﻿210 GANGETic FISHES. Order V. 



over the body, while the Wana motta, or Nehare^ has them on- 

 ly on the hinder part of the lateral lines. Whether or not 

 these scales are sufficient to induce naturalists to class this fish 

 in the genus Osmerus, I cannot say ; but the animal seems to 

 be the link, which connects the Osmerus with the Pimelodus. 



The Nehareus (Nehare) I found in the mouths of the Gan- 

 ges. It grows to about a foot in length, and has a spine of un- 

 common flexibility and little elasticity. The fish is long in 

 p'oportion to its breadth, and slightly compressed at the sides. 

 The general colour is white, with many dots on the back. 



The head is blunt and small. The mouth, from the end of 

 the head, extends straight back, and is very large. The Jaws 

 are of nearly equal length, and do not protrude in opening. 

 The lips have no bones. In both jaws are crowded many re- 

 curved teeth, among which some irregularly scattered are much 

 longer than the others. Each nostril has two apertures, high 

 on the head. The e;i/es are very far forward, small, circular, 

 and flat. The gill-covers are membranous, with scarcely any 

 bone, and leave large apertures. No rays can be distinctly 

 traced in these membranes. 



Both back and belli^ are transversely rounded. The lateral 

 line extends from the eye to the end of the tail fin ; and its 

 hinder part is covered with large flexible scales, lying over each 

 other like tiles. The other parts of the fish are covered with 

 a naked smooth skin. The vent is behind the middle. 



There are eight fins. The foremost on the back slopes back- 

 ward, is far forward, and contains twelve rays, of which the 

 two first are undivided, but soft, and have no membrane inter- 

 posed, the first being very short ; the others are branched. 

 The hinder dorsal fin is minute. The pectoral fins are longer 

 than the head, are about the middle of the side in respect to 

 height, and are sharp above ; each has twelve short rays. The 



