ArticlePDF Available

Three new species of Garra (Pisces: Cyprinidae) from north-eastern India and redescription of G. gotyla

November 2013
Ichthyological Exploration of Freshwaters 24(2):97-120

Authors:

Nebeshwar Kongbrailatpam

Moreh College

Vishwanath Waikhom

Manipur University

Three new species of Garra previously identified as G. gotyla are described from the eastern Himalayan foothills. They have a prominent proboscis, a transverse lobe on the snout with tubercles and black spots on the base of the dorsal-fin rays. Garra arunachalensis, new species, is distinguished in having a prominent quadrate proboscis with two large unicuspid acanthoid tubercles, one on each anterolateral marginal corner and one small tubercle in between; and in the absence of an anterolateral lobe. Garra birostris, new species, is distinguished in having a prominent bilobed proboscis with one large tri- or tetracuspid acanthoid tubercle on each lobe, and a distinct black spot at the upper angle of gill opening. Garra quadratirostris, new species, is distinguished in having a prominent quadrate proboscis with three or four small- to medium-sized tubercles on the anterior margin, and a faint blackish spot immediately anterior to the upper angle of the gill opening. Garra gotyla is redescribed based on materials from the Tista River in Sikkim. It is distinguished in having a prominent quadrate proboscis, its anterior region with 4-13 small- to medium-sized tubercles scattered on two or three rows; upper lip as a narrow band of papillae arranged in two transverse ridges; and a black spot at the upper angle of gill opening.

Garra arunachalensis, MUMF 4304, holotype, 121.0 mm SL; India: Arunachal Pradesh: Lower Divang Valley district: Deopani River; a, lateral view; b, ventral view; c, dorsal view of head; d, mental adhesive disc; e, side view of snout showing small tubercles on lateral margin of proboscis.

…

Distribution of Garra arunachalensis ( ), G. birostris (%), G. quadratirostris (() and G. gotyla (@).

…

Garra birostris, MUMF 4302, holotype, 102.0 mm SL; India: Arunachal Pradesh: Papum Pare district: Dikrong River; a, side view; b, ventral view; c, dorsal view of head; and d, mental adhesive disc.

…

Garra quadratirostris: MUMF 4306, holotype, 108.0 mm SL; India: Sikkim: Tista River; a, side view; b, ventral view; c, dorsal view of head; and d, mental adhesive disc.

…

Garra gotyla: MUMF 4300, neotype, 104.3 mm SL; India: Sikkim: Tista River; a, side view; b, ventral view; c, dorsal view of head; and d, mental adhesive disc.

…

Figures - uploaded by Nebeshwar Kongbrailatpam

Content may be subject to copyright.

Content uploaded by Nebeshwar Kongbrailatpam

Content may be subject to copyright.

Verlag Dr. Friedrich Pfeil

ISSN 0936-9902

Ichthyological Exploration

of Freshwaters

Volume 24

Number 2

An international journal for field-orientated ichthyology

Excerpt from

This article may be used for research, teaching and private purposes.

Exchange with other researchers is allowed on request only.

Any substantial or systematic reproduction, re-distribution, re-selling

in any form to anyone, in particular deposition in a library, institutional

or private website, or ftp-site for public access, is expressly forbidden.

Ichthyological Exploration of Freshwaters

An international journal for field-orientated ichthyology

Volume 24 • Number 2 • November 2013

pages 97-192, 48 figs., 15 tabs.

Managing Editor

Maurice Kottelat, Route de la Baroche 12, Case postale 57

CH-2952 Cornol, Switzerland

Tel. + 41 32 4623175 · Fax + 41 32 4622259 · E-mail mkottelat@dplanet.ch

Editorial board

Ralf Britz, Department of Zoology, The Natural History Museum, London, United Kingdom

Sven O. Kullander, Naturhistoriska Riksmuseet, Stockholm, Sweden

Helen K. Larson, Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, Darwin, Australia

Lukas Rüber, Department of Zoology, The Natural History Museum, London, United Kingdom

Ivan Sazima, Museu de Zoologia, Unicamp, Campinas, Brazil

Paul H. Skelton, South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity, Grahamstown, South Africa

Tan Heok Hui, Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research, National University of Singapore, Singapore

Ichthyological Exploration of Freshwaters is published quarterly

Subscriptions should be addressed to the Publisher:

Verlag Dr. Friedrich Pfeil, Wolfratshauser Str. 27, 81379 München, Germany

PERSONAL SUBSCRIPTION : EURO 100 per Year/volume - 4 issues (includes surface mail shipping)

INSTITUTIONAL SUBSCRIPTION : EURO 180 per Year/volume - 4 issues (includes surface mail shipping)

Manuscripts should be addressed to the Managing Editor:

Maurice Kottelat, Route de la Baroche 12, Case postale 57, CH -2952 Cornol, Switzerland

CIP-Titelaufnahme der Deutschen Bibliothek

Ichthyological exploration of freshwaters : an international

journal for field-orientated ichthyology. – München : Pfeil.

Erscheint jährl. viermal. – Aufnahme nach Vol. 1, No. 1 (1990)

ISSN 0936-9902

Vol. 1, No. 1 (1990) –

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any

means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owner.

Applications for such permission, with a statement of the purpose and extent of the reproduction, should be

addressed to the Publisher, Verlag Dr. Friedrich Pfeil, Wolfratshauser Str. 27, 81379 München, Germany.

Printed by PBtisk a.s., Prˇíbram I – Balonka

ISSN 0936-9902

Printed in the European Union

Verlag Dr. Friedrich Pfeil, Wolfratshauser Str. 27, 81379 München, Germany

Phone + 49 89 742827-0 · Fax + 49 89 7242772 · E-mail: info@pfeil-verlag.de · www.pfeil-verlag.de

Ichthyol. Explor. Freshwaters, Vol. 24, No. 2

Ichthyol. Explor. Freshwaters, Vol. 24, No. 2, pp. 97-120, 10 figs., 2 tabs., November 2013

Three new species of Garra

(Pisces: Cyprinidae)

from north-eastern India and redescription of G. gotyla

Kongbrailatpam Nebeshwar* and Waikhom Vishwanath *

Three new species of Garra previously identified as G. gotyla are described from the eastern Himalayan foothills.

They have a prominent proboscis, a transverse lobe on the snout with tubercles and black spots on the base of

the dorsal-fin rays. Garra arunachalensis, new species, is distinguished in having a prominent quadrate proboscis

with two large unicuspid acanthoid tubercles, one on each anterolateral marginal corner and one small tubercle

in between; and in the absence of an anterolateral lobe. Garra birostris, new species, is distinguished in having a

prominent bilobed proboscis with one large tri- or tetracuspid acanthoid tubercle on each lobe, and a distinct

black spot at the upper angle of gill opening. Garra quadratirostris, new species, is distinguished in having a

prominent quadrate proboscis with three or four small- to medium-sized tubercles on the anterior margin, and

a faint blackish spot immediately anterior to the upper angle of the gill opening. Garra gotyla is redescribed based

on materials from the Tista River in Sikkim. It is distinguished in having a prominent quadrate proboscis, its

anterior region with 4-13 small- to medium-sized tubercles scattered on two or three rows; upper lip as a narrow

band of papillae arranged in two transverse ridges; and a black spot at the upper angle of gill opening.

* Department of Life Sciences, Manipur University, Canchipur-795003, Manipur, India.

