OCR Text |
Show 1873.] SURGEON F. DAY ON NEW INDIAN FISHES. 709 the lower the longer. Lateral Une descends gently for nine scales. Colours silvery, with a lateral band ; dorsal, anal, and caudal tipped with black. Hab. South Canara, attaining 5 inches in length. This species differs from G. argentea in having fewer scales, a larger eye, and a mouth less deeply cleft. Whilst in Bombay I obtained a fine specimen of the following apparently new species of Hemiramphus :- HEMIRAMPHUS CIRRHATUS, Sp. 110V. D. 14 Q. A. 12 Q. L.1.42. L. tr. f Length of head •£, of beak (beyond the upper jaw) nearly 5, of height of body -fa of the total length. Eyes equal | of the length of the postorbital part of the head, and 1\ diameter apart. Upper surface cf intermaxillary scaled ; it is 5 broader at its base than it is long. Preorbital rather higher than long ; beak wide ; all the fringes moderately developed and of a black colour. Barbels, one at either posterior nostril, \ as long as the orbit. Fins : pectoral pointed, rather longer than the head without the snout; the ventral commences in the posterior 3 of the distance between the anterior end of the snout and the base of the caudal, which last is rounded or verv slightly emarginate; anal with a very short base, commencing slightly behind the origin of the dorsal, but its length is not 3 of that of the base of the latter fin; anal much highest anteriorly. Scales over the upper surface of the head, suborbitals, and opercles, none on the vertical fins. Colours silvery a very narrow median silvery line exists, but under the dorsal becomes 3 as wide as a scale. Upper half of dorsal black. Hab. Bombay. Before completing this paper I propose offering a few remarks upon two animals inimical to fish, viz. the Crocodilus palustris and the Lutra nair. The common Marsh-Crocodile, or C. palustris, Less., is stated to be less migratory than the 0. porosus, Schn.; but in Canara it appeared to be as common in the vicinity of the sea as I have perceived it to be in the upper portions of the Ganges, Jumna, and Indus. In South Canara it is asserted to attain to 16, in Northern India 12, whilst iu Ceylon 13 feet in length is its full size. The largest we obtained was scarcely 9 feet in length. Whilst netting a piece of water near the sea, one of these reptiles came to the surface with a large fish crosswise in its jaws ; this it distinctly bit across and then swallowed. These crocodiles are reputed by the natives to eat their own young should they not disperse to find other feeding-grounds when old enough to capture food for themselves. All we could obtain, except the very young ones, we opened for the purpose of ascertaining what description of food had been taken. All had stones inside |