468 BULLETIN 188, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



In the Bangkok region this fish has received the name of yla chon 

 ngu hao {ngu hao^ cobra) and its bite is reputed to be very poisonous, a 

 belief without foundation in fact. 



OPHICEPHALUS MARULIOIDES Bleeker 



OpJiiccphalus maruUoides Bleekeb, 1S51 (49), p. 424 (Sambas, Borneo). — Heree 

 and Myers, 1937, p. 71 (Tale Sap). 



The only Thailand record for this species is that of Herre and 

 Myers, who list a specimen 14 cm. long obtained at Singora, the Penin- 

 sula. Dr. Herre writes that the specimen was obtained in the Singora 

 market and undoubtedly came from the inner lake of the Tale Sap. 

 The range of the fish otherwise covers Sumatra, Borneo, and several 

 nearby small islands of the East Indies. 



OPHICEPHALUS STRIATUS Blocli 



Ophicephalus striatus Bloch, 1797, vol. 10, p. 117, pi. 359 (Malabar). — Fowler, 

 1934a, p. 149 (Chiengmai, Metang, Chantabun). 



Ophiocephalus striatus Bleeker, 1865 (347), p. 34 (Siam) ; 18G5 (356), p. 174 

 (Siam).— Sauvage, 1881, p. 160 (Siam).— Kakoli, 1882, p. 171 (Siam).— 

 SauvagE, 18S3b, p. 151 (Menam Chao Phya). — Weber and de Beaufort, 1922, 

 vol. 4, p. 317 (Siam).— HoRui., 1923b, p. 180 (Bangkok, Koh Chang).— Vipulya, 

 1923, p. 224 (Bangkok). 



Ophiocephalus vagus Sauvage, 1881, p. 160 (Bangkok). 



Channa striata Fowler, 1937, p. 222 (Bangkok, Pitsanulok, Tachin, Kemarat). 



This, the most widely distributed and economically the most im- 

 portant member of the genus, ranges from China to India and Ceylon, 

 and through East Indies and Philippines, in rivers, canals, lakes, 

 ponds, swamps, and marshes. In Thailand the fish is found through- 

 out the length and breadth of the coastal plains, central plains, eastern 

 plateau, and piedmont districts, but is replaced by minor species in the 

 mountainous regions. It is known throughout Thailand as pla chon 

 or pla chorn. 



A length of fully a meter is attained by this fish, but so large a size 

 is rarely observed in recent years. Examples up to 60 to 75 cm. are 

 fairly common, but the largest demand in the retail fresh-fish markets 

 is of a fish under 30 or 40 cm. long. 



The interesting nesting habits of this species, together with the de- 

 velopment of the eggs and young, have been best described by Dr. A. 

 Willey (1909), whose observations, while made in Ceylon, are entirely 

 in conformity with the less comprehensive ones in Thailand. The 

 nest is prepared by the parent fish's biting off the aquatic vegetation 

 over a roundish area in shallow water near the edge of a lake or canal ; 

 and when the eggs are laid they form a thin film at the surface and 

 are assiduously guarded by the male parent. 



