those of the anal being a little longer than the dorsal rays, 260in
the length of the snout: the anal commences beneath the sixth dorsal ray,
and ends a little behind that fin; its basal length is 1:20 in that of the
dorsal: ventral spine small, immovable, its tip eneireled by small spines :
pectoral small, rounded posteriorly, situated behind the vertical from the
orbit, its length 2°66 in that of the snout: caudai subtruneate, with the
angles slightly produced in old examples; the pedicle with three pairs of
strong spines directed forwards, its least height 3°66 in the height of the
body. Scales well marked, rough, and velvety

Colors.—U pper surfaces olive green darkest on the head, shading into
lighter below ; middle of the sides with an oval orange bloteh, within which
a horseshoe-shaped band is present or absent; lips surrounded by two or
three dull blue yellow-edged bands; sides of ‘the abdomen with narrow, —
sinuous, blue bands : fins pale yellow, immaculate; caudal with a broad
sublunate band, convex anteriorly, near its outer margin.

This large and handsome species is not so often to be found in the market as
are the two which follow, and appears to be of a more solitary disposition
than they. The flesh of the Variable Leatherjacket is beautifully white and
flaky, and of excellent flavor. It is more of an ocean fish than the majority
of its congeners ; and the few that find their way to market are taken on the
outside reef's by hook and line, and is not exigeant as to the character of the +

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 195

bait used, but in a natural state its principal food consists of molluscs
and crustaceans, the hard shells of which are easily crushed by its strong
incisor teeth.

Alluding to a closely allied species (1. convewirostris), whichis found both
on our coast and that of New Zealand—where it is said to be the sole’
representative of the genus—Sherrin writes: “Though usually cast aside as
worthless, it has really palatable flesh, when the tough skin, from which
it receives its trivial name, is removed. The Maori name for this fish is
Sier.”’

The Variable or Orange-spotted Leatherjacket is found along our coast at
least as far north as the Port Jackson District, but to what extent it ranges
from thence we areunable to say, since, from the fact that they do not pay
for their carriage when sent from a distance, we have no means of ascertaining
their true distribution. Theyare also found in the seas of Victoria, Tasmania,
and South Australia, and are, according to McCoy, not uncommon in the
former Colony. Klunzinger has also recorded it from King George’s Sound.

They attain a length of eighteen inches.

MONACANTHUS TRACHYLEPIS.

Monacanthus trachylepis, Guth. Catal. Fish. viii. p. 248 ; Klunzing. SB. Ak.
Wien, 1879, lxxx. Abth. i. p.422 ; Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. ti. p. 249.

Monacanthus rudis, Klunzing. SB. Ak. Wien, 1872, p. 48 (not Richardson).

Monacanthus convexirostris, Klunzing. SB. Ak. Wien, 1872, p. 43 (not
Giinther).

? Monacanthus baudini, Casteln. Proc. Zool. Soc. Vict. i. p. 55.

Yellow-finned Leatherjacket.
D. 36-39. A. 33-35. P. 12-13. €. 12.

Length of head 3°75, of caudal fin 5°50-6:00, height of body 2°90-3°00 in
the total length. Eye small, its diameter 3°75 in the length of the snout,
and 1:25 in the interorbital space, which igs strongly convex. Nostrils
approximate, situated a little below the plane of the upper margin of the
eye, the anterior minute and circular, furnished with a small posterior flap ;
the posterior patent and horizontally oval. Snout produced, with the pro-
file slightly concave. Gill-opening advanced and very oblique situated
beneath the anterior two thirds of the orbit, its length 3°00-3°25 in that of
the snout. Dorsal spine strong and straight, equal in length to the snout,
and situated above the middle of the orbit; its latero-posterior margins
armed with a series of small barbs pointing backwards and downwards, and
with a double series of minute, closely set barbs anteriorly ; the remaining
surface of the spine rough in front, smooth behind : soft dorsal and anal fins
rather low, subequal in height, the longest rays in front of the middle of
the fins, and three sevenths of the height of the dorsal spine: the anal com-
mences beneath the fifth or sixth dorsal ray, and ends but little beyond that
fin: ventral spine minute, immovable, with very short teeth radiating from its
centre: pectoral small, placed beneath the hinder margin of the orbit, its
length 2°25-2'40 in that of thesnout: caudal rounded; the pedicle with two
pairs of strong compressed spines curved forwards on each side, and occa-
sionally a supplementary spine on one or both sides, its least height 8:40—
3°55 in the height of the body, and its length between the end of the dorsal
and the base of the caudal equal to its height. Scales indistinct, replaced
by vertical prominences, each of which bears from three to five spinelets; a
small patch of longer bristles immediately in front of the pedicular spines.

196 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. |

— —= = @

Colors.—Head, back, and abdominal region either dark greenish-brown,
or olive green with three darker longitudinal bands; above the anal fin paler
yellowish-brown ; middle of the sides with several narrow undulated and
branched black lines ; two narrow purple bands, with a yellow streak
between them round the lips, two broader purple bands, which quickly dis-
appear after death, inside the bases of the soft dorsal and anal, which, with
the pectorals and pedicular spines, are yellow, the latter having their tips
blackish: membrane of dorsal spine black, with large pale blue spots ;
caudal rays pale brown, with the connecting membrane orange in large
examples, in the young with a basal and submarginal olive band: teeth
white, with yellow tips.

The habit’ of this species apparently differ in some respects from the two
other Leatherjackets described in this work, inasmuch as it is never caught
on the outside reefs by the line fishers, but ‘occasionally visits the sheltered
harbors and inlets of the metropolitan district in large shoals, whence it is
sent in considerable numbers to the market, where they find a ready sale at
moderate prices. Such a visitation took place during the summer of 1892,
when they were sent to the market in large numbers from all the inlets
lying between Port Hacking and Broken Bay, while their occurrence among
other fishes from Port Stephens and Shoalhaven—localities from which
Leatherjackets are not forwarded to the market as a general rule—proves
that shoals of these fish were prevalent upon a considerable portion of our
coastline at that time, since which none have appeared.

That these were true “ school” fishes, even though they showed no signs of
spawning, was evident from the fact that they were all of much the same
size,—from twelve to fourteen inches; they were readily, even eagerly
bought as long as the supply lasted, and we, among others, took the
opportunity of testing their edible qualities, with the ovatifying result that
we found them, if any ything, superior to the other Leatherjackets previously
experimented on, and quite equal to any fish of these seas.

The Yellow-finned—or, as Johnston calls it, Lozenge-scaled—Leather-
jacket is found in the seas of New South Wales, Victoria, and Tasmania,
and very probably, since it is recorded from Port Darwin by Klunzinger,
round the entire seaboard of Australia.

They attain to a length of sixteen inches.

MONACANTHUS AYRAUDI.

Balistes ayraudi, Quoy & Gaim. Voy. Uranie, Poiss. p. 216, pl. xlvii, fig. 2.

Aluteres velutinus, “Jeny ns. Voy. Beagle, Fish. p. 157.

Monacanthus vittatus (Solander), Richards. Voy. Erebus & Terror, Fish.
p- 66; Steindachn. SB. Ak. Wien, 1866, lili. p. 476, and 1867, lvi. p. 335.

Monacanthus Srauenfeldii, Kner, Voy. Novara, Fisch. p. 397.

Monacanthus ayraudi, Guth. Catal. Fish. viii. p. 244; Casteln. Proc. Linn.
Soe. N. 8. Wales, iii. p. 397; Macleay, Catal. Austr. Fish. ii, p. 262%
Woods, Fisher. N. 8. Wales, p. 89, pl. xlix.

Ayraud’s Leatherjacket.
D7a2.2As 3. P2138. 10; 12.

Length of head 3°25, of caudal fin 6°75, height of body 3°50 in the
total length. Eye moderate, its diameter 4°50 in the length of the snout,
and 1:15 in the interorbital space, which is almost flat. “Nostrils approxi-
mate, rounded, the anterior much the smalier. Snout much produced, with
its upper profile slightly convex. Gill-opening situated beneath the middle of
the orbit, its length 3°90 in that of the snout. Dorsal spine moderate and

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 197

slightly curved backwards, its length two fifths of that of the snout; it is
situated above the posterior margin of the orbit, and is strongly compressed
and expanded laterally, the anterior facies being flat and feebly granulose,
the posterior rounded and smooth; each sharp lateral edge armed with a
series of small barbs, which point outwards and downwards: soft dorsal and
anal fins faleate, the seventh to ninth rays the longest, subequal in length,
and 1°40 in the basal length of the anal, which commences beneath the
twelfth dorsal ray and terminates a short distance behind that fin: ventral
spine small, immovable, and roughened, without distinct teeth: pectoral
small, situated beneath the hind margin of the orbit, its length 3:25 in that
of the snout: caudal subtruncate, the pedicle long, shallow, and spineless,
its least height 4°50 in the height of the body, and its length between the end
of the dorsal and the base of the caudal but little less than the base of the
anal. Skin rough and pilose.

Colors.—Pale yellow or yellowish-brown, uniform or with two to four
indistinct lighter longitudinal body bands in the adults, these bands being
always present and well marked in small specimens: all the fins bright

ellow.

Like Monacanthushippocrepis, Ayraud’s Leatherjacket is principally taken
by hook and line on the ocean reefs by the boats engaged in fishing for
Snapper. In such places it is unfortunately plentiful, and is a source of
great annoyance to the fishermen, as, when hooked, it cuts the line with ease,
its strong sharp teeth forming admirable nippers, and if present in any num-
bers the loss sustained from this cause is frequently very great, not so much
from the actual loss of gear, as from the waste of time necessitated by
remounting the lines making the capture of the more valuable fishes almost
an impracticability.

Alluding to this subject, the Report of the Royal Commission says :-—* It
is a most serious annoyance to the fishermen, infesting their favorite fishing-
grounds and cutting their lines. The plague of these fishes seems to be on
the increase, and unless some means can be found of getting rid of the pest,
Snapper fishing will have to be conducted with wire lines.” We are not by
any means sure that the proposed remedy would be as efficacious as the Com-
missioners appear to have thought. The same Report, with a slight touch of
humor, refers to the Leatherjackets as being “ numerously represented in
the Australian seas, but out of the entire number one only can be cited as
being in the least degree wseful, and that one is productive of more harm than

ood,”

It is not, however, on the outer reefs alone that this species occurs, for it
is at times plentiful in our bays and estuaries in its young or half grown
state, when measuring up to ten inches in length, and is then taken in
numbers by the seine, and when so captured is left to roton the beach, or
be washed away by the next tide, being objects of abhorrence to fishermen
of all grades.

This species, in common with many other Leatherjackets—notably J.
chinensis—forms the host of one, or more, species of isopodous crustacean
(Anilocra ?) which burrows into the side of the abdomen immediately beneath
the outer skin. These do not appear to cause any inconvenience to their
hosts, specimens of which, when so attacked, are to all appearance equally
healthy and in equally good condition as those which are exempt from
attack.

The only localities from which this species can be recorded with certainty,
are the metropolitan district of New South Wales, and King George's Sound,
whence Klunzinger received it.

They attain a length of at least eighteen inches.

198 EDIBLE CRUSTACEANS OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Class.—CRUSTACEAS*

Invertebrate animals, distinguished by the possession of a more or less
hard, jointed, external crust, or exoskeleton, nearly all living habitually in
water, and breathing by means of gills.

Of the Crustacea the large group of the Malacostraca are distinguished
from the rest (the Entomostraca) by the number of the segments of the
body, of which there are always twenty, except in certain cases in which
amalgamation or abortion of ene or more of the segments has taken place.

