LABEO. 179 



very closely allied to L. forskalii, 1 deem advisable to keep distinct, for the present 

 at least. 



First observed at Cairo by Forskal and rediscovered there by Kiippell, and at 

 Assuan by Kotschy, the species has been reported from Khartum by Giinther and 

 obtained all along the Nile down to its mouths, and also in the Blue Nile, by 

 Mr. Loat. 



Mr. Loat describes this fish as " Of universal distribution between Kafr-el-Zayat, 

 Samannud, and Haifa. It is taken in the Bahr Yusuf in the Fayum. I found it 

 common at Haifa. It is generally fairly numerous where there are rocks and stones 

 in the river, and the fishermen say it eats the algse which adhere to the rocks and 

 stones, a statement supported by an examination of the contents of the intestines, 

 which are generally full of semi-liquid matter of a dark brownish colour. I was told 

 that at Kafr-el-Zayat, about seventeen years ago, great numbers of this fish were caught 

 in one year, and that since that time it has never again been plentiful." 



Males with their nuptial tubercles, and females full of spawn, occur at Wady Haifa 

 in February. 



Eiippell says this species is confounded with Labeo couhie by the Cairo fishermen. 

 According to Heckel, the native name at Assuan is Debs el Hadziar. The following 

 list of native names has been drawn up by Mr. Loat: — l * JRhoubea" (*>j£), at Kafr-el- 

 Zayat, Samannud, Cairo, Barrage N. of Cairo, Beni-Souef; "horrear" (&£>■), in 

 Upper Egypt (Assuan and district); " gariya" {*i/>-), in the Fayum; " labissa 

 rhoubea" (&jj£ ***jjJ), a name also applied to this fish at Samannud ; Ci lib s-el-hag erect " 

 (jcj : .s= s l>*jd), at Assiut; " kullu gore" (%J £*>■) between Shellal and Korosko ; 

 "kiddegore" (*J <_£^>) and " dups-el-hager " (^sr s ' s j^j), at Wady Haifa; " dups-el- 

 nusra'ne " {j>^ti\ ^t>), at Assuan. 



As stated above, I am now 7 satisfied that the various records of the occurrence of this 

 fish in East Africa are based on closely allied species, especially L. cyliiidricus, Peters, 

 first described from Mozambique by Peters, and since from Abyssinia and British East 

 Africa, under the names of Tylognathus cantini, Sauvage, and Tylognathus montanus, 

 Giinther *. It has also been found in L. Tanganyika. L. cylindricus may be said to 

 merge gradually into L. forskalii and to exhibit great variability in its characters ; 

 but the eye is usually proportionally not quite so small (four to seven times in length 

 of head), the scales are usually few 7 er (35-39 ^jbji), and the branched dorsal rays 

 number more frequently 9 than 10, and occasionally as few as 8. 



* For the full synonymy, cf. Ann. & Mag. N. H. (7) xii. 1903, p. 361. Hilgendorf, in a posthumous 

 paper (Zool. Jahvb., Syst. xxii. 1905, p. 413), demurs to this separation, but his remarks on the proportions 

 of the eye to the head are of little importance in view of the very young age of the specimens (23 to 79 

 millims. total length) on which they are based. 



2a2 