E-mail: knebeshwar@yahoo.com, wvnath@gmail.com

Introduction

The cyprinid genus Garra includes bottom dwell-

ing fishes inhabiting swift-flowing rivers and

mountain streams. The genus is distributed from

Borneo and Southern China to Sub-Saharan Af-

rica through Middle East Asia and Arabian Pen-

insula (Zhang & Chen, 2002). Hora (1921) re-

ported 12 species of Garra in the drainages of the

Himalayan foothills, viz., G. kempi, G. lissorhyn-

chus, G. naganensis, G. nasuta and G. rupecula from

the Brahmaputra basin; G. chaudhurii, G. jenkinso-

nianum, G. lamta, and G. prashadi from the Ganga

basin; G. annandalei and G. gotyla from both the

Brahmaputra and Ganga basins and G. abhoyai

from the Chindwin basin. Menon (1964) consid-

ered G. abhoyai, G. chaudurii, G. jenkinsonianum

and G. prashadi respectively as junior synonyms

of G. rupecula, G. annandalei, G. mullya and G. lam-

ta. Vishwanath & Linthoingambi (2008) treated

G. abhoyai a valid species.

Garra gotyla was known only from Gray’s

(1830) publication of the drawings prepared by

General Hardwicke. Gray (1830) did not provide

description but the caption of the figure mentions

‘Mountain Stream, India’. Menon (1964), based

on the examinations of specimens from the Hima-

layan foothills from Pakistan in the west to Upper

Myanmar in the east, identified the species to

have a distinct transverse lobe, a well-developed

Nebeshwar & Vishwanath: Three new Garra and redescription of G. gotyla

proboscis and a row of dark spots along the base

of the dorsal fin. Since then, Garra specimens in

different river systems having back spots on the

base of dorsal fin rays but with various shapes of

prominent proboscis, different shapes and distri-

bution of tubercles, varying oral morphology and

morphometric and meristic characters have often

been identified as G. gotyla. However, as most of

the highly specialized rheophilic fish species have

restricted distribution ranges (Kottelat 2001),

material identified as G. gotyla is expected to

consist of more than one species.

Examination of a large number of collections

of Garra with a proboscis from the Himalayan

foothills of north-eastern India revealed four spe-

cies, one referable to G. gotyla and three unnamed

species. Garra gotyla is redescribed and a neotype

is designated and three new species are described

here as G. arunachalensis, G. birostris, and G. qua-

dratirostris.

Materials and methods

Measurements were taken point to point with

digital calipers to 0.1 mm. Fin rays and scales

were counted under a stereo zoom microscope.

The number of specimens exhibiting a given count

is indicated in parentheses.

General counts and measurements. Standard

length, head length, and snout length are all

taken from the tip of the snout, respectively to

the caudal-fin base, distal opercular margin, and

anterior orbital margin; predorsal, prepectoral,

prepelvic, and preanal lengths, to the origin of

each fin; and preanus length, to the anal opening.

Head depth at eye and at nape and body depth

are vertical measurements respectively from im-

mediately behind the orbit, the nape and the

dorsal-fin origin to the ventral contour of the

body. Dorsal, pectoral, pelvic, and anal-fin lengths

are taken from the bases of each first ray to the

tip of the longest ray. Dorsal- and anal-fin base

lengths, from the base of the first ray to the point

where the membrane of the last ray contacts the

body. Body width, at the greatest dimension

between the lateral sides at two regions; one at

the anal-fin origin and another at the dorsal-fin

origin. Caudal peduncle length is the straight

distance between the base of the last anal-fin ray

and the middle of the caudal-fin base and caudal

peduncle depth, measured at its least depth. Eye

diameter is taken between anterior and posterior

free orbital rims, and interorbital distance, be-

tween the upper margins of the eyes. Head width

is taken at the greatest dimension between the

opercles, disc width, at the widest portion of the

lower lip, and disc length, from the anteriormid

end of the anteromedian fold (explained below)

to the posteriormid end of the lateroposterior flap

(explained below). Central callous-pad width and

length are taken as the greatest dimensions obtain-

able; pelvic-anal distance, from the midpoint of

the line between the bases of pelvic fin to the

anterior base of the anal fin; and anus to anal fin

distance, from the anal opening to the base of the

anal fin.

Lateral-line scales are counted from the ante-

riormost pored scale in contact with the shoulder

girdle to the posteriormost pored scale on the

caudal fin. Transverse scale rows above the lat-

eral line are counted from the dorsal-fin origin to

the lateral line obliquely ventrad and caudad and

those below lateral line, from the anal-fin origin

and pelvic-fin origin obliquely dorsad and rostrad

to the lateral line. Predorsal scales are a dorsal

mid-line row of scales between occiput and

dorsal-fin origin. Circumpeduncular scale rows

represent the number of scale rows crossing a line

around the caudal peduncle at its narrowest part.

The scale immediately in front of the dorsal,

pelvic and anal mid-lines is counted as 1

2. Pre-

anal scales are the ventral mid-line row of scales

between the anterior base of the anal fin and the

anus. Dorsal and anal-fin base scales are a row

of small elongated scales at the base of each fin.

The dorsolateral sides of all dorsal-fin base scales,

or all scales excluding the first one or two scales,

are connected to the base of the dorsal fin; and

the ventrolateral sides of all anal-fin base scales,

or all scales excluding the first scale, are con-

nected to the base of the anal fin. Fin ray counts

of dorsal, anal, pectoral, and pelvic fins include

separately simple and branched rays. Dorsal and

anal-fin ray counts follow Kottelat (2001), that is,

indicating the last deeply branched ray as

“1 1

”.

Oromandibular structures (Fig. 1a). Rostral cap

(also called rostral fold), upper and lower lips,

upper and lower jaws having a cutting horny

sheath, and barbels are the oromandibular struc-

tures of Garra. The definition of rostral cap follows

Stiassny & Getahun (2007). In labeonins, the

truncated skin fold covering the snout and max-

Ichthyol. Explor. Freshwaters, Vol. 24, No. 2

illary bones found in most of the cyprinids has

become hypertrophied and expanded ventrally

forming a fleshy rostral cap that extends over the

upper lip and premaxillae. The margin of the

rostral cap is invecked to fimbriate. The distal

ventral surface of the fimbriate rostral cap is

densely covered with unculiferous papillae. This

papillate ventral surface is deep in the median

region, tapering laterally on each side. In most

Garra, the margin of the rostral cap on each lat-

eral side is smooth with indistinct vertical shallow

grooves over the papillate ventral surface. The

rostral cap is separated from the upper jaw by a

deep preoral groove and is curved ventrally and

connected with the lower lip at the corners of the

mouth.

In most Garra, the upper lip is absent, though

present vestigially in some species, without

trophic function. The upper lip is reduced to a

very thin band of papillae arranged in one or two

ridges that may be fully adnate to the proximal

margin of the horny upper jaw. The lower lip is

modified to form a mental adhesive disc. The

terminology of the mental adhesive disc and their

definitions follow Zhang et al. (2002). The an-

teromedian fold is a fleshy flap of skin formed

by the anterior border of the mental adhesive disc,

posterior to the horny sheath on the lower jaw

and anterior to the central callous-pad. The fold,

anteriorly separated from the horny jaw sheath

by a transverse deep groove is covered with

numerous papillae. The anterolateral lobe is a

fleshy lobe of skin with discrete margins, lateral

to the end of the anteromedian fold and bridging

the rostral cap and the lateroposterior flap of the

mental adhesive disc around the corner of the

mouth. It is also covered with numerous papillae.

The lobe may be absent. The central callous pad

is a fleshy pad of thickened skin on the central

portion of the mental adhesive disc, anteriorly

separated from the anteromedian fold by a shal-

low or deep transverse groove. Papillae may be

present partly on the central callous-pad. The

lateroposterior flap, superficially covered with

numerous papillae is a free, loose and membra-

nous peripheral flap of skin surrounding the

lateral and posterior portions of the central callous

pad.

