THE FISHES OF MALABAR. 151 



light and barred, if the water be muddy they arc dark, but some taken out of a well were of a 



dark greenish with orange margins to their fins. 



They are generally greenish, abdomen dirty green barred with darker stripes. Dorsal, caudal, 

 and anal tipped with reddish orange. Pectoral barred, and having a black base and a slight tinge 

 of red. Eyes orange. 



In the monsoon timo they become of a dark brown : the orange markings are deeper and 

 wider, the under surface of the throat and chest bluish : and some irregular bars exist on the 

 lower fourth of the dorsal fin. 



In the young {? O. Kelaartii, Giinther) the colours are greyish brown with superiorly lighter 

 bars running from behind forwards to the lateral line, and from before backwards below it. The 

 whole of the head with fine black spots. Dorsal grey irregularly barred, and with a large ocellus 

 having a white margin covering the last five dorsal rays. Caudal barred. Pectoral and ventral 

 immaculate. 



This fish grows to one foot in length in Bengal, but not to above six inches in Malabar. It 

 is found in almost every pond of fresh water. It takes a bait freely, and is eaten by the Natives. 



Habitat — Fresh waters of India and Ceylon. 



Ophiocephalus punctatus. 



Ophiocephalus punctatus, Block, t. 358 ; Guv. & Vol. vii. p. 404 ; Jerdon, Madras 



Journal, xv. p. 145 ; Giinther, Catal. iii. p. 469. 

 Ophiocephalus latus, Ham. Buck. pp. 63, 637, pi. 34, f. 18. 

 Ophiocephalus Indicus, McClelland, Cal. J. N. H., ii. p. 533. 



B. v. D. 29-31. P. 16. V. 6. A. 31. C. 12. L. 1. 40. L. tr. f. 



Length of head f, of pectoral \, of caudal nearly \ of the total length. Height of head }, 

 of body ^, of ventral ^ of the total length. 



Eyes — Close to profile, diameter £ of the length of the head, 1 diameter from end of snout, 

 more than 1 diameter apart. 



Body elongated, cylindrical, compressed posteriorly : head depressed, cheeks puffed out, its 

 transverse width three-fifths of its length. 



Mouth widely cleft, rather rounded anteriorly, and the maxilla extending to nearly as far as 

 the posterior margin of the orbit, and slightly protractile. Opercle ends in an obtuse angle. 

 There are five rows of scales between the eye and the angle of the preopercle which is rounded. 

 The anterior nasal orifice is furnished with a short fleshy tentacle. Numerous well marked glan- 

 dular orifices exist on the scales of the head : there are three a little behind the eyes, three in a 

 vertical bne on the preopercle, and three larger ones on each ramus of the lower jaw. 



Teeth— Numerous and villiform, with a posterior row of four or five conical ones on either 

 side of the lower jaw, villiform ones on vomer and palatine bones. 



Fins— The ventrals arise very near together and slightly posterior to the pectoral. The 

 pectoral rounded and extends to the origin of the anal fin. The dorsal commences above the 

 origin of the ventrals and is continued nearly to the caudal, the finless portion of the tail equal to 

 one-fifteenth of the length of the fish : the length of the dorsal rays is nearly the same and equals 

 about half the height of the body. The anal commences opposite the anterior third of the dorsal. 

 Caudal rounded. 