Tribe I— BRACHYURA.

Abdomen short, inflexed beneath the thorax, without swimmerets, and
with no appendages on the penultimate segment. Carapace greatly developed,
forming wide branchial chambers above the bases of the legs. Sternum
never linear; vulve situated on the sternum. Antenne with the flagella
usually very short, especially those of the inner pair, which are lodged in
distinct cavities. External maxillipedes operculiform. Buccal cavity
distinctly defined in front.

Subtribe.—Cyclometopa.

Carapace usually transverse, wide in front, regularly arcuate anteriorly

(sometimes quadrate or suborbicular),never acuminate or rostrate. Epistome

short, transverse. Internal antenne usually transversely plicate.

Family I.—PORTUNIDZs.

Carapace depressed, usually more or-less hexagonal in shape, never very
convex. Antero-lateral margins with well defined acute teeth. Inner ramus
of the first ((mnermost) pair of maxillipedes with an internal lobe. Margin
of the efferent branchial channel usually defined by a longitudinal ridge on
each side of the prelabial plate or palate. Fifth pair of ambulatory legs

natatorial, their terminal joint oval, expanded, and lamellate.

Genus I.—_NEPTUNUS.

Neptunus, De Haan, Faun. Japon. Crust. p. 7, 1835.

Carapace very wide, with transverse granulous lines. Latero-anterior
margins with nine or more teeth (including the external orbital angle), the
last tooth much the longest. Front wide and divided into five or six teeth.
Flagellum of external antennez placed in the internal orbital hiatus.
External maxillipedes short. Anterior legs long: arm with acute tubercles
upon the anterior margin: hand nearly prismatic, with longitudinal ridges
giving rise above to spiniform tubercles. Thigh of the swimming legs with
the lower margin usually destitute of spines.

* All the technical diagnoses are taken from Dr. Haswell’s “ Catalogue of Australian Crustacea,” the
species selected being those most commonly found in the Sydney market.

4
ot

ee en ay

ee ae ees

=

*

EDIBLE CRUSTACEANS OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 199

NEPTUNUS PELAGICUS.
Cancer pelagicus, Linn. Syst. Nat. p. 1042, 1766.
Lupea pelagica, Milne-Edw,. Hist. Nat. Crust. i. p. 450, 1834.
Neptunus pelagicus, part. A. Milne-Edw. Arch. Mus. Hist. Nat. x. p. 820
1861; Miers, Ann. Nat. Hist. (4) xvii. 1866, p. 221, and Catal. Crust.
N. Zeal. p. 25, 1876 ; Haswell, Austr. Malacostr. p. 77, 1882.

Common Swimming Crab.
Plate L.

Carapace wide, with very coarse granulations, without tubercles on the
gastric and cardiac regions. Teeth of the lateral margins short, wide at the
base ; ninth epibranchial spine long, acute. Front six-toothed, the median
teeth smaller but never obsolete. Orbits divided above into three lobes by
two deep fissures, the middle lobe with a small spine at its external angle.
Anterior legs very long and slender. Anterior margin of the arm with three,
four, or even five spines; there is also a single spine at the extremity of the
posterior margin. Wrist with an acute spine upon its inner and a similar
smaller spine upon its outer surface. Hand usually very long and slender,
with three spines, two placed above the base of the mobile finger, and one
over the articulation of the hand with the wrist.

This is the most common species of crab sent to the Sydney market, and
is very widely distributed throughout the Oriental region. It occurs at all
seasons, and is both used as food and as bait; it is principally taken by the
seine, and weighs as much as a pound to a pound and a half.

Genus II.—SCYLLA.,

Scylla, De Haan, Faun. Japon. Crust. p. 11, 1835.

Carapace very wide and rather convex. Latero-anterior margins with nine
teeth, the ninth similar to the preceding. Basal joint of the external
antenne large, the flagellum inserted in the internal orbital hiatus.
Epistome well developed ; anterior margin of the buccal cavity separated by
a transverse groove from the posterior margin of the antennary region..
Anterior legs short and robust: hand without longitudinal ridges.

SCYLLA SERRATA.

Cancer serratus, Forskal.

Cancer olivaceus, Herbst, Krabben u. Krebse, il. p, 157, pl. xxxvui. fig. 3,
1796.

Portunus tranquebaricus, Fabr. Ent. Syst. p. 366, 1798.

LIupea tronquebarica, Milne-Edw. Hist. Nat. Crust. 1. p. 448, 1834.

LIupea lobifrons, Milne-Edw. Hist. Nat. Crust. 1. p. 453.

Scylla serrata, De Haan, Faun. Japon. Crust. p. 44, 1834; A. Milne-Edw.
Ann. Sci. Nat. (4) xiv. p. 252, pls. i, i. 1860, and Nouv. Arch.
Mus. x. p. 349, 1861; Miers, Catal. Crust. N. Zeal. p. 27, 1876;
Haswell, Austr. Malacostr. p. 78, 1882.

Scylla tranquebarica, Dana, U.S. Expl. Exped. xiii. Crust. part i. p. 270,
1852.

200 EDIBLE CRUSTACEANS OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Mangrove Crab.

Carapace convex, nearly smooth, very finely granulated ; the lines on the
gastric and branchial regions distinct. Latero-anterior margins very long.
Front with six large flat teeth. Anterior legs very robust, » arm trigonous,
with three spines upon the anterior, and two upon the posterior margin.
Wrist with an acute spine at its antero-internal angle, and two small spines
upon its external surface. Hand very large, with three spines above, two
above the base of the mobile finger, and one over the articulation with the
wrist.

Color.— Olive brown.

Occurs at all seasons in small numbers, and is a large and well flavored
crab, growing to a weight of three pounds; during May 1893, they were
exceptionally common, as many as a dozen being in the market on some
mornings.

Tribe 11.—MACRURA.