Snout morphology (Fig. 1b). The snout of Garra

may have a smooth dorsal surface with sensory

pores or minute tubercles or a proboscis with

minute- to large-sized tubercles. The proboscis is

a fleshy structure protruding anterodorsally over

CCP

ALL

RCG

SLG

AMF

PVS

FRC

LPF

LTS

TRG

TRL

PRB

DRS

Fig. 1. a, Oromandibular structures; and b, snout morphology of Garra. ALL, anterolateral lobe; AMF, antero-

median fold; CCP, central callous pad; DRS, depressed rostral surface; FRC, fimbriae of rostral cap; LJ, lower

jaw; LPF, lateroposterior flap; LTS, lateral surface; MB, maxillary barbel; PRB, proboscis; PVS, papillate ven-

tral surface; RCG, rostral cap groove; SLG, sublachrymal groove; TRG, transverse groove; TRL, transverse

lobe; UJ, upper jaw.

the dorsal surface of the snout in front of the

nostrils. The degree of protrusion of this fleshy

structure varies among species and to some extent,

ontogenetically within the species. The degree of

protrusion exhibits a range from a slightly up-

wards elevation to an upwards elevation upto

the level of the upper margin of eye and protrud-

ing forwards upto the level of the snout tip. The

anterior margin of the proboscis is delineated

from the depressed rostral surface by a shallow

or deep groove. In Garra species with a forward

protruding proboscis, the inferior surface of the

proboscis is or is not in contact with the depressed

rostral surface. The general shapes of the probos-

cis are quadrate, triangular, bilobed, or trilobed,

and anteriorly rounded or truncate. Generally the

anterior margin is tuberculated with small- to

large-sized tubercles. The tubercles may be

present on the lateral margin, anterior region and

ventral surface of the proboscis. The shape of the

tubercles are conical and uni- or multicupid (bi-,

tri- or tetracuspid). The shape and distribution

pattern of the tubercles on the proboscis can be

an aid to the identification of species. Most Garra

with a proboscis have a transverse lobe, which is

a fleshy fold posteriorly demarcated by a trans-

verse groove over the anterodorsal surface of the

snout just behind the snout tip. The lobe is covered

with small- to large-sized tubercles. The depressed

rostral surface is the dorsal surface of the snout

between the transverse lobe and the proboscis.

The surface is flat or bulgy and depressed from

the level of the proboscis. The lateral surfaces of

the snout, antroventral and posteroventral regions

to nostril are often covered with patches of small-

to medium-sized tubercles. In some Garra the

lateral surface, anteroventrally to nostril slightly

elevated as a lobe with medium-sized tubercles.

The sublachrymal groove is the groove which

runs anteroventrally to the lachrymal and usu-

ally extends horizontally above the level of the

rostral cap groove (Fig. 2). In most Garra with a

proboscis, the sublachrymal groove is narrow,

shallow, curves ventrally and originates from the

base of the rostral barbel. The sublachrymal

groove may or may not be connected to the rostral

cap groove. The rostral cap groove is a short deep

groove, which demarcates the distal lateral border

of the rostral cap on each side.

Five specimens each of G. arunachalensis,

G. quadratirostris and G. gotyla and eight of G. bi-

rostris, were dissected and stained with alizarin

red S for vertebral count. The Weberian apparatus

is counted as four vertebrae. Abdominal vertebrae

are counted upto the last vertebra bearing a

pleural rib and predorsal, upto the vertebra im-

mediately anterior to dorsal-fin pterygiophore;

and caudal vertebrae, from the vertebra immedi-

ately posterior to first anal-fin pterygiophore to

the vertebra bearing the hypural plate.

Specimens are deposited in the Manipur

University Museum of Fishes (MUMF), Rajiv

Gandhi University Museum of Fishes (RGUMF),

Zoological Survey of India-Arunachal Pradesh

Regional Station (ZSI-APRS).

SLG

RCG

SLG

RCG

Fig. 2. Sublachrymal groove and rostral cap groove in: a, Garra quadratirostris; and b, G. birostris.

Nebeshwar & Vishwanath: Three new Garra and redescription of G. gotyla

Ichthyol. Explor. Freshwaters, Vol. 24, No. 2

101

Garra arunachalensis, new species

(Fig. 3)

Holotype. MUMF 4304, 121.0 mm SL; India:

Arunachal Pradesh: Lower Divang valley district:

Deopani River at Roing (Brahmaputra basin),

29°09'35" N 95°54'08" E; A. L. Bony, 9 Jan 2005.

Paratypes. MUMF 4305/4, 4, 93.0-126.0 mm SL;

same data as holotype. – RGUMF 0190/5, 5, 93.5-

128.0 mm SL; India: Arunachal Pradesh: East

Kameng district: Pachabong River at Seppa (Brah-

maputra basin), 27°16'35" N 92°53'16" E; K. Bagra

et al., 13 Feb 2007.

Non-types. ZSI v/42, 3, 84.0-140.0 mm SL; India:

Arunachal Pradesh: West Siang district: Sinyot River

near Payum (Brahmaputra basin); G. Lollen & N. Tahar,

6 Dec 2003.

Diagnosis. Garra arunachalensis is distinguished

from its congeners in the Ganga-Brahmaputra

c d

Fig. 3. Garra arunachalensis, MUMF 4304, holotype, 121.0 mm SL; India: Arunachal Pradesh: Lower Divang Valley

district: Deopani River; a, lateral view; b, ventral view; c, dorsal view of head; d, mental adhesive disc; e, side

view of snout showing small tubercles on lateral margin of proboscis.

River system in possessing the following snout

morphology: a transverse lobe with 8-24 small- to

medium-sized tubercles; a prominent quadrate

proboscis, slightly tapering anteriorly, moder-

ately elevated upwards; the anterior margin of

the proboscis truncate, and sharply delineated

from the depressed rostral surface by a narrow

transverse groove; each anterolateral marginal

corner of the proboscis with one large unicuspid,

acanthoid tubercle, and one small tubercle in

between; and the lateral margin of the proboscis

with 3-6 small tubercles in one row. Garra aru-

nachalensis differs from G. birostris, G. quadratiros-

tris and G. gotyla in lacking (vs. having) an ante-

rolateral lobe of the lower lip; more posteriorly-

situated anus (distance from anus to anal fin

19-25 % of pelvic-anal distance vs. 22-44); more

lateral-line scales (35 vs. 33-34; except G. quadra-

tirostris); fewer transverse scale rows between

lateral line and anal-fin origin (3 1

2 vs. 4-4 1

2) and

circumpeduncular scale rows (12 vs. 16); a larger

adhesive disc (disc length 45-53 % HL vs. 33-42;

central callous-pad width 39-48 % HL vs. 30-41;

and length 32-38 % HL vs. 20-28); and lacking

(vs. having) a black spot at the upper angle of the

gill opening. Garra arunachalensis further differs

Table 1. Morphometric data of Garra arunachalensis, and G. birostris. Ranges include values of holotypes.

G. arunachalensis G. birostris

holotype range mean S. D. holotype range mean S.D.

