134 TELEOSTEI. PHYSOSTOMI. 



width of the head equals its length excluding the snout. The 

 width of the gape of the mouth equals half the length of the head. 

 Lower jaw very prominent. Barbels the maxillary reach the 

 middle or end of the pectoral fin, the mandibular the hind edge of 

 the orbit. Teeth vomerine in two small oval patches, not con- 

 fluent together. Fins pectoral spine as long as the head behind 

 the middle of the eyes, serrated internally, sometimes rather 

 strongly, at other times feebly, or entirely smooth. Anal not con- 

 fluent with the caudal. Colour this varies considerably, usually 

 silvery glossed with gold, having a dark shoulder-spot above the 

 middle of the pectoral h'u, and usually another close to the base of 

 the tail. In some specimens the body is covered with brownish 

 blotches. At Jubbulpore I took specimens having a dark band 

 along the upper portion of the back, and a second along the 

 lateral line, leaving a light line from the gill-opening to the upper 

 portion of the caudal fin. 



Hob. Punjab in the affluents of the Indus and along that river 

 to its termination ; at Hard war where the Gauges emerges from 

 the Himalayas and along its waters in the Gangetic provinces ; 

 also Orissa, Darjeeling, and the Brahmaputra in Assam. 



14. Genus AILIA, Gray. 



Branchiostegals eight. Gill-openings wide, the gill-membranes 

 not confluent with the skin of the isthmus. Body elongated and 

 strongly compressed. Head covered with thin skin. Eyes nearly 

 or quite behind the angle of the mouth, and with adipose lids. 

 Upper jaw slightly the longer. Nostrils patent, those on either 

 side approximating, the anterior in front of the snout. Eight 

 barbels. Villiform teeth in the jaws and in two minute patches 

 on the vomer. No anterior dorsal, but a small adipose fin pos- 

 teriorly. Pectoral with a spine. Ventral with six rays. Anal 

 long (59-75 rays). Caudal forked. Air-bladder tubifcrm, lying 

 across the body of an anterior vertebra, and externally protected 

 by bone. No axillary pore. 



Geographical Distribution. Sind, the larger rivers of the Punjab, 

 N.W. Provinces, Bengal, Assam, and Orissa. 



143. (1.) Ailia coila. (Fig. 58.) 



Malapterurus coila, Ham. Buck. Fish. Ganges, pp. 158, 375. 

 Ailia coila, Day, Fish. India, p. 488, pi. cxiv, fig. 4 (see synon.). 



PiMuli and JBounse jmtti, " Banihoo leaf," Ooriah ; Mioiyleeahnce, 

 Sind. ; Vella kalada, Telugu ; " Kajoli, Rangpur, Busaiiyuti, Gorakpur, 

 lidtausi, Bhagulpur," II. Buch. 



B. viii. P. 1/14. V. 6. A. 59-75. C. 19. 



Length of head 6 to 7, of caudal fin 5 to 8, height of body 5^ to 6 

 in the total length. Eyes diameter 3| to 3j in the length of the 

 head, 1 diameters from the end of snout, and 1 apart. The 

 greatest width of the head equals its length excluding the snout ; 



