CO129-538-2 Hong Kong University 23-6-1932 - 15-3-1933 — Page 178

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HENRY W. FOWLER

Mastacembelus strongylurus Bleeker, Nederl. Tijds. Dierk., vol. 4, 1873, p. 149 (reference).

Tylosurus strongylura Rutter, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia, 1897, p. 69 (Swatow).-Wu, Contr. Biol. Lab. Sci. Soc. China, vol. 5, No. 4, 1929, p. 61, fig. 50 (Amoy).

Belone caudimaculata Richardson, Ichth. China and Japan, 1846, p. 264 (China; Canton).

Tylosurus caudimaculatus Seale, Philippine Journ. Sci., vol. 9, 1914, p. 6) (Hong Kong).

Strongylura caudimaculata Chu, Biol. Bull. St. John's Univ., No. 1, January 1931, p. 86 (compiled).

H.W.F

Figure 10. Strongylura strongylura (Van Hasselt).

Depth 14 to 15; head 21⁄2 to 23; snout 1 to 1 2/5 in head; eye 10 3/5 to 132, 23/5 to 4 in postorbital, subequal with interorbital. Scales about 170.

Dorsal rays 11 to 15; anal 15 to 16; pectoral 10 to 11; ventral 6. Brown, with silvery white lateral band, especially contrasted on tail where edged with dark line or stripe. Blue median spot at caudal base, black in preserved examples. Sometimes said to have black spots on head, back and sides. Reaches 450 mm.

China, Hong Kong, Canton, Swatow, Amoy.-(India, Ceylon, East Indies, Philippines*, Formosa, North Australia).

Family Hemiramphidae.

The Half Beaks.

No

Body very elongate, slender, cylindrical or compressed. Upper jaw short and lower various, usually much produced and toothed portion at base fits against toothed premaxillary. Maxillary firmly united with premaxillary, latter forming flat triangular expansion posteriorly. Teeth equal, small, compresed, tricuspid, none on palate or tongue. Gill rakers long. pseudobranchiae. Air bladder large, simple

Air bladder large, simple or sometimes cellular. Verte- brae 49 to 55. Scales large, thin, deciduous. Dorsal and anal fins moderate. No finlets. Anal modified in viviparous forms, unmodified in egg laying forms, usually like dorsal. Caudal rounded, truncate or forked, when fork- ed lower lobe longer. Pectoral short, rarely elongate, inserted rather high. Ventral moderate or small.

Herbivorous fishes of warm seas, mostly found along shore, though a few pelagic.

Some enter fresh waters, while others live exclusively in brackish or fresh water. They feed on minute bits of vegetable matter, especially green algae. Like the green gars, sauries and flying fishes, they

The Hong Kong Naturalist.