Standard length (mm) 126.0 84.0-140.0 102.0 40.0-143.0

In percent of standard length

Body depth 22.6 22.3-25.4 23.9 1.2 22.8 21.3-24.6 23.0 1.2

Head length 24.8 24.6-27.1 25.8 0.8 22.8 22.8-25.3 24.0 0.8

Head depth at nape 17.1 17.1-18.8 17.9 0.7 17.0 16.8-18.4 17.7 0.6

Head depth at eye 14.4 13.6-16.3 15.3 0.9 14.3 14.0-16.0 15.0 0.7

Head width 18.7 18.7-21.6 20.3 1.0 18.7 18.2-19.7 18.7 0.5

Body width at anal-fin origin 9.7 9.6-12.6 18.9 1.4 11.4 9.7-11.5 10.8 0.8

Body width at dorsal-fin origin 18.3 16.4-19.9 10.6 0.9 16.5 15.8-18.0 16.9 0.8

Caudal peduncle length 15.1 14.3-16.3 15.4 0.7 16.8 14.5-17.5 15.9 1.1

Caudal peduncle depth 11.7 11.7-12.9 12.4 0.4 13.0 12.7-14.4 13.4 0.6

Dorsal-fin base length 19.0 16.4-17.6 18.6 1.2 18.1 17.5-19.7 18.6 0.8

Dorsal-fin length 24.2 16.4-20.1 25.1 1.7 21.7 21.7-27.0 24.2 2.3

Pectoral-fin length 23.0 22.3-26.5 23.8 1.3 21.7 21.0-23.9 22.0 1.1

Pelvic-fin length 22.2 21.5-25.5 22.8 1.4 19.8 18.8-22.8 20.5 1.7

Anal-fin base length 7.9 7.6-9.8 8.3 0.7 8.0 7.4-8.8 8.2 0.5

Anal-fin length 20.8 19.3-22.7 20.4 1.2 18.9 18.0-21.5 19.6 1.3

Predorsal length 49.8 49.2-51.9 50.2 1.0 46.2 46.2-50.0 47.9 1.3

Prepectoral length 21.4 21.4-21.9 21.6 0.2 21.0 20.5-23.8 21.9 1.3

Prepelvic length 52.4 51.8-55.7 53.5 1.1 51.9 50.2-53.8 52.5 1.1

Pre-anus length 71.4 69.6-75.0 72.1 1.6 72.3 71.1-73.0 72.2 0.8

Preanal length 76.9 76.2-81.0 78.5 1.7 79.2 77.2-82.1 79.4 1.4

Pelvic-anal distance 24.4 24.1-26.9 25.2 1.0 27.4 25.7-30.0 27.2 1.3

Snout length 14.4 14.0-16.3 15.1 0.7 13.7 13.1-15.3 13.8 0.7

Eye diameter 4.8 4.3-5.6 4.9 0.4 4.8 4.8-5.9 5.4 0.3

Interorbital distance 10.5 10.5-12.5 11.6 0.7 10.4 9.5-11.5 10.7 0.7

In percent of pelvic-anal distance

Distance from anus to anal fin 19 19-25 21.8 2.1 24 21-30 25.4 2.9

In percent of head length

Snout length 58 56-63 58.5 2.3 60 55-60 57.7 2.0

Eye diameter 19 17-23 19.4 2.3 21 21-25 22.4 1.4

Interorbital distance 42 42-48 45.1 2.6 46 39-46 44.4 2.2

Disc width 61 59-66 62.8 2.6 61 57-66 62.1 3.9

Disc length 50 45-53 49.4 2.4 41 36-42 39.5 2.4

Central callous pad width 39 39-48 43.2 2.7 41 32-41 37.7 3.5

Central callous pad length 32 32-38 34.2 2.0 28 22-28 25.8 2.0

Nebeshwar & Vishwanath: Three new Garra and redescription of G. gotyla

Ichthyol. Explor. Freshwaters, Vol. 24, No. 2

103

from G. quadratirostris in having fewer lateral-line

scales (35 vs. 37), total vertebrae (33-34 vs. 35-36),

abdominal vertebrae (15-16 vs. 17-18), and pre-

dorsal vertebrae (9 vs. 10-11).

Description. Morphometric data inTable 1. Body

elongate, slightly compressed laterally, more

compressed in region of caudal peduncle. Dorsal

head profile rising steeply over snout, slightly

convex, then dorsal body profile to dorsal-fin

origin slightly convex, often with sharp demarca-

tion at nape. Ventral profile straight or slightly

convex to anal-fin origin. Head moderately large

and depressed, with slightly convex interorbital

distance; height less than length; width greater

than height. Snout broadly rounded with trans-

verse lobe covered with 8-24 medium- to large-

sized tubercles, demarcated posteriorly by shal-

low transverse groove; prominent quadrate

proboscis; with one patch of 6-27 small- to me-

dium-sized tubercles on slightly elevated lateral

surface of snout, anteroventral region to nostril

on each side; and with minute tubercles and pores

scattered evenly on depressed rostral surface and

tip of snout. Proboscis moderately elevated up-

wards, slightly tapering anteriorly, sharply de-

lineated from depressed rostral surface by narrow

transverse groove; width smaller than inter-

narial space; anterior margin with 2 large unicus-

pid acanthoid tubercles, each on anterolateral

marginal corner projecting laterally and one small

tubercle in between; lateral margin with 2-6

minute- to small-sized tubercles in one row. De-

pressed rostral surface flat. Sublachrymal groove

short, shallow and not connected to rostral cap

groove. Eye placed dorsolaterally in posterior half

of head.

Barbels in two pairs; rostral barbel anterolater-

ally located, shorter than eye diameter; maxillary

barbel at corner of mouth, shorter than rostral.

Rostral cap well-developed, highly fimbriate, one

twelfth of length of its distal margin on each

lateral extremity smooth; papillate ventral surface

narrow. Upper lip present as a thin band of

weakly developed papillae in one ridge. Upper

jaw not entirely covered by rostral cap. Disc el-

liptical, shorter than wide and slightly narrower

than head width through roots of maxillary bar-

bel; anterolateral lobe of lower lip absent, one

slight notch on lateral side of each anterolateral

region of lateroposterior flap present; papillae on

posteromedian region of anteromedian fold

larger, fleshy, coarsely arranged appearing as flat

lobes; groove between anteromedian fold and

central callous-pad shallow and wide; papillae

on inner half of whole length of lateroposterior

flap larger and coarsely arranged; anterior mar-

ginal surface of central callous-pad with coarsely

arranged small fleshy papillae; posteriormost

margin of lateroposterior flap extending much

beyond vertically to posterior margin of eye.

Dorsal fin with 3 (13) simple and 8

2 (13)

branched rays; last simple ray equal to head

length; distal margin concave; origin midway

between snout tip and caudal-fin base, inserted

anterior to vertical from pelvic-fin origin; first

branched ray longest, last branched ray not ex-

tending vertically to anal-fin origin. Pectoral fin

with 1 simple and 14 (9) or 15 (4) branched rays,

reaching beyond midway to pelvic-fin origin

when adpressed; length equal to or shorter than

head length; margin subacuminate; fifth branched

ray longest, not extending to base of anal fin.

Pelvic fin with 1 simple and 8 (13) branched rays,

reaching beyond midway to anal-fin origin, sur-

passing anus; second branched ray longest, not

extending to base of anal fin; origin closer to anal-

fin origin than to pectoral-fin origin, inserted

below base of third branched dorsal-fin ray; dis-

tal margin almost truncate or slightly convex.

Anal fin short with 3 (13) simple and 5

2 (13)

branched rays; first branched ray longest, reach-

ing base of caudal fin; distal posterior margin

concave; origin closer to caudal-fin base than to

pelvic-fin origin. Anus closer to anal-fin origin

than to pelvic-fin origin. Caudal fin forked, tip of

lobes pointed; lower lobe slightly longer; tenth

ray shortest.

Lateral line complete with 35 (13) scales.

Transverse scale rows above lateral line 4 (2) or

4 1

2 (11); between lateral line and pelvic-fin origin

3 1

2 (13); between lateral line and anal-fin origin

3 1

2 (13). Circumpeduncular scale rows 12 (13).

Predorsal scales 10 (7), 11 (3) or 12 (3); scales

regularly arranged, slightly smaller than flank

scales. Chest and belly scaled. One long axillary

scale at base of pelvic fin, its tip reaching poste-

rior end of pelvic-fin base. Preanal scales 3 (9) or

4 (4). Dorsal-fin base scales 6 (4), 7 (6), 8 (2) or

9 (1), of which last 5-8 connected to base of dor-

sal fin. Anal-fin base scales 3 (9) or 4 (4), of which

last 2-3 connected to base of anal fin.

Osteological features. Total vertebrae 33 (3) or

34 (2); abdominal 15 (2) or 16 (3); predorsal 9 (5);

and caudal 11 (3) or 12 (2).

Sexual dimorphism. No evident sexual dimor-

phism.

Colour. In formalin, head, dorsum and side dark

brown or gray. Mouth, chest, and abdomen yel-

lowish white. Dorsal and pectoral fins more dark

grayish than anal and pelvic fins. Posterior halves

of each interradial membrane of dorsal fin black,

fin rays light brown. Whole length of caudal-fin

rays above and below fork and distal half of all

rays of lower lobe of caudal fin faintly blackish.

Three or four narrow faint black stripes on caudal

peduncle. Base of last 6 branched dorsal-fin rays

spotted with black.

Etymology. Named after Arunachal Pradesh, the

state in which it is distributed. An adjective.

Distribution. Garra arunachalensis is distributed

in East Kameng, West Siang and Lower Divang

valley district of the upper Brahmaputra basin in

Arunachal Pradesh (Fig. 4).

Garra birostris, new species

(Fig. 5)

Holotype. MUMF 4302, 102.0 mm SL; India:

Arunachal Pradesh: Papum Pare district: Dikrong

River at Doimukh (Brahmaputra basin), 27°08'

19" N 93°44'51" E; K. Nebeshwar & K. Bagra,

3 March 2005.

hin

Myan

28°

24°

9090

China

Bangladesh Myanmar

Bhutan

90°

28°

24°

28°

24°

94°

90° 94°

Fig. 4. Distribution of Garra arunachalensis (

), G. birostris (%), G. quadratirostris (() and G. gotyla (@).

