GYMNABCHUS. 



75 



yellowish white ; upper surface of head greyish purple ; dorsal fin grey ; lips, pectoral 

 fins, and a narrow edge to the dorsal vermilion-red. Delhez observed, however, that 

 the red colour is not present in all specimens. The pupil of the eye is orange. 

 Mr. Loat describes the Kawa specimen figured on PL XIII. as dark grey on the back, 

 lighter grey on the sides, very pale orange beneath ; the end of the tail blackish blue, 

 the dorsal fin greyish. Another specimen, from Fashoda, is described by Mr. Loat as 

 dull lilac above, greyish on the sides, whitish beneath, the dorsal fin greyish lilac. 



Measurements (in millimetres) and numbers of Jin-rays. 



1. 



4. 



5, 



6. 



7. 



Total length 



Greatest depth of body 



Length of head 



Width of head 



Length of snout 



Diameter of eye 



Interocular width 



Width of mouth 



Length of pectoral fin 



Number of rays in dorsal fin 



1070 



130 



190 



85 



h2 



6 



41 



55 



46 



216 



640 



45 



29 



4 



22 



21 



24 



230 



600 

 74 

 88 

 42 

 26 

 4 

 21 

 28 

 24 



216 



510 



67 

 86 

 38 

 25 

 4 

 19 

 25 

 26 

 223 



385 

 47 

 64 

 27 

 16 

 3 

 13 

 17 

 19 



205 



300 

 38 

 56 

 24 

 14 

 3 

 11 

 16 

 16 



319 



195 



21 



34 



14 



9 



2 



6 



8 



11 



215 



150 



14 



24 



10 



7 



2 



4 



6 



9 



198 



1. Kawa, White Nile.— Loat. 



2. Shari E. — Gosling. 



3. Kaedi, Senegal. — Delhez. 



4, 5, 6. Fashoda. — Loat. 



7, 8. Assay, Niger. — Budgett. 



Gymnarchus niloticus has a wide distribution, extending from the Upper Nile * to 

 the Bahr-el-Ghazal and Lake Rudolf, and from the Senegal to the Niger, and its range 

 from east to west is apparently continuous, as it is on record from Lake Chad and the 

 Shari River. 



According to Rifaud, the first discoverer of this remarkable fish, the native name in 

 the Upper Nile is Jerfar. According to Mr. Loat, the Arabic name is " wier " (<o,) 5 at 

 Omdurman. 



* Giinther's statement as to its occurrence in the Lower Nile is probably based on Erdl's communication 

 (Gelehrt. Anz. Ak. Munch, xxiii. 1846, p. 590) that it formed part of a collection made by " Dr. Prunner 

 praktischer Arzt in Cairo." 



l2 



