270 Records of the Indian Museum. [VOL; lle 
of a large number of Ceylon examples Duncker has now shown the 
number to vary from 37 to 43. In an adult Madras example I 
found 41 rays in the dorsal fin. 
For want of material (ovigerous males), I have placed this 
species as usual in Kaup’s genus Doryrhamphus (= Doryichthys) 
and not in Duncker’s new genus Microphis. 
Habitat and Habits.—Rare in Madras, afew occur in the Cooum 
River just above tidal influence in November. D. brachyurus 
is usually sluggish in its movements and keeps close to the banks 
of the river amidst grassy weeds; when frightened, however, it 
swims very rapidly and skilfully after the manner of eels. Accord- 
ing to most writers! the Pipe-fishes swim in a vertical position 
like Hippocampi. D. brachyurus, D. cuncalus and at least one 
species of Syngnathus, which I have had the opportunity of ob- 
serving in their natural surroundings, swim in the normal horizon- 
tal position, flush with the surface of the water. 
The males are known to take charge of the eggs after extru- 
sion, in a brood-pouch on the abdomen. Such males were found in 
summer by George Duncker in Ceylon in tg09. ‘‘ The eggs were 
small, in 4—13 longitudinal and 60—11Io transverse rows.’’? 
Doryrhamphus cuncalus (H. B.) 
(Doryichthys cuncalus of the Fauna of Brit. India.) 
Tamil—Usz kolachi (=needle fish). 
A few occur in the Cooum during November and December. 
In habits it closly resembles D. brachyurus, in whose company 
it frequently occurs. 
Belone cancila (H. B.) 
Tamil—Kolachi, ‘‘ Pissu kolah”’ (Day). 
In Madras this species appears to be confined to freshwater 
ponds and lakes. Though common it is never abundant in any 
one locality. According to Jerdon ‘‘ It is very voracious and 
devours large quantities of the little A plocheili’’ (Haplochilus and 
Panchax). 
Ophiocephalus striatus, Bloch. 
Tamil—Verahi. 
Habitat and Habits.—Common everywhere in ponds, ditches 
and rivers. In the Cooum it occasionally occurs within tidal in- 
fluence. In its natural surroundings O. striatus often resorts to 
the margin of the water overgrown with weeds. It frequents shal- 
low water probably because air is easy of access and so suits its 
amphibious habits. The air-breathing habit of this fish is well- 
known: in consequence it lives hours, sometimes days, out of 

1 Fauna of Brit. India, Fishes, Il, p. 460. 
? G. Duncker, Syngnathids from Ceylon. Spol. Zeylan., VII, p. 26. 