Nebeshwar & Vishwanath: Three new Garra and redescription of G. gotyla

Ichthyol. Explor. Freshwaters, Vol. 24, No. 2

105

Paratypes. All from India: Arunachal Pradesh

(Brahmaputra basin): MUMF 4303/5, 5, 40.0-

90.0 mm SL; same data as holotype. – RGUMF

0077, 5, 60.0-120.0 mm SL; Papum Pare district:

Ranganadhi River at Kimin, 27°21'01" N 93°57'

11" E; K. Bagra, 4 June 2005. – RGUMF 0078, 5,

65.0-143.0 mm SL; West Kameng district: Sipu

River at Doji; K. Bagra, 17 July 2005. – RGUMF

0080, 5, 40.0-85.0 mm SL; Papum Pare district:

Poma River at Ramgath, 26°57'38" N 93°24'26" E;

K. Bagra, 7 March 2005.

Diagnosis. Garra birostris is distinguished from

its congeners in the Ganga-Brahmaputra River

system in possessing the following snout mor-

phology: a transverse lobe with 11-19 small- to

large-sized uni- to tetracuspid acanthoid tuber-

cles; a prominent bilobed proboscis, moderately

elevated upwards, each lobe forwardly protrud-

ing and tapering; the tip of each lobe with a large,

anteriorly-directed tri- or tetracuspid acanthoid

tubercle; the anterior margin of the proboscis

sharply delineated by a deep groove from the

depressed rostral surface; 1-2 small tubercles on

the lateral margin of the proboscis. Garra birostris

c d

Fig. 5. Garra birostris, MUMF 4302, holotype, 102.0 mm SL; India: Arunachal Pradesh: Papum Pare district:

Dikrong River; a, side view; b, ventral view; c, dorsal view of head; and d, mental adhesive disc.

differs from G. arunachalensis and G. quadratirostris

in having fewer lateral-line scales (33-34 vs. 35-

37) and total vertebrae (32 vs. 33-36); more trans-

verse scale rows between lateral line and anal-fin

origin (4-4 1

2 vs. 3 1

2) and circumpeduncular scale

rows (16 vs. 12); a smaller adhesive disc (disc

length 36-42 % HL vs. 43-53; central callous-pad

width 32-41 % HL vs. 38-48 and length 22-28 %

HL vs. 28-38); and having (vs. lacking) a black

spot at the upper angle of the gill opening. Garra

birostris differs from G. gotyla in having more

branched pectoral-fin rays (14-15 vs. 11-13);

a longer snout (55-60 % HL vs. 48-55) and pelvic-

anal distance (25.7-30.0 % SL vs. 22.8-25.9);

a narrower interorbital distance (39-46 % HL vs.

46-51); having (vs. lacking) multicuspid tubercles

on the snout; and lacking (vs. having) more dis-

tinct upper lip as a band of papillae arranged in

two transverse ridges; from G. arunachalensis in

having (vs. lacking) an anterolateral lobe of the

lower lip; and from G. quadratirostris in having a

more posteriorly-situated anus (distance from

anus to anal fin 22-30 % of pelvic-anal distance

vs. 37-44).

Description. Morphometric data in Table 1. Body

elongate, compressed laterally, more compressed

in region of caudal peduncle. Dorsal head profile

rising gently over snout, straight, then dorsal

body profile to dorsal-fin origin straight or

slightly convex, often with slight demarcation at

nape. Ventral profile moderately convex to anal-

fin origin. Head moderately large and depressed,

with slightly convex interorbital distance; height

less than length; width greater than height. Snout

moderately rounded with transverse lobe covered

with 11-19 small- to large-sized uni- to tetracus-

pid tubercles, demarcated posteriorly by deep

transverse groove; prominent bilobed proboscis;

and with one small patch of 4-7 small tubercles

on each lateral surface of snout, anteroventral

region to nostril on each side. Proboscis moder-

ately elevated upwards, sharply delineated from

depressed rostral surface by deep transverse

groove; width smaller than internarial space; each

lobe of proboscis tapering anteriorly, forwardly

projecting with one large, anteriorly-directed tri-

or tetracuspid, acanthoid tubercle; one small tu-

bercle may be present between lobes; and lateral

margin with 1-2 small tubercles. Depressed ros-

tral surface slightly bulgy. Sublachrymal groove

shallow, not connected to rostral cap groove. In

smaller specimens (40.0-65.0 mm SL), proboscis

feebly developed as slight elevation with small

tubercles anteriorly and with no transverse groove

formed. In larger specimens (83.6-143.0 mm SL),

proboscis developed, with two large acanthoid

tubercles on anterior margin and sharply delin-

eated from depressed rostral surface by distinct

deep transverse groove. Along with development

in size of tubercles from uni- or bicuspid to tri- or

tetracuspid, proboscis starts to protrude anteri-

orly to form two lobes. Eye placed dorsolaterally

in posterior half of head.

Barbels in two pairs; rostral barbel anterolater-

ally located, shorter than eye diameter; maxillary

barbel at corner of mouth, shorter than rostral

barbel. Rostral cap well-developed, highly fimbri-

ate, about one sixth of length of its distal margin,

on each lateral extremity smooth; papillate ventral

surface moderately wide. Upper lip present as a

thin band of weakly developed papillae in one

row. Except median margin, upper jaw entirely

covered by rostral cap. Disc elliptical, shorter than

wide and slightly narrower than head width

through roots of maxillary barbel; papillae on

posteromedian region of anteromedian fold

larger; groove between anteromedian fold and

central callous-pad shallow; papillae on inner half

of whole length of lateroposterior flap larger and

coarsely arranged; anterior marginal surface of

central callous-pad with coarsely arranged small

elongated papillae; posteriormost margin of lat-

eroposterior flap extending vertically or slightly

beyond vertically to posterior margin of eye.

Dorsal fin with 3 (21) simple and 8

2 (21)

branched rays; last simple ray equal to head

length; distal margin concave; origin nearer to

snout tip than to caudal-fin base, inserted ante-

rior to vertical from pelvic-fin origin; first branched

ray longest, last branched ray not extending

vertically to anal-fin origin. Pectoral fin with 1

simple and 14 (8) or 15 (13) branched rays, reach-

ing beyond midway to pelvic-fin origin when

adpressed; length slightly shorter than head

length; margin subacuminate; fourth branched

ray longest, not extending to base of pelvic fin.

Pelvic fin with 1 simple and 8 (21) branched rays,

reaching beyond midway to anal-fin origin, sur-

passing anus; second branched ray longest, not

extending to base of anal fin; origin closer to anal-

fin origin than to pectoral-fin origin, inserted

below base of third branched dorsal-fin ray; dis-

tal margin almost truncate. Anal fin short with

3 (21) simple and 5

2 (21) branched rays; first

branched ray longest, not reaching base of caudal

Nebeshwar & Vishwanath: Three new Garra and redescription of G. gotyla

Ichthyol. Explor. Freshwaters, Vol. 24, No. 2

107

fin; distal posterior margin slightly concave; ori-

gin closer to caudal-fin base than to pelvic-fin

origin. Anus closer to anal-fin origin than to

pelvic-fin origin. In smaller specimens (40.0-

65.0 mm SL), anus situated anteriorly (distance

from anus to anal fin 27-28 % of pelvic-anal dis-

tance) while in larger specimens (83.6-143.0 mm

SL), anus situated more posteriorly (distance from

anus to anal fin 21-26 % of pelvic-anal distance).

Caudal fin forked; lobe tips pointed; lower lobe

slightly longer; tenth ray shortest.

Lateral line complete, with 33 (14) or 34 (7)

scales. Transverse scale rows above lateral line

4 1

2 (21); between lateral line and pelvic-fin origin

3 1

2 (21); between lateral line and anal-fin origin

4 (3) or 4

2 (18). Circumpeduncular scale rows

16 (21). Predorsal scales 10 (16) or 11 (5); scales

regularly arranged, same size as flank scales.

Chest and belly scaled. One long axillary scale at

base of pelvic fin, its tip reaching beyond poste-

rior end of pelvic-fin base. Prenal scales 3 (10) or

4 (11). Dorsal-fin base scales 6 (14) or 7 (7), of

which last 5 or 6 connected to base of dorsal fin.

