488 BULLETIN 188, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



to market. The flavor of the flesh is good, but it is generally regarded 

 as inferior to that of fla mor {Anabas testudineus (Bloch) ). 



Prince Vipulya records (1923) that in angling for this fish, worms, 

 prawns, crickets, and grasshoppers are used as bait, and while the 

 usual run of the catch is only 2 to 3 ounces, he has known a fish of 2 

 pounds to be taken. The largest examples met by the author in Thai- 

 land were about 15 cm. long. A length of 20 to 21 cm. is recorded for 

 the East Indies and Burma. 



Prince Vipulya writes: "It digs down into the mud of stagnant 

 ponds and on account of its flat appearance is supposed to have been 

 trodden on by elephants going to bathe. Hence the name." 



Giinther (1862), having specimens obtained in Thailand by Mouhot, 

 described them as new under the name Gatopra sianiensis. Peters 

 (1868) identified under the same name specimens from the Menam 

 Chao Phya. This nominal species must be regarded as coming within 

 the normal limits of variation in P. fasciatus. 



The usual name given to this fish by fishermen, marketmen, and the 

 general public is pla mor chang yieb or ylep, sometimes contracted to 

 pla chang yieb. In the Peninsula the fish is called pla paio7ig, pla na 

 nuan, and pla pkrok. In the upper Menam Chao Phya, a variant is 

 pla mor nam. Still another name, pla takrab^ is heard in the Chanta- 

 bun region. 



Genus NANDUS Cuvier and Valenciennes 



Nandus Cuvier and Valenciennes, Histoire naturelie des poissons, vol. 7, p. 481, 

 1831. (Type, Nandus marmoratus Cuvier and Valenciennes.) 



Small lowland fishes, sometimes entering brackish water, feeding on 

 fishes, shrimps, and insects. Two closely related species are known 

 from Thailand, as follows : 



la. Scales in lateral line 46 to 57; scales between lateral line and ventral base 

 17 to 20; dorsal rays XII to XIV, 11 to 13 ; anal rays III, 7 to 9__- nandus 



16. Scales in lateral line 34 ; scales between lateral line and ventral base 10.5 

 to 12.5 ; dorsal rays XIV to XVI, 11 or 12 ; anal rays III, 5 or 6-_ nebulosus 



NANDUS NANDUS (Hamilton) 



Coins nandus Hamilton, 1822, p. 96, pi. 30, fig. 32 (Gangetic provinces) 



This Indian-Burmese species is very rare in Thailand. The only 

 definite occurrence was a small specimen collected by the writer No- 

 vember 20, 1923, in an outlet of Bung Borapet, Central Thailand. The 

 specimen was sent to Dr. L. F. de Beaufort and the identification was 

 confirmed by him in a letter of June 12, 1925. 



The maximum size attained by this species in India is at least 20 cm., 

 according to Day. 