Abdomen elongate, extended backward, with lamellar appendages beneath.
Appendages to the penultimate segment large, laterally expanded and con-
stituting, with the terminal segment, a fan-like swimming apparatus.
Sternum usually linear throughout its length. Antenne very greatly
developed, inner without fossettes. External maxillipedes nearly always
pediform. Buceal cavity not distinctly defined in front.

Family I.— PALINURID&.

Carapace subcylindrical, broadly rounded laterally. External antenne
without a basal scale, the basal joints long, subcylindrical. Anterior legs
monodactyle. Sternum trigonous,

Genus.—PALINURUS.
Palinurus, Faby. Suppl. Ent. Syst. 1798
Carapace with a small rostrum. Antennary segment very narrow above.
External antenne nearly in contact with one another at their bases, and con-
cealing the bases of the internal antenne, the flagella of which are very

short.
PALINURUS HUEGELI.

Polinurus higelii, Heller, Voy. Novara, Crust. p. 96, 1872; Haswell, Austr.

Malacostr. p. 172, 1882.
? Palinurus tumidus, Kirk, Trans. N. Z. Inst. 1879, xii. p. 314.

Sydney Crawfish.
Plate X LIX.

Carapace a little narrowed anteriorly, convex and spinose above, the
spines prominent, acute, and directed forwards and upwards. Rostrum
acute, spiniform, directed almost straight forwards; the lateral cornua a
little smaller, smooth above and below ; ; anterior margin of the carapace
near the orbit with a single spine. Spaces between the spines smooth.
Carapace with a deep transverse suleus in front of the posterior margin.
Abdomen punctate, covered with small, miliary granules, not sulcate in ‘the
middle, the lateral cornua armed behind with several acute teeth.

This is the common Sydney Crayfish. Mr. T. W. Kirk has described and
figured, in the Transactions of the New Zealand Institute for 1879, under the
name of P. tumidus, a species of Rock-Lobster obtained in the North Island,

EDIBLE CRUSTACEANS OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 201

and mentions that Dr. Hector had told him that it is the same species as the
common Crayfish of the Sydney market. The difference between P. tumidus
and P. hiigelit he states to be, (1) the greater size of the former, (2) the
upward curvature of the beak, supraorbital, and antennary spines, and (3)
the telson in the former being less triangular, and rounded instead of
scarped. - Leaving size out of consideration, the upward (and forward)
direction of the spines mentioned is, so far as can be seen, present in
P. hiigelii as deseribed and figured by Heller; and there is such a close
agreement in all other points between that species and the common Sydney
Crayfish that I am inclined to regard the concave posterior border of the
telson shown in the figure (but not mentioned in the description) to be either
an artist’s slip, or the result of the wearing of the posterior thin edge of the
telson in the specimen figured.

Jn young specimens of the Sydney Crayfish the spines on the carapace are
very prominent, and all, without exception, pointed as represented in the
*‘ Reise der Novara,” but in large specimens many of them become blunt,
and reduced to the appearance of tubercles, as described by Mr. Kirk in the
large New Zealand specimen. (Hasvell.)

This large and valuable crustacean exists in countless numbers along our
rocky shores, notwithstanding which the Sydney market is as a rule but
poorly supplied, and that from only a few localities, the principal of which
are Port Stephens, Cape Hawke, and sometimes Shoalhaven. Broken Bay,
which used to be the main source of the metropolitan supply, now furnishes
but few, this decadence being the result of the reckless destruction of the
breeding females. So abundant is this Crayfish, and, with proper legislative
precautions, so apparently inexhaustible the supply, that at but little expense
a great and profitable canning industry might with ease be established in our
various centres of distribution.

This fine species grows to a weight of six pounds or eyen more.

Family II.—ASTACIDZ.

Carapace oblong, subcylindrical, rostrate, scarcely narrower than the
abdomen. External antenne provided with a basal scale. First three pairs
of ambulatory legs chelate. Sternum narrow.

Genus,_ASTACOPSIS.
Astacopsis, Huxley, 1878.

Epistome long and flattened: basal joint of the antenne fixed by the over-
lapping edge of the cephalostegite: squame short: posterior thoracic sterna
narrow: coxopodites of the hinder thoracic limbs large and approximated in
the middle line. Rostrum straight; podobranchiz not alate.

ASTACOPSIS SERRATUS.

Cancer serratus, Shaw, Zool. N. Holland, pl. vii.

Astacus armatus, EB. von Martens, Ann. Nat. Hist. (8) xvii. p. 359.

Astacoides spinifer, Heller, Voy. Novara, Crust. p. 102, pl. ix.

Potamobius serratus, White, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1850, p. 95, pl. xv; McCoy,
Ann. Nat. Hist. (8) xx. 1867, p. 189.

Astacoides serratus, B. von Martens, MB. Ak. Wiss. Berl. 1868, p. 615.

Astacopsis serratus, Haswell, Austr. Malacostr. p. 174. :

? Astacopsis parramattensis, Spence Bate, Voy. Challenger, xxiv. p. 202,
pl. xxvii. f. 1, 18. .

? Astacopsis sydneyensis, Spence Bate, Voy. Challenger, xxiv. p. 204, pl.
axi, f. 2,18.

202 EDIBLE CRUSTACEANS OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

River Crayfish.

Plate LI.

Sides of the carapace on the hepatic and branchial regions furnished with
scattered conical spines, each enlarged at its base. Rostrum about as long
as the peduncles of the outer antennx,pointed and furnished on each side with
four teeth ; its borders continued backwards for a short distance on the cara-
pace in the form of a ridge. A spine placed behind the middle of the orbit,
continued backwards into a similar shorter ridge. Scales of the outer antennse
pointed. Merus of chelipedes with a row of sharp spines on its mner border,
two or three spines on its upper surface, and a row of small irregular teeth
on its upper border; carpus with two or three prominent spines on its
inner surface—the first the longest—and one or two on the outer surface.
Hand with both borders armed with a row of short spines bent forwards, and
forming a double row on the external edge, and a single one on the internal.
Following pairs of thoracic limbs with scattered spines. Segments of the
abdomen with four to ten large conical acute spines, except the sixth, which
usually has about a dozen smaller spines. T'elson usually with about eighteen
small spines. Appendages of sixth segment usually armed with about a
dozen small spines.