Anal-fin base scales 3 (4), 4 (17), of which last 2

or 3 connected to base of anal fin.

Osteological features. Total vertebrae 32 (8);

abdominal 15 (8); predorsal 9 (8); and caudal

10 (3), 11 (5). Males with only 11 (4) pleural ribs

and females with 13 (3) or 14 (1) pleural ribs.

Sexual dimorphism. Males with large tubercles

on transverse lobe of snout. In smaller specimens

(51.3-81.2 mm SL), males with more pointed

snout; narrower head at anterior nares (13.9-

14.8 % SL vs. 14.9-16.8), narrower adhesive disc

(width 10.7-12.4 % SL vs. 12.5-14.2), and nar-

rower central callous pad (width 7.6-8.1 % SL vs.

8.2-9.6) than females.

Colour. In formalin, head, dorsum and side dark

brown or dark gray. Mouth, chest, and abdomen

yellowish white or light gray. Dorsal, pectoral,

pelvic and anal fins grayish white. Nearly whole

length of caudal fin rays above and below fork

and distal portions of all fin rays of lower lobe of

caudal-fin dark gray. Base of branched dorsal-fin

rays spotted with black. In some specimens, only

base of last 6 branched dorsal-fin rays spotted.

Six narrow dark black stripes on caudal peduncle.

A black spot at upper angle of gill opening.

Etymology. The specific epithet is derived from

Latin bi, meaning two, and rostrum (rostris),

meaning beak or bill, referring to the two beak-

like projections of the proboscis. An adjective.

Distribution. Garra birostris is widely distributed

in West Kameng and Papum Pare districts of the

upper Brahmaputra basin in Arunachal Pradesh

(Fig. 4).

Garra quadratirostris, new species

(Fig. 6)

Holotype. MUMF 4306, 108.0 mm SL; India: Sik-

kim: Tista River at Rangpo (Ganga basin), 27°10'

43" N 88°32'10" E; W. Vishwanath et al., 2-9 Janu-

ary 2006.

Paratypes. All from India: MUMF 4307/5, 9,

68.8-97.6 mm SL; same data as holotype. –

RGUMF 0200, 5, 69.5-132.0 mm SL; Arunachal

Pradesh: Lower Divang Valley district: Deopani

River at Roing (Brahmaputra basin), 29°09'35" N

95°54'08" E; K. Nebeshwar et al., 7-18 February

2007. – RGUMF-0201/5, 5, 73.0-126.0 mm SL;

Arunachal Pradesh: East Siang district: Mibung

River at Boleng (Brahmaputra basin), 28°18'53" N

94°57'17" E; K. Bagra et al., March 2007.

Diagnosis. Garra quadratirostris is distinguished

from its congeners in the Ganga-Brahmaputra

River system in possessing the following snout

morphology: a transverse lobe with 13-20 small-

to large-sized tubercles; a prominent quadrate

proboscis, moderately elevated upwards; the

anterior margin of the proboscis truncate, and

sharply delineated from the depressed rostral

surface by a narrow transverse groove; and small-

to medium-sized tubercles on the margins of the

proboscis in a single row (3-4 on anterior and 2-4

on lateral margins). Garra quadratirostris differs

from G. arunachalensis, G. birostris and G. gotyla in

having more lateral-line scales (37 vs. 33-35),

total vertebrae (35-36 vs. 32-34), abdominal ver-

tebrae (17-18 vs. 15-16), and preanal scales (5-6

vs. 3-4); fewer transverse scale rows above the

lateral line (3 1

2-4 vs. 4-4 1

2), and transverse scale

rows between lateral line and pelvic-fin origin

(2 1

2 vs. 3-3 1

2); a more anteriorly-situated anus

(anus to anal fin distance 37-44 % of pelvic-anal

distance vs. 19-30); a faint blackish spot immedi-

ately anterior to upper angle of gill opening (vs.

absent); and fewer circumpeduncular scale rows

(12 vs. 16) (except G. arunachalensis).

Description. Morphometric data in Table 2. Body

elongate, slightly compressed laterally, more

compressed in region of caudal peduncle. Dorsal

head profile rising gently over snout, slightly

convex, then dorsal body profile to dorsal-fin

origin moderately convex, often with sharp de-

marcation at nape. Ventral profile more or less

straight to anal-fin origin. Head moderately large

and depressed, with slightly convex interorbital

distance; height less than length; width greater

than height. Snout broadly rounded with trans-

verse lobe covered with 13-20 small- to large-sized

tubercles, demarcated posteriorly by deep trans-

verse groove; prominent quadrate proboscis; and

with two patches of 6–11 small- to medium-sized

tubercles and 2-4 small tubercles on lateral surface

of snout respectively, anteroventral and postero-

ventral regions to nostril on each side. Proboscis

moderately elevated upwards, sharply deline-

ated from depressed rostral surface by narrow

transverse groove; width slightly smaller than

internarial space; anterior and lateral margins

respectively with 3-4 and 2-4 small- to medium-

sized tubercles in one row. Depressed rostral

surface creased and bulgy as transverse fold.

Sublachrymal groove short, shallow,and con-

nected to rostral cap groove. Eyes placed dorso-

laterally in posterior half of head.

Barbels in two pairs; rostral barbel anterolater-

Fig. 6. Garra quadratirostris: MUMF 4306, holotype, 108.0 mm SL; India: Sikkim: Tista River; a, side view; b, ven-

tral view; c, dorsal view of head; and d, mental adhesive disc.

c d

Nebeshwar & Vishwanath: Three new Garra and redescription of G. gotyla

Ichthyol. Explor. Freshwaters, Vol. 24, No. 2

109

ally located, shorter than eye diameter; maxillary

barbel at corner of mouth, shorter than rostral

barbel. Rostral cap well-developed, moderately

fimbriate, about one sixth of length of its distal

margin on each lateral extremity smooth; papillate

ventral surface moderately wide. Upper lip in the

form of a thin band of weakly developed papillae

in one row. Except median margin, upper jaw

covered by rostral cap. Disc elliptical, shorter than

wide and slightly narrower than head width

through roots of maxillary barbel; papillae on

anteromedian fold of same size, small and regu-

larly arranged; groove between anteromedian

fold and central callous-pad narrow and moder-

ately deep; papillae on inner half of whole length

of lateroposterior flap larger and coarsely ar-

ranged; anterior marginal surface of central cal-

lous-pad with coarsely arranged small elongated

papillae; posteriormost margin of lateroposterior

flap extending slightly beyond vertically to pos-

terior margin of eye.

Dorsal fin with 3 (20) simple and 8

2 (20)

branched rays; last simple ray slightly shorter

than head length; distal margin concave; origin

Table 2. Morphometric data of Garra quadratirostris, and G. gotyla. Ranges include values of holotypes and neo-

type.

G. quadratirostris G. gotyla

holotype range mean S. D. neotype range mean S. D.

