THE FISHES OF MALABAR. 
209 
Fins—Pectoral situated in the lower fourth of body : dorsal arises midway between the snout 
and the base of the caudal: the ventral rather more anteriorly : the anal half way between the 
base of the ventral and the base of the caudal. Dorsal rather square, its upper margin slightly 
concave, and its two first undivided rays small, the third half the length of the fourth, which last 
is strong, bony, serrated posteriorly in its upper half, and ending in a soft point : the last branched 
ray is divided to its root. First three rays of anal undivided, the two first very thin, the third 
moderately strong'; its last branched ray divided to its root. Caudal with a wide base, lobed in 
its posterior half. 
Scales—Longest diameter vertical, with three or more strife radiating from their anterior 
border towards their circumference. 
Lateral line—Curves downwards to opposite the end of the pectoral, from whence it proceeds 
direct to the centre of the caudal. 
Colours—Back greenish with silvery reflections, abdomen silvery. A dull diffused black 
mark on either side of the tail, which is often more visible in preserved than in fresh speci¬ 
mens. Cheeks golden. Ventral orange : the other fins grey, the dorsal and caudal margined with 
a darker colour, and the anal stained with orange. In immature specimens a dark line exists 
along each row of scales, but this becomes lost in the mature fish. 
Very common in rivers, and also found in paddy fields and ponds, it is likewise kept in tanks 
in Hindu temples. During the monsoon time small ones are carried down to the mouths of the 
rivers on the western coast. It grows to upwards of two feet in length, and is ! good eating. 
Habitat—Bombay and fresh waters of Malabar. 
Puntius pinnauratus. Plate XV. Fig. 2. 
Cyclocheilichthys pinnauratus, Day , Proc. Zool. Soc. 1305, p. 300. 
B. iii. D. f. P.17. V. 9. A. f. C. 21. L. 1. 29. L. tr. f . 
Length of head above of base of dorsal ^, of base of anal T y, of caudal ^ of total length. 
Height of body of head ^ of total length. 
Eyes—Situated in the anterior half of the head, their upper margins do not reach the profile : 
diameter \ of length of head, 1 diameter from end of snout, upwards of 1 diameter apart. 
Profile rises considerably to commencement of the dorsal fin, from whence it sinks more 
gradually to the caudal. Profile of abdomen not so convex as that of the back. Body strongly 
compressed. 
Mouth directed forwards, the lower jaw covered by the upper when the two are closed. 
Preorbital triangular, apex directed above. Two pairs of cirri, those on snout equal two-thirds the 
length of the maxillary pair, which are nearly as long as the orbit. Nostrils situated nearer to 
the orbit than to the snout: the posterior patent, divided by a membraneous valve from the 
anterior, which is slightly tubular. 
Fins—Dorsal commences midway between the snout and base of caudal, and is slightly in 
advance of the ventral: anal situated in the posterior fourth of the body : pectoral just reaches the 
ventral, which does not extend quite so far as the anal. Dorsal nearly triangular, its third undivided 
ray bony and serrated in its upper three-fourths : a row of scales along the base of the fin. Anal 
undivided rays weak, lower margin of the fin concave : a row of scales along its base. Caudal 
deeply lobed. 
Scales—Each with from eight to ten radiating lines passing from the anterior margin, and 
diverging posteriorly. 
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