Mr. Whitelegge considers that 4. parramattensis and A. sydneyensis are
only the young of A. serratus, which is a very variable species.

The River Crayfish is but rarely seen in the Sydney market, but is largely
used as food by the residents on the banks of the rivers, in which it abounds,
during the winter months, when they are in their best condition and most
readily caught; they are excellent eating and grow to about a foot in length.

Family I1I.—PEN AIDA.

Three anterior pairs of legs chelate, longer than the rest, and more or
less stronger.

Genus—PENAUS.

Peneus, Fabr. Suppl. Ent. Syst. 1798.

Three anterior pairs of feet linear: two posterior pairs not amerelleeoels
Carapace with a long ensiform rostrum. Abdominal feet with two lamine.
External maxillipedes palpigerous.

PENZUS CANALICULATUS.

Palemon canaliculatus, Olivier, Encyel. vii. p. 660, 1811.

Peneus canaliculatus, Milne-Edw. Hist. Nat. Crust. 1. p. 414, 1837;
De Haan, Faun. Japon. Crust. p. 190, 1849; Miers, Proc. Zool. Soe.
1878, p. 298 ; Haswell, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S. Wales, iv. 1879, po ase
and Aust. Malacostr. p- 198, 1882.

Peneus plebejus, Hess, Arch. f. Nat. xxxi. p. 168, pl. vu. fig. 19.

Sand Prawn.

A median crest, mesially grooved behind, and with a deep longitudinal
groove on either side of if continued from the base of the rostrum to the
posterior border of the carapace. Rostrum as long as the peduncles of the
antennules, curved slightly upwards towards the acute extremity armed with
10-12 teeth above and one below. A very strong tooth on the anterior
border of the carapace above the insertion of the antenne ; a second, much

J

.

EDIBLE CRUSTACEANS OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 2038

smaller between that and the rostrum ; and a third behind the rudimentary
cervical suture at the base of the first. Base of the legs of the two first
pairs armed with strong spines. Telson with three spines on each side.
This Prawn is taken in large numbers by small-meshed nets on the sandy
beaches near the mouths of our rivers, the principal supply coming from
George’s and Cook’s Rivers.
They are delicious food, and grow to five inches in length.

PEN AZUS MONODON.

Peneus monodon, Fabr. Supp. p. 408; Latr. Hist. Nat. des An. et Ins. vi.
‘ p- 249; Lam. Hist. des An. sans Vert. v. p. 205; Desm. Consid. p.

225; M.-Edw. Hist. Nat. Crust.ii. p. 416; Miers, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1878,
p. 307 ; Haswell, Austr. Malacostr. p. 199.

Peneus semisulcatus, De Haan, Faun. Japon. Crust. p. 191, pl. xlvi. f.. 1,
1849 ; Miers. Proc. Zool. Soc. 1878, p. 299 ; Haswell, Austr. Malacostr.
p. 199.

Peneéus esculentus, Haswell, Proc. Linn. Soc. N. 8. Wales, 1879, iv. p. 38,
and Austr. Malacostr. p. 200.

Tiger Prawn.

A dorsal carina, not or obsoletely sulcated, generally not reaching to the
posterior extremity of the carapace. Gastro-hepatic sulcus deep. Rostrum
with six to eight teeth above, of which the most posterior is separated from
the next by a distance greater than the intervals between the others; its
lower border armed with three or four teeth. First pair of legs with a long
acute spine on the under surface of the second joint, and another on the
under surface of the third joint ; the second pair with a single spine on the
second joint. Telson acute.

Mr. Whitelegge, in his ‘“‘ Marine and Freshwater Invertebrate Fauna of
Port Jackson,” writes of this species :—“ P. monodon, Fabr. = P. semisul-
catus, De Haan = P. esculentus, Hasw.” This isthe “Tiger Prawn” of the
Sydney fishermen. Spence Bate in the Challenger Report, vol. xxiv. p.
250, says that the females alone have a groove on the dorsal carina; in Dr.
Haswell’s specimen from Port Darwin, there is a well marked groove; the
Specimen is a male.”

This species is at times common in the Sydney market, but is irregular m
its appearance ; during the symmer and autumn of 1891-92 it was excep-
tionately plentiful, since which time but few specimens have been observed ;
Dr. Haswell is mistaken in saying that this species is “ the common edible
Prawn of Sydney, Newcastle, &c.”

This is a marine species and is taken principally, if not entirely, on clean
sandy beaches. It does not mix much with other Prawns, but from its
preference for the same class of ground sometimes occurs in company with
P. canaliculatus.

PENAUS, SP.

Mr. Whitelegge says: “This is probably an undescribed form. The
carapace is hairy, sculptured, and each of the first three pairs of legs bears a
spine near the base.

This is by far the most common species offered for sale, P. canaliculatus
and P. macleayi are often seen intermixed with it, the lastnamed being the
rarest of the two.” Sie. aed
: oo at certain seasons in the Sydney market and much valued as

ood.

Attains a length of three inches.

204: EDIBLE CRUSTACEANS OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

PENAUS MACLEAYI.
Peneus macleayi, Haswell, Proc. Linn. Soc. N. 8S. Wales, iv. 1879, p. 40,
and Austr. Malacostr. p. 201.

Mud or River Prawn.