Standard length (mm) 108.0 73.0-132.0 104.3 50.5-132.0

In percent of standard length

Body depth 28.1 20.3-28.2 23.5 3.4 21.7 20.8-24.9 22.4 1.31

Head length 26.5 23.8-26.7 25.9 1.1 22.8 22.8-26.3 24.3 1.22

Head depth at nape 18.2 15.9-18.7 17.3 1.1 16.7 16.0-17.3 16.6 0.44

Head depth at eye 15.2 14.0-15.4 14.6 0.0 14.6 14.6-15.8 15.0 0.48

Head width 21.5 18.4-21.8 20.7 1.2 19.5 18.8-21.4 20.1 0.89

Body width at anal-fin origin 12.0 11.0-12.5 11.5 1.1 11.0 10.3-12.3 11.2 0.69

Body width at dorsal-fin origin 20.0 16.4-20.1 18.8 1.4 18.5 16.7-21.0 18.5 1.24

Caudal peduncle length 14.3 14.2-15.9 15.2 0.6 17.2 14.7-17.7 16.5 0.92

Caudal peduncle depth 13.4 12.9-14.4 13.4 0.7 13.9 13.0-15.7 14.3 0.86

Dorsal-fin base length 18.2 17.1-18.4 17.7 0.4 17.4 16.0-18.0 17.1 0.65

Dorsal-fin length 24.1 24.1-27.1 24.8 1.2 21.7 21.7-25.3 23.3 1.28

Pectoral-fin length 21.8 21.0-24.6 23.0 1.4 20.6 20.6-23.5 21.7 1.07

Pelvic-fin length 20.1 20.5-23.3 21.4 1.2 17.9 17.8-20.8 19.4 1.01

Anal-fin base length 7.8 7.8-9.5 8.5 0.7 7.9 7.6-9.6 8.4 0.67

Anal-fin length 24.9 20.5-24.9 21.5 1.9 18.8 18.8-20.8 19.7 0.76

Predorsal length 52.0 48.4-52.8 50.8 1.6 47.6 45.6-50.2 47.7 1.54

Prepectoral length 22.5 19.8-23.3 21.8 1.2 19.7 19.1-22.6 21.1 1.18

Prepelvic length 56.0 52.2-57.6 55.0 2.0 51.9 51.7-56.2 53.5 1.47

Pre-anus length 70.0 66.8-72.3 69.8 2.3 72.9 69.7-73.0 71.6 1.07

Preanal length 80.4 76.3-82.6 79.9 2.1 78.7 75.2-78.7 77.4 1.09

Pelvic-anal distance 23.7 23.7-26.1 25.3 0.9 25.9 22.8-25.9 23.8 1.09

Snout length 15.8 13.9-16.1 14.7 1.0 12.3 12.0-15.6 13.0 1.12

Eye diameter 5.7 4.6-6.5 5.7 0.8 4.7 4.4-6.6 5.3 0.80

Interorbital distance 12.5 11.0-12.5 11.8 0.6 11.5 11.1-12.8 11.8 0.53

In percent of pelvic-anal distance

Distance from anus to anal fin 40 37-44 39.1 3.2 22 22-28 24.6 2.5

In percent of head length

Snout length 58 51-59 56.0 3.2 54 48-55 52.3 2.5

Eye diameter 23 19-24 22.2 1.8 21 19-25 21.5 2.3

Interorbital distance 52 41-52 46.4 4.2 50 46-51 48.4 2.3

Disc width 65 57-65 61.0 3.2 55 51-57 53.7 2.3

Disc length 48 43-48 45.3 2.3 37 33-40 35.8 2.0

Central callous pad width 46 38-46 41.7 2.7 37 30-37 34.6 2.1

Central callous pad length 37 28-37 31.2 3.1 22 20-24 21.6 1.3

midway between snout tip and caudal-fin base,

inserted anterior to vertical from pelvic-fin origin;

first branched ray longest, last branched ray not

extending vertically to anal-fin origin. Pectoral

fin with 1 simple and 14 (5) or 15 (15) branched

rays, reaching beyond midway to pelvic-fin origin

when adpressed; length equal or shorter than

head length; margin subacuminate; fifth branched

ray longest, not extending to base of pelvic fin.

Pelvic fin with 1 simple and 8 (20) branched rays,

reaching beyond midway to anal-fin origin, sur-

passing anus; second branched ray longest, not

extending to base of anal fin; origin closer to anal-

fin origin than to pectoral-fin origin, inserted

below base of third branched dorsal-fin ray; dis-

tal margin almost truncate or slightly convex.

Anal fin short with 3 (20) simple and 5

2 (20)

branched rays; first branched ray longest, reach-

ing base of caudal fin; distal posterior margin

straight; origin closer to caudal-fin base than to

pelvic-fin origin. Anus closer to anal-fin origin

than to pelvic-fin origin. Caudal fin forked; tip of

lobes pointed; lower lobe slightly longer; tenth

ray shortest.

Lateral line complete with 37 (20) scales.

Transverse scale rows above lateral line 3

2 (15)

or 4 (5); between lateral line and pelvic-fin origin

2 1

2 (20), and between lateral line and anal-fin

origin 3

2 (20). Circumpeduncular scale rows

12 (20). Predorsal scales 10 (15) or 11 (5); scales

regularly arranged, same size as flank scales.

Chest and belly scaled. One long axillary scale at

base of pelvic fin, its tip reaching posterior end

of pelvic-fin base. Preanal scales 5 (9) or 6 (11).

Doral-fin base scales 5 (3), 6 (12), 7 (4) or 8 (1), of

which last 5-7 connected to base of dorsal fin.

Anal-fin base scales 2 (2), 3 (7), 4 (10) or 5 (1), of

which 2-4 connected to base of anal fin.

Osteological features. Total vertebrae 35 (3) or

36 (2); abdominal 17 (2) or 18 (3); predorsal 10 (2)

or 11 (3); and caudal 11 (3) or 12 (2).

Sexual dimorphism. Males with more large tu-

bercles on transverse lobe, proboscis and lateral

surface of snout.

Colour. In formalin, head, dorsum and side dark

brown or dark gray. Mouth, chest, and abdomen

yellowish. Anal, pelvic, and pectoral fins grayish

white. Whole length of last six interradial mem-

branes of dorsal fin faintly spotted and fin rays

brownish. Whole length of one ray above and

four rays below fork of caudal fin and distal half

of all fin rays of lower lobe of caudal-fin faintly

dark grayish. Three or four narrow dark black

stripes on caudal peduncle. A faint blackish spot

immediately anterior to upper angle of gill open-

ing. Base of last 6 branched dorsal-fin rays

faintly spotted.

Etymology. The specific epithet is derived from

Latin quadrum (meaning square shape) and

rostrum, rostris (meaning beak or bill), referring

to the squarish shaped proboscis. An adjective.

Distribution. Garra quadratirostris is distributed

in East Siang and Lower Divang Valley districts

of the upper Brahmaputra basin in Arunachal

Pradesh and Tista River in Sikkim (Fig. 4).

Garra gotyla (Gray, 1832)

(Fig. 7)

Neotype. MUMF 4300, 104.3 mm SL; India: Sik-

kim: Tista River at Rangpo (Ganga basin), 27°10'

43" N 88°32'10" E; W. Vishwanath et al., 2-9 Janu-

ary 2006.

Examined material. MUMF 4301/9, 14, 50.5-132.0 mm

SL; same data as neotype.

Diagnosis. Garra gotyla is distinguished from its

congeners in the Ganga-Brahmaputra River

system in possessing the following snout mor-

phology: a transverse lobe with 9-13 small- or

medium-sized tubercles; a prominent quadrate

proboscis without or with a shallow depression

in the middle to present a bilobed appearance,

moderately elevated upwards; the anterior region

of the proboscis depressed with 4-13 small- to

medium-sized tubercles; and the anterior margin

of the proboscis delineated from the depressed

rostral surface by a continuous or medially inter-

rupted narrow groove. Garra gotyla differs from

G. arunachalensis, G. birostris and G. quadratirostris

in having a more distinct upper lip in the form

of a thin band of papillae arranged in two trans-

verse ridges; and fewer branched pectoral-fin rays

(12-13 vs. 14-15); and from G. arunachalensis and

G. quadratirostris in having fewer lateral-line scales

(33-34 vs. 35-37); more transverse scale rows

between lateral line and anal-fin origin (4

2 vs.

3 1

2), and circumpeduncular scale rows (16 vs.

12); a smaller adhesive disc (disc width 51-57 %

Nebeshwar & Vishwanath: Three new Garra and redescription of G. gotyla

Ichthyol. Explor. Freshwaters, Vol. 24, No. 2

111

HL vs. 57-66; disc length 35-40 % HL vs. 43-53;

central callous-pad width 30-37 % HL vs. 38-48

and length 20-24 % HL vs. 28-38); and having

(vs. lacking) a black spot at the upper angle of

the gill opening. Garra gotyla further differs from

G. birostris in having a shorter snout (48-55 % HL

vs. 55-60) and pelvic-anal distance (22.8-25.9 %

SL vs. 25.7-30.0); a wider interorbital distance

(46-51 % HL vs. 39-46); and lacking (vs. having)

multicuspid tubercles on proboscis and transverse

lobe of the snout; from G. arunachalensis in having

a shorter snout (48-55 % HL vs. 56-63), and lack-

ing (vs. having) an anterolateral lobe of the

lower lip; from G. quadratirostris in having fewer

total vertebrae (32-33 vs. 35-36); shorter pelvic

(17.8-20.8 % SL vs. 20.5-23.3) and anal fins (18.8-

20.8 % SL vs. 20.5-24.9); and a more posteriorly-

situated anus (distance from anus to anal fin

22-28 % of pelvic-anal distance vs. 37-44).

