166 THE FISHES OF MALABAR. 



Belone CANCILA. 



Esox cancila, Ham. Buck. pp. 213, 380, pi. 37, f. 70 ; Guv. & Veil xviii. p. 455. 

 Belone Graii, Syhes, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1841, p. 367, pi. 63, f. 4; Jerdon, Madras 



Journal, xv. p. 345. 

 Coahlan and Morrahloo, Mai, 



B. x. D. 16-17. P. 11. V. 6. A. 16-17. C. 15. 



Length of head nearly \, of pectoral fe, of caudal y^, of base of dorsal \, of base of anal ^ 

 of total length. Height of head ^ , of body ^, of dorsal y^, of anal TT , of ventral ^ of total 

 length. 



Byes — Oval, upper margins close to the profile, horizontal diameter y 1 ^, vertical diameter -fe 

 of length of head, 6 horizontal diameters from end of snout, 1 horizontal diameter apart. 



Body elongated, slightly compressed, and tapering towards the extremities. 



Jaws elongated, depressed, and compressed, the lower ends in a soft symphysis, it is deep 

 at its base. Preopercle rather longer than high. Opercle forming the arc of a circle ; its anterior 

 margin vertical. No roughened elevation along the centre of the lower jaw, nor glands along its 

 external margin. The maxilla extends to below the anterior third of the orbit. Nostrils single, 

 opposite the antei'ior superior margin of the orbit, in a triangular depression with the base 

 behind. 



Teeth — No lateral ones. A row of widely separated sharp conical teeth directed downwards 

 in each jaw, with an external series of villiform much the smallest in the mandibular 



Fins — Pectoral commences a short distance behind the centre of the opercle ; ventral rather 

 nearer the anal than to the end of the pectoral ; anal in the posterior third of body ; and the dorsal 

 slightly behind it. Second and third rays of the dorsal the highest, upper margin of the fin 

 concave, the end of the last ray reaches the base of the caudal fin. The third ray of the anal the 

 longest : the upper margin concave : the termination of the last ray not quite extending to the 

 caudal. Caudal with rounded lobes, the lower being slightly the longest. 



Scales — Small and deciduous, none on the opercles and cheeks. 



Lateral line — Double, the upper one being at first in the superior third of the body, but it 

 gradually sinks, and passes along the central line of the body, but is very indistinct. The lower 

 branch commencing under the throat, passes straight along the lower fourth of the body parallel 

 with the abdomen, opposite the posterior end of the anal, it curves upwards to gain the centre of 

 the body, and from thence proceeds to the middle of the caudal fin. 



Colours — Back greenish, abdomen silvery. A line resembling burnished silver, commences 

 at the upper part of the opercle, and passes direct to the upper part of the caudal fin ; at first it is 

 narrow, but opposite the dorsal it widens, and beyond it again decreases : on each side of the tail, 

 above and below the silver line, there are occasionally four irregular black spots. Caudal with a 

 black crescentic mark, a short distance from the commencement. Cheeks of burnished silver. 

 Eyes yellowish white ; bones greenish. 



Found in the Kurriavanoor river, near Cochin. Said to be very destructive to smaU fish. It 

 does not appear to grow to more than fourteen inches in length. 



Habitat — Fresh waters of India. 