Rostrum extending nearly as far forward as the end of the antennary
scale, very slender and styliform near the apex, which is recurved; armed
with five or six teeth above, of which the fifth is separated from the fourth
by an interval greater than that separating the others; unarmed below;
produced behind into a low carina, which broadens out and becomes lost
before attaining the posterior third of the carapace; a lateral groove at the
side of the rostrum and the anterior part of the carapace. Gastro-hepatic
suleus deep. Supraorbital spine absent; antennary and hepatic spines
present. Filaments of antennules subequal, scarcely equal in length to the
two last joints of the peduncle. External maxillipedes slender, hairy ; palp
extending as far as the middle of the third articulation of the endopodite.
First pair of ambulatory legs as long as the antennary scale, very hairy in-
ternally ; second and third progressively longer ; fourth shorter than third ;
fifth the longest of all and very slender. First and second and sometimes
third pairs each with a spine at the base of the second joint. Abdomen
having the fourth, fifth, and sixth segments dorsally carinated ; carina ending
in a small spine at the posterior border of the sixth segment. Terminal
segment longitudinally grooved in the middle dorsal line, ending in a spini-
form apex, ciliated laterally, and armed on each side near the extremity
with a strong spine, with two or three weaker spines immediately anterior to
it (Haswell).

The remarks on the last species apply equally well to this.

The four following species often occur in the market and are used as

food :—

Ibacus peroni; a few may be picked up inthe market during any month in
the year, but they are never common; we have seen them taken both by
trawl and dredge in Ball’s Head Bay, Port Jackson.

They are used as food and are said to be of good quality; they grow to a
length of seven inches.

Goniosoma crucifera sometimes occurs in the market in considerable
numbers, and is a large and handsome species, generally eaten, and attaining
to a weight of at least one pound.

Platyonychus bipustulatus occasionally appears in numbers in the market,
and we have seen the shore at Lady Robinson’s Beach, Botany Bay, covered
with them after a southerly gale.

Squilla levis; this crustacean is always obtainable among prawns (Peneus
canaliculatus) in the market, but is sometimes much more abundant than at
others, in fact we have known them to form about one third of the total
supply. They reach a length of about six inches.

i

EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 205

fee EN DiLX.

LUTIANUS FULVIFLAMMA.
(Page 15.)

We have lately received a fine specimen from Cape Hawke, which
measured sixteen and three-fourths inches.

SCATOPHAGUS MULTIFASCIATUS.
(Page 36.)

From an examination of several specimens obtained in the Sydney market
since our description was written, we are now convinced that our Scatophaqus
differs specifically from that figured by Richardson and Giinther. The name
will, so far as we are at present able to decide, have to stand as Scatophagus
etatevarians, De Vis; we, however, take this opportunity of recording our
protest against the practice of manufacturing specific names so utterly
unmeaning as this.

CARANX TRACHURUS.
(Page 77.)

On page 78 we quote a passage from the Report of the Royal Commission,
for the accuracy of which we were unable to vouch ; we are, therefore, happy
to be able to state that the authority therefor is Dr. Giinther, who says :—
“The large Medusz on our” ?.e., the British, “ coast are almost always accom-
panied by young fishes. On the south coast I found them to be Scad, one
large Medusa offering a temporary home to more than fifty of these young
fishes, which were from two to three inches long.” (Voy. Challenger, XX ,

5 ae

SCOMBER PNEUMATOPHORUS.
(Page 93.)
In the description of this Mackerel, the following sentence occurs ;—

Seiameter of eye.......- 1:-40-1°60 in the interorbital space, which is
flat’; it should be “‘interorbital space flat, 1°33-1°60 in the interorbital
space.”

During the months of May and June, 1893, large shoals of fine aduit
Mackerel appeared in the various indentations of our coast in the metropo-
litan and neighboring districts; these fishes were entirely devoid of ova,
but were in magnificent condition, and were, we consider, quite equal in
flavor to any British-caught Mackerel (S. scomber) ; in these examples the
great thickness, rotundity, and fleshiness of the Australian Mackerel, as
compared with that of 8. scomber, were extremely noticeable. The average
size of the individuals composing these shoals was between twelve and
thirteen inches, but some examples were quite an inch larger. It is also
to be remarked that these shoals are on the coast at midwinter, not
midsummer as usually reported.

206 EDIBLE FISHES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

On page 96 we quote Castlenau as stating that in his S. antarcticus the
air-bladder is absent, and make some remarks thereon; these remarks are
justified by the publication in the following year (1873) of an essay by
Castlenau—which we had previously overlooked—entitled ‘“‘ Notes on the
Edible Fishes of Victoria,” in which he states, as dogmatically as he in his
former paper denied it, that S. entarcticus “has an air-bladder,” without,
however, making any reference to or correction of his former error; he does
not, nevertheless, relinquish his opinion as to the specific value of his
S. antarcticus, but as, the absence of an air-bladder having perforce to be
given up as a means of discrimination, he relies mainly on the difference in
coloration, a very unstable character in this genus. We still prefer to
consider it as synonymous with S. pneumatophorus.

In his British Fishes, i, p. 91, Day, writing of S. colias—of which he and
others consider 8. pneumatophorus to be a mere variety—says:—‘ The
posterior adipose lid......... crossing over the lower edge of the anterior
lid, is inserted into the suborbital ring of bones.” A reference to our des-
eription (p. 94) will show that the reverse is the case in our fish ; presuming,
therefore, that Day’s account is correct, it would be interesting to know
whether the same difference occurs between the Atlantic and Mediterranean
forms of 8. colias and 8. pneumatophorus, or whether this character is
confined to the Pacific form.

This species occurs on the coast of the Western States of America, the
North Atlantic, and the Mediterranean.

PELAMYS CHILENSIS.
(Page 97.)

During the early part of May, 1893, numbers of these fishes were brought
to market from Port Jackson and the neighbouring bays; these were of
much larger size than is usual with us, some individuals measuring as much
as twenty four inches ; since then small examples of twelve inches and even
less in length have been abundant.

