654 



PHYSOSTOMI. 



2. Notopterus chitala, Plate CLIX, fig. 5. 

 Mystus chitala. Ham. Buch. Fish. Ganges, pp. 236, 382 ; Gray and Hard. 111. Indian Zool. (from H.B.'s 



Notoptems ornatus and chitala. Gray Zool. Misc. p. 16. 



Notopterus maculatus, Valenc. in Belang. Voy. Ind. Or. pi. 5, f. -. 



Notopterus Buchanani, Cuv. and Val. xxi, p. 148; Bleeker, Beng. p. 149. 



Notopferus hypsdosoma, Bleeker, Chir. p. 27, and Atl. Ich. vi,^t. 274, f. 2. 



Notopterus lopis, Bleeker, Batav. p. 510, and Atl. Ich. vi, t. 275, f. 2. 



Notoptems chitala, Giintlier, Catal. vii, p. 479 ; Bleeker, Atl. Ich. vi, p. 147. 



Chitul, Ooriat: See-tul, Assam. : Ckmdun, Smd. : Chitala, Beng. 



B. Yiii.ix, D. 9-10(1:1), P. 16, V. 6, A. 110-125 (135), C. 12-14, L. 1. 180, Ca;c. pyl. 2. 



Length of head ^ to 5, of caudal fin 15^, height of body 3| to 4 in the total length. %«--dian^eter 

 7 to 8 in the length of head, 3/4 of a diameter from end of snout, and nearly 1 apart. Upper profile of head 

 deeply concave. Snout rather prominent: the maxilla extends posteriorly to about the length of 1 diameter 

 of the eye behind the hind edge of the orbit. Preorbital entire : lower edge of preopercle very fmely serrated. 

 ree</i— yilliform in both iaws with an external enlarged row, most developed opposite centre ot the upper jaw : 

 also villiform in vomer and palatines. Some teeth likewise present on the tongue, the largest being m front 

 K,is— ventrals minute : anal and caudal confluent. Scnies— cycloid, small, extendmg over body, opercles, and 

 some of the fins : and from the nape as far as to opposite the preopercle : those on the head not being much 

 larger than those on the body. There are about 51 serrations along the abdominal edge between the throat and 

 the insertion of the ventral fin. LateraZ-^me-nearly straight and in upper third of the body. Co/owrs-superiorly 

 conpery-brown with about 15 transverse sUvery bars joining over the back : sides_ silvery : fins stamed with 

 grayish spots, which are like black stars in the caudal region, placed m a single or double row close 

 to the anal fin and sometimes extending the whole length of its base. 4^r-^>esseZ-long thick, with a partition 

 down its centre, whilst posteriorly it is continued on either side of the hfemal spines, half way to the caudal 

 fin Ca!cni-«v?on—yery long and with transverse ruga; mternally: mtestmes short. 



'« The belly is uncommonly rich and well-flavoured : but the back contains numerous small bones, and a 

 strong prejudice exists against using this fish as food, owing to its being supposed to live on human carcases. — 



Ha&i'lia^.— Fresh waters of Sind, Lower Bengal, Orissa, Assam, Burma, and Siam to the Malay 

 Archipelago. It attains at least 4 feet in length. 



