FAMILY, IV— NANDID^E. 131 



believe it to be rather an elongated variety of the next, but for the present leave them distinct. Dr. Jerdon 

 felt so satisfied that the fish he described was the Gatopra Malabarica, Giinther, and I obtained so many 

 specimens from Malabar, all but one however with merely three anal spines, that I accepted his opinion that a 

 misprint had occurred. The two original specimens of tetracanthus are in the British Museum, having been 

 received without any indication of their habitat from the E. I. Museum, it is therefore open to enquiry whether 

 they might not be Jerdon's types. This fish is said to attain a considerably larger size than 4 inches in length. . 



2. Pristolepis Malabaricus, Plate XXXII, fig. 2. 



Catopra Malabarica, Giinther, Ann. and Mag. Nat. Hist. 1864, p. 375 ; Day, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1865, p. 30. 

 Nandus Malabaricus, Day, Fish. Mai. p. 130, pi. viii. 

 Chutichi, Mai. 



B. vi, D. yJJj--, P. 14-15, V. 1/5, A. |, C. 16, L. 1. 25-27, L. r. ffcff, L. tr. 3J/11, Vert. 13/11. 



Length of head 4/13 to 1/4, of pectoral 1/4 to 2/9, of caudal 2/9, height of body 2/5 to 4/9 of the total 

 length. Eyes — diameter 2/7 of length of head, 1 diameter from end of snout and also apart. Body compressed, 

 a considerable rise to the dorsal fin : head as high as long : jaws equal in front ; the premaxillaries reach 

 posteriorly to opposite the first third of the orbit ; the maxilla reaches to a little behind the front edge of the 

 eye. Preopercle with its vertical limb roughened, in some cases serrated, most strongly so at its angle : sub- 

 and inter-opercles with some fine serrations at their approximating portions. Opercle with two sharp flat 

 spines which are generally bifid : preorbital entire. Teeth — vilHform in the jaws, with the outer row somewhat 

 enlarged, some specimens have merely two or four teeth enlarged in the lower jaw, and standing rather in front 

 of the remainder : vomer and palatines with small vilhform teeth ; the presphenoid has small teeth, all but the 

 outer row of which have rounded crowns, and there are some of the same description at the root of the tongue 

 on the epi- and cerato-hyals, those on the cerato-hyal having rounded crowns, the outer row being somewhat 

 smallest and pointed, they do not extend so far forwards as in the P. nandioides, neither are the middle ones so 

 large : villiform teeth on both superior and inferior pharyngeals. Fins — dorsal spines rather stout, shorter than 

 the rays, increasing in length to the third and having a groove for their reception along their base, interspinous 

 membrane somewhat deeply emarginate : second anal spine thickest but not quite so long as the third, a groove 

 along their base : caudal rounded. Lateral-line — interrupted, ceasing opposite the fourth ray on the twenty- 

 first scale, commencing again in the centre of the side below the last ray, there are two entire and two half rows 

 between the lateral-line and base of the dorsal fin, and 13 between the ventral and base of the dorsal. 

 Colours — rifle-green with purplish reflections, fins with lighter edges : caudal with a white outer margin. In 

 some specimens the fish is vertically banded. 



Habitat. — Ghauts of Western India, where it seems to prefer clear and rapid streams, attaining at least 

 6 inches in length. 



B. With globular teeth on the vomer (Gatopra) . 



3. Pristolepis fasciatus, Plate XXXII, fig. 3. 



Gatopra fasciata, Bleeker, Borneo, p. 65, and Xandioides, p. 7, fig. 2 ; Giinther, Catal. iii, p. 368. 

 Gatopra nandioides. Bleeker, Sclerop. &c. 1851, p. 172 ; Giinther, Catal. iii, p. 368 ; Day, Proc. Zool. Soe. 

 1869, p, 615. 



Gatopra Siamensis, Giinther, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1862, p. 191, pi. xxvi, fig. A. 



B. vi, D. if:if, P. 15, V 1/5, A. |, C. 14, L. 1. 26-28, L. r. ff, L. tr. 4|/12, Csec. pyl. 2. 



Length of head from 4/13 to 4/15, of pectoral 1/5, height of body 2J to 2j in the total length. Eyes — 

 diameter nearly 1/4 of length of h-?ad, 1 diameter from end of snout, and 1-|- apart. Head as high as long. 

 Snout in the adult convex ; body oblong, compressed, the dorsal profile rising considerably to the base of the 

 dorsal fin. The maxilla reaches to below the first third of the orbit. Preorbital and preopercle rather strongly 

 serrated ; fine serrations, which may be absent, on the contiguous portions of the sub- and inter-opercles : two 

 sharp flat spines on the opercle, mostly bifid, and the lower the larger. Teeth— villiform in jaws and palatines, 

 globular on vomer, base of tongue and roof of the cavity of the mouth, at the base of the tongue they extend 

 forward nearly to its anterior extremity. In the young, G. Biamensis, the vomerine teeth are not quite 

 so blunted as they become in the adult. Fins — dorsal spines strong, interspinous membrane deeply 

 emarginate, central rays the longest : second anal spine the strongest but not so long as the third : caudal 

 rounded. Lateral-line — interrupted opposite the posterior end of the dorsal fin, being continued on the 

 third row of scales below it. Air-vessel — large. Scales — four entire rows between the lateral-line and base of 

 the dorsal fin, and 16 or 17 between the bases of the ventral and dorsal. Cmcal appendages — two. Colours — 

 dull greenish, having a deep black spot in the axilla and over the upper part of the base of the pectoral fin, 

 which otherwise is yellow : the other fins slate coloured. 



Four specimens were procured in Burma varying from 4^- to 8 inches in length. A small one from 

 Prome had only 12 dorsal spines, but otherwise no difference was perceptible. Two from Sittang had each 

 13 spines : the im m ature is banded. I have likewise a specimen 3^ inches long from Siam, collected by Dr. v. 

 Mertens, its opercular spines are not bifurcated. 



Habitat.— Fresh- waters of Burma, Siam, and the Malay Archipelago. 

 ( s 2 