The generic name Pelamis having been formed for a genus of Sea Snakes
by Daudin many years previously to that on which the authors of the
Histoire Naturelle des Poissons used it, it becomes necessary to look for
another name applicable to this species, and we, therefore, follow Jordan
and Gilbert in calling our Horse Mackerel Sarda chilensis. The generic
quotation is:—Sarda, Cuvier, Régne Anim. 2nd. Ed. i. 1829.

INDEX.

207

INDEX.

Acanthopterygii ..

equipinnis (Scorpis) Re

etatevarians (Scatophagus)

affinis (Berysc)

afra (Murena) :

ambiguus (Ctenolates)

Anacanthini

Anguilla... SH

annulatum (Plectropoma)

Appendix ... oe ;

aquila (Scizena)

argentcus (Psettus)

armatus (Enoplosus)

Arripis ; sed

arsius (Pseudorhombus). é

Astacide... on

Astacopsis ...

atelodus (Otolithus)

Aulopus as

ee dasioa (Mncquavia) re

australis (Pagrus) se a wee
ayraudi (Monacanthus) . Me ee
Ayraud’s Leatherjacket ... cme

badius Pooacherops)

Balistide ...

Banded Pigfish

Banded Sea-Perch es

Batfish ... sc soe

Beardie... S00

bellis (Cossyphus) _

Belone -

benmebari (Priacanthus)...

Berycide Oct

Beryx ot

bipustulatus (Platyonyehus)

Black Bream 2

Blackfish ... oe ce bea

Black Rock-Cod ... pd see ta he
Black Sole.. ene BAS ee
Black-spotted Red Rock- Cod es We
Black-spotted Sea-Perch . Dot

Bluefish oe

Blue Groper “oe

Blue-spotted Groper aa

Blue-striped Red Mullet

Boarfish ... ; aco

Bony Bream

Brachyura ... ~ eg? sees st se
Bullrout ... Bac Sot a 50 ane
Bullseye... oe ace ote S0c see
Butterfish . ia

bynoénsis (Scorpsena)

Bynoe’s Rock-Cod...

208

callarias (Lotella)...
canaliculatus (Penzus)
Carangide ...

Caranx

Carp

rele mus ‘(Chilodaetylus)
Centropogon :
Cheetodontidz

Chatoéssina

Chatoéssus .. ae
chilensis (Pel amy s) ee
Chilodactylus Aart
Chironemus oe ee one
Cherops... ste dee
ciliata (Sillago)

Cirrhitide ...

Clupea

Clupeidee

Clupeina

Cnidoglanis

colonorum (Percal: ates)
Common Flathead
Common Swimming- Crab

Coris eee
Cossyphus ...
Cottidee

coxi (Galaxias)

Cox’s Mountain Trout ...
Crimson-banded Parrotfish
crucifera (Goniosoma)
eruenta (Scorpeena)
Crustacea a si
Ctenolates ae oa
Cuvier’s Sea- Perch.

cyanea (Girella) ee
eyanomelas (Olistherops)
Cyclometopa sas
demeli (Serranus)

Dart a5
Dinolestes ...
Diplomystus
dobula (Mugil)
Drummer ...
Dussumieriina

ellipticus (Therapon)
elongatus (My et
Enoplosus ... e
Estuary Catfish
Etrumeus ...

ferox (Belone)
Flat-tailed Mullet..
Freshwater Herring
Sulviflamma (Lutianus) .
Suscus (Chilodactylus)
Suscus (Platycephalus)

Gadidsze
Gadoidei
Gadopsidee ...
Gadopsis
Galaxias

INDEX.

nO’

INDEX. 209

Galaxiide ... ast Es Se neo sar ibe hig eG 176
georgianus (Caranx) 600 he sis wee wee ao af sa 80
Gerres ay a ess ae a0 ses sar ie aoe Ae 147
Gerride ... sas sak a des 50 aes aes So aac 146
Girella _.... ace eet a = - wes Ss ver sais 41
Glaucosoma oa sas oe ss ss ; ere Be we 15
Golden Perch : ees Bae ae - at eee 566 ae 23
gouldi (Blatychcerops) 560 ct ss Sor 560 ae Bt aes 132
Green Eel ... aes Bs wa che ae ane fc yes 191
Grystide ... Sat es oa Bo oC me sa 17
gymnogenis (Pseudolabr us) ae ee oe as a Aor ase 139

Hard-gut Mullet ... 500 ae Boe Shs oct a BB ane 119
Hemirhamphus ... ae 5a te as ase ae aes on neal
Herring. ... oe eC “ot BAS ous Ba set ae ot 182
Herring-Cale a ee ee a a ane a ae 145
hippocrepis (Monac anthus) ae a She Ses wre nee es 194
hippos (Seriola) ... ne ae nes use Sac ae ae 85
Histiopterus we nee Ree sis acc ae Sc ae 5b 29
Horse Mackerel ... ac “Rc an Sab ee anc ates 50 97
huegeli (Palinurus) ee be a ane 556 sie aie As 200

intermedius (Hemirlamphus) ... st 5c ine mot ws oa 172

Jackassfish ., Re Ate oe se ass ee aes ‘el 57
Jacksonensis (E tr umeus) wae wae mee Aer ace ape ast ac 186
Jewfish ... BA Be i: i it ee oe es Sad 72

Kelpfish_... a XE We a ae se oa a ot 54
Kingfish... ss Te oC a ase sts ses coe mis 82
kumu (Trigla) wee 8 oa aR _ as ie Er so 109

labiosus (Histiopter a) a ae a se ome eo ar ove 29
Labride ... <0 ee oss 8 ae OL se Bc Bec 129
levis (Squilla) ... Pe oe m ae fee ee sate was 204
lalandii (Seriola) ... Be “ee me ee es dus a eae 82
Large-toothed Flounder ... on ae BOE Age Hor ns ac 155
Lemon Sole wes ss bse i ae a ie Nat a 163
lineolata (Coris) ... S50 2a. ae aoe ee ie snc ai 142
Ling site as es on Sie ae con BS sais 153
Long- finned Eel ... ° ... ca vs iat ses eee ae wes 188
Long- -finned Beenie a ste oer aa ee es “ae no 116
Lotella _... sas ae ee sg aoc or aes sia 152
Ludrick ... cn ss a ae a ak aos 5 oe Ad.
Lutianus ... sa a Wa aoe See a eee 500 oc 14

