FRESH-WATER FISHES OF SIAM, OR THAILAND 487 



with 3 Strong spines, ventral fins attached under the pectorals and 

 with a strong spine, compressed body, head and body covered with 

 ctenoid scales which form a sheath for the dorsal and anal spines, 

 lateral line interrupted under the soft dorsal fin and continued several 

 scales lower to the base of the caudal, terminal mouth, which may be 

 strongly or moderately protractile, maxillary exposed, teeth in villi- 

 form hands on jaws and palatines, villiform or conical or globular on 

 vomer and parasphenoid, gill membranes united or separate, and 

 opercle with one or several spines. 

 The two genera may be diiferentiated by the following characters : 



la. Mouth small, slightly protractile, maxillary reaching to vertical from anterior 

 part of eye ; nostrils well separated, in an oblique line, posterior very 

 close to eye; gill membranes broadly united; iuterbranchial space broad 

 and fully scaled; opercle with two flat spines Pristolepis 



16. ilouth large, very protractile, maxillary reaching to or beyond vertical 

 from posterior border of eye ; nostrils close together, in a vertical line, 

 both close to eye ; gill membrane not united, interbranchial space narrow 

 and unsealed ; opercle with a single flat spine Nandus 



Genus PRISTOLEPIS Jerdon 



Pristolepis Jerdon, Madras Journ., vol. 15 (1848), p. 141, 1849. (Type, Pristolepis 

 maryinutus Jerdon. j 



PRISTOLEPIS FASCIATUS (Bleeker) 



Catopra fasciata BleekePv, 1851 (42), p. 65 (Bandjermassing, Borneo) ; 1865 

 (347), p. 33 (Siam); 1865 (356), p. 173 (Siam).— Sauvage, 1883b, p. 151 

 (Menam Chao Phya).— Boulenger, 1903, p. 303 (Patani River). 



Catopra slamensis Gunther, 1862, vol. 4, p. 191, pi. 26, flg. A (Siam) ; 1864, p. 

 177 (Siam and Cambodia ) .—Peters, 1868, p. 257 (Menam). 



Pristolepis fasciatus Day. 1876, p. 131 ( Siam ) .— Hora, 1924a, p. 489 (Tale 

 Sap). — Fowler, 1934a, p. 155 (Chiengmai, Hua Mak, Bua Yai, Chantabun, 

 Bangkok) ; 1934b, p. 351 (Bangkok, Ban Thung Luang) ; 1935a, p. 153 

 (Bangkok). — Webek and de BeaxjK)kt, 1936, vol. 7, p. 479, fig. 95 (Siam). — 

 Fowler, 1987, p. 242 (Bangkok, Taehin).— Koumans, 1937a, p. 63 (Tale 

 Sap).— Fowlek. 19o9. p. 75 (Trang). 



Catopra nandoides, Sauvage, 18S3b, p. 151 (Menam Chao Phya). 



Pristolepis fasciata Hoka, 1923b, p. 177 (Bangkok).— Vipulya, 1923, p. 224 

 (Bangkok). 



This fish is found throughout the entire length and breadth of 

 Thailand, in rivers, lakes, swamps, and ponds, and in some places it is 

 very abundant. The range extends to Indo-China, Burma, Malaya, 

 and some of the East Indian islands. 



In life the general color is greenish or brownish yellow, and although 

 occasional examples show no cross bands, the body in most specimens 

 is marked by 8 to 12 narrow blackish cross bands, most distinct in the 

 young. 



The fish is incidentall}^ caught in large quantities in various kinds of 

 apparatus set primarily for other species, and is eaten locally and sent 



