114. VANDELLIA. 277 



Eyes small. Head covered with soft skin. Operculum and angle of 

 praeoperculum (?) armed with spines. Gill-openings rather narrow, 

 separated by a broad isthmus. Ventrals six-rayed. 

 Small fishes from South America. 



These fishes are accused of entering and ascending the urethra of 

 persons while bathing, causing inflammation, and sometimes death. 

 Although this story is repeated by most travellers in the Brazils, 

 none of them have ever seen a case confirmatory of it. 



1. Vandellia cirrhosa. 

 Cuv. $ Val. xviii. p. 386. pi. 547. 



D. 8. A. 10. P. 8. V. 6. 



Body elongate, rounded, its depth being equal to the length of the 

 head, and one -tenth of the total. Head depressed, as broad as long, 

 with the upper jaw produced. Barbel about half as long as the head. 

 Five teeth on the vomer, the middle of which is the longest. 



River Amazons. 



2. Vandellia plazse. 

 Vandellia plazaii, Casteln. Anim. Am6r. Sud, Poiss, p. 61. pi. 28. fig. 1. 

 Body very elongate, its depth being less than the length of the head, 

 which is one -thirteenth of the total. Barbel not quite half as long 

 as the head. Caudal obliquely truncated. (Cast.) 

 Rio Ucayale (Peru). 