Mackerel ... gee ee i se ee 508 ae dee 94
macleayana (Belone) oss a in a ane ce ot sive 170
macleayana (Solea) oe apt ne at Sg 50¢ 600 sas 159
macleayi (Pensus) ose Tac in eae ane ax 50e iho 204
Macquaria .. ae no a se Sot See AiG 24
macquariensis (Oligorus)... ae ae Se ses we aa ae 17
Macquarie’s Perch A spe iss Br ses a0 C0 "ee 24
macropterus ages lus) sc S80 wee Eee ide aes ace 57
Macrura ... aes Se a ae sis 500 5a os 200
maculata (Sillago) | ioe OF ae nec Boo ae aise ae 100
Mangrove Crab... oe ae sc av sls Sela as sae 200
Maori oes O50 aa eas x0 5b eae poe Sic ane 142
Maray Pete Me ee Pah Recast 3-2 oe eG
Marbled River Cod. re i ere ne oa Be ae 149
marmoratus (Chironemus) fn et ae Sot ee ne ane 54
marmoratus (Gadopsis) . fa 533 Sei oe a ua Jae 149
megastoma (Cnidoglanis) at eh uh sae ie ing ase 164
Monacanthus ees oh wes cr 35 ai ioe 0 193

oO

210

monodon (Penxus)
Morwong

Mud Prawn :

muelleri (Dinolestes)

Mugil ae
Mugilids

Mullidee

Mullus

multifasciatus - (Scatophagus)
multimaculatus (Pseudorhombus)
Mureena

Mureenidee

Murray Cod

Myxus

Nannygai ...

Narrow-banded Sole

Neptunus ih

nigra (Synaptura)
nigromarginatus (Pseud srhombus)
nigrorubrum (Plectropoma)
novehollandie (Diplomystus)
novehollandia (Sphyriena)

ocellatain ae baa
Odax aoe :
Old Wife ...

Oligorus

Olistherops

ommopterus (Cheerops)
Otolithus ne
ovatus (Gerres)

Pagrus CnC aes Scie oes
Palinuride ...
Palinurus ...

Pearl Perch
pelagicus (Neptunus 8)
Pelamys... an cg
Penzide

Penzeus

Percalates ...

Perch

Percidee 5
percoides (Sebastes)
peroni (Ibacus)
peroni (Mugil)
Physostomi

Pilchard
Pimelepterus

Pisces

Plagusia
Platycephalus
Platychcerops
Plectognathi
Plectropoma
Pleuronectide
Pleuronectoidei
Plotosina ...
pneumatophorus (Scomber)
polyommata (Trigla)
porosus (Mullus) ...
Portunide ...
Priacanthide

INDEX.

_.. 86, 205

:
4,
> Ty

INDEX.

Priacanthus
Pristipomatide

Psettus

Pseudolabrus
Pseudorhombus
purpurissatus (Aulopus) ..

quadrilineatus (Therapon)

Red Groper

Red Gurnard nA

Red Gurnard Perch F
reguiaris (Hemirhamphus)
reinhardti (Anguilla) :
vichardsoni (Chatoéssus)...
richardsoni (Odax)

River Crayfish

River Garfish

River Prawn cr
robustus (Centropogon) .
Rock Whiting...
russelli (Lrachynotus)

sagaxz (Clupea)

salar (Arripis)

Salmon

saltator (Temnodon)

Samsonfish .. *

Sand Mullet

Sand Prawn

Sand Whiting

sarba coum)

Sarda

Sead

seapulare (Glaucosoma) .

Scatophagus

Scizena .

sclerolepis (Henishamphus)

Scomber ae wie

Scombresocidie

Scombride...

Scopelide ...

Scorpena ...

Scorpeenidie

Scorpis

Scylla sap

Sea Garfish

Sea Mullet...

Sebastes

Seriola

Sergeant Baker F

Serranide ... ace eee

Serranus ...

serrata (Scylla)

serratus (Astacopsis)

Sharp-beaked Gurnard

Short-beaked Garfish

Short-finned Sea-Pike

eons (Mullus) ...
illago is

Siluride ..,

Silverbelly ..

Silver Perch =

simplex (Girella) ..

212 INDEX.

Slender Long Tom oe
Small-toothed Flounder ...
Snapper :

Solea

Sparide

Sphyreena ...

Sphyreenidee

sp. (Penzeus)

Spotted Pigfish ...
Spotted Red Mullet

Stout Long Tom ...
sundaica (Clupea)...

Sweep x

sydneyanus (Pimelept er us).
Sydney Crayfish re
Synaptura ... eee

Tailor

Tallegalane

Tarwhine ...
Teleostei

Temnodon ...
Teraglin

Therapon ...

Tiger Prawn
Trachinide i
trachurus (Caranx)
trachylepis (Monacanthus)
Trachynotus
tricuspidata (Girelia)
Trigla

Trumpeter Perch ...
Trumpeter Whiting

unicolor (Pagrus)...
unicolor (Plagusia)
unimaculatus (Cossyphus)
Variable Leatherjacket
White-spotted Parrotfish
White Trevally

Wirrah

Yellow-finned sii ac
Yellowtail ..

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Plate XXVIII.

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UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO LIBRARY

QL Ogilby, J. Douglas (James
636 Douglas)
045 Edible fishes and crusta=

ceans of New South Wales

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