FRESH-WATER FISHES OF SIAM, OR THAILAND 67 



Order Apodes : Eels 



Of the numerous kinds of eels frequenting the waters of Thailand, 

 only a few species are found in fresh water; these belong in three 

 families, as follows: 



la. Dorsal and anal fins confluent with the caudal, which completely covers the 



end of the tail ; posterior nostril a circular or oval opening in front of eye. 



2a. Body covered with minute embedded scales; teeth small, conic, in bands 



on jaws and vomer ; tongue not fully adnate to floor of mouth, but free 



at tip and sides ; origin of dorsal fin far behind gill openings- Anguillidae 



2b. Body scaleless ; teeth in anterior part of jaws caniniform, middle row of 



vomerine teeth enlarged and strongly canine or compressed ; tongue 



adnate to floor of mouth ; origin of dorsal fin above or in advance of gill 



openings Muraenesocidae 



16. Dorsal and anal fins not extending to end of the tail, which is pointed and 

 bears no fin, the caudal being absent ; body scaleless ; tongue adnate to floor 

 of mouth ; posterior nostril a slit on inner side of upper lip below or in 

 advance of front border of eye Ophichthyidae 



Family ANGUILLIDAE: True Eels 



Genus ANGUILLA Shaw 



Anguilla Shaw, General zoology, vol. 4, p. 15, 1803. (Type, Anguilla vulgaris 

 Shaw.) 



The catadromous eels, which are so conspicuous and economically 

 important in the North Atlantic and streams discharging therein, are 

 of comparatively little importance in the Pacific and Indian Oceans, 

 and in Thailand they are so rare as to constitute a curiosity when 

 caught. Several species of wide Oriental distribution {Anguilla 

 elphinstonei Sykes, A. mauritiana Bennett, A. celebesensis Kaup) may 

 be looked for in Thailand, but as yet only one species has been actually 

 found in local waters. 



ANGUILLA AUSTRALIS Richardson 



Anguilla australis Richakdson, 1841, p. 22 (Port Arthur). 

 Muraena australis Fowler, 1939, p. 43 (Krabi). 



This species, of the Pacific and Indian Oceans, is the only eel of 

 the genus Anguilla that has been detected in Thai waters. It was 

 first met with in September 1926 when one 64 cm. long was taken in 

 the Bangkapi Canal in Bangkok. The fish was exhibited alive as an 

 "electric eel" by a man who specialized in freaks and monstrosities 

 shown at fairs. It was inspected by the writer in March 1927 but not 

 critically eisamined until June 1928, after it had died. A second speci- 

 men, 66.5 cm. long, taken in fresh water on Puket Island, off Peninsular 

 Thailand in the Bay of Bengal, was displayed in preservative by Boy 

 Scouts of the Puket district in an exhibition held in Bangkok in 