Description. Morphometric data in Table 2. Body

elongate, slightly compressed laterally, more

compressed in region of caudal peduncle. Dorsal

head profile rising steeply, slightly convex, more

or less contiguous with dorsal body profile to

dorsal-fin origin. Ventral profile more or less

straight to anal-fin origin. Head moderately large

and depressed, with moderately convex interor-

bital distance; height less than length; width

greater than height. Snout moderately rounded

with transverse lobe, with 9-13 small- or medium-

sized tubercles, demarcated posteriorly by deep

transverse groove; prominent quadrate proboscis,

without or with shallow depression in middle to

present bilobed appearance; with one patch of

3-9 small tubercles and 1 or 2 small tubercles on

lateral surface of snout respectively on antero-

ventral and posteroventral regions to nostril on

each side; and with 2-9 small tubercles on de-

pressed rostral surface immediately posterior to

transverse groove. Proboscis moderately elevated

upwards, depressed anteriorly, sharply deline-

ated from depressed rostral surface by a continu-

ous or medially interrupted narrow groove; width

slightly smaller than internarial space; anterior

region with 4-13 small- or medium-sized tuber-

cles (2-7 on each lobe). Depressed rostral surface

highly bulgy. Sublachrymal groove short, shallow,

and connected or not to rostral cap groove. In

smaller specimens (50.5-64.0 mm SL), proboscis

absent and only minute tubercles present on

snout. Eye placed dorsolaterally in posterior half

of head.

Barbels in two pairs; rostral barbel anterolater-

ally located, its base broad, shorter than eye di-

ameter; maxillary barbel at corner of mouth,

shorter than rostral barbel. Rostral cap well-de-

veloped, moderately fimbriate, about one sixth

of length of its distal margin on each lateral ex-

tremity smooth; papillate ventral surface moder-

ately wide. Upper lip present as a thin band of

papillae arranged in two ridges. Upper jaw en-

tirely covered by rostral cap. Disc elliptical,

shorter than wide and narrower than head width

through roots of maxillary barbel; papillae on

anteromedian fold of same size, regularly ar-

ranged; groove between anteromedian fold and

central callous-pad narrow and highly deep;

papillae on inner half of whole length of latero-

posterior flap coarsely arranged; anterior mar-

ginal surface of central callous-pad with sparsely

arranged small papillae; posteriormost margin of

lateroposterior flap extending vertically to pos-

terior margin of eye.

Dorsal fin with 3 (15) simple and 8

2 (15)

branched rays; last simple ray shorter than head

length; distal margin concave; origin closer to

snout tip than to caudal-fin base, inserted ante-

rior to vertical from pelvic-fin origin; first branched

ray longest, last branched ray not extending

vertically to anal-fin origin. Pectoral fin with 1

simple and 12 (3) or 13 (12) branched rays, reach-

ing beyond midway to pelvic-fin origin; length

shorter than head length; margin subacuminate;

fifth branched ray longest, not extending to base

of pelvic fin. Pelvic fin with 1 simple and 7 (7) or

8 (8) branched rays, reaching beyond midway to

anal-fin origin, surpassing vent; second branched

ray longest, not extending to base of anal fin;

origin closer to anal-fin origin than to pectoral-fin

origin, inserted below third or fourth branched

dorsal-fin ray; distal margin slightly convex. Anal

fin short with 3 (15) simple and 5 1

2 (15) branched

rays; first branched ray longest, reaching base of

caudal fin; distal margin straight; origin closer to

caudal-fin base than to pelvic-fin origin. Anus

closer to anal-fin origin than to pelvic-fin origin.

In smaller specimens (50.5-64.0 mm SL), anus

situated anteriorly (distance from anus to anal fin

27-28 % of pelvic-anal distance) while in larger

specimens (68.2-132 mm SL), anus situated pos-

teriorly (distance from anus to anal fin 21-25 %

of pelvic-anal distance). Caudal fin forked; tip of

lobes pointed; lobes equal or lower lobe slightly

longer; tenth and eleventh rays shortest.

Lateral line complete with 33 (8) or 34 (7)

scales. Transverse scale rows above lateral line

4 1

2 (15); between lateral line and pelvic-fin origin

3 (8) or 3 1

2 (7) and between lateral line and anal-

fin origin 4 1

2 (15). Circumpeduncular scale rows

16 (15). Predorsal scales 10 (2), 11 (11) or 12 (2);

scales regularly arranged, same size as flank

scales. Chest and belly scaled. One long axillary

scale at base of pelvic fin, its tip reaching beyond

posterior end of pelvic-fin base. Preanal scales

3 (13) or 4 (2). Dorsal-fin base scales 6 (5) or 7 (10),

of which, last 5 or 6 scales connect to base of

dorsal fin. Anal-fin base scales 3 (11), 4 (4), of

which, last 1-3 scales connect to base of anal

fin.

Osteological features. Total vertebrae 32 (2) or

33 (3); abdominal 16 (5); predorsal 9 (3) or 10 (2);

and caudal 11 (3) or 12 (2).

Sexual dimorphism. No evident sexual dimor-

phism.

Colour. In formalin: head, dorsum and side dark

brown or dark gray. Mouth, chest, and abdomen

yellowish white. Dorsal more grayish than anal,

pelvic and pectoral fins. Whole length of one ray

above and below fork of caudal fin and distal

margins of lower caudal-fin lobe rays faintly

blackish. Five or six narrow black stripes on side,

c d

Fig. 7. Garra gotyla: MUMF 4300, neotype, 104.3 mm SL; India: Sikkim: Tista River; a, side view; b, ventral view;

c, dorsal view of head; and d, mental adhesive disc.

Nebeshwar & Vishwanath: Three new Garra and redescription of G. gotyla

Ichthyol. Explor. Freshwaters, Vol. 24, No. 2

113

more distinct towards caudal peduncle. A black

spot at upper angle of gill opening. Base of last

4 or 5 branched dorsal-fin rays spotted with black.

Distribution. Garra gotyla is presently known

from the Tista River in Sikkim (Fig. 4).

cdd

Fig. 8. Garra gotyla; a

-c, as figured by Gray (1830): lateral view (reversed) (a), ventral view (b) and distribution

of tubercles on head (c); and d, distribution of tubercles on head of G. gotyla from Tista (MUMF 4300, 108 mm

SL).

Discussion

Menon’s (1964) monograph on Garra included

only four species with a proboscis, a tuberculate

transverse lobe and two pairs of barbels, viz.,

G. gotyla, G. gravelyi, G. nasuta and G. steno-

rhynchus. Menon (1964) identified G. gotyla and

G. steno rhynchus to have a well-developed and

tuberculate proboscis; G. nasuta a tuberculate

trilobed proboscis; and G. gravelyi an incipient

proboscis with a few tubercles on the tip.

Many workers (Rahman, 1989; Talwar & Jhin-

gran, 1991; Vishwanath, 1993; Sen, 1995; Menon,

1999; Kundu, 2000; Karmakar, 2000; Mirza, 2003;

Shrestha, 2008) identified the Garra species with

a tuberculate transverse lobe and a tuberculate

proboscis in the Himalayan foothills as G. gotyla.

They overlooked the variation in the morphology

of the proboscis, the variation in the morphology

of the adhesive disc, the variation in the morphol-

ogy and distribution pattern of the tubercles, and

the presence or absence of a black spot at the

upper angle of gill opening and the region im-

mediately anterior to the upper angle of gill

opening as potential characters to diagnose spe-

cies.

There is no type specimen of G. gotyla. The

name was made available only by its use in the

caption of a plate in Gray (1830: pl. 88 figs. 3, 3a;

reproduced here as Fig. 8a-b). There was no

descriptive text associated with the figure, but

the name satisfies the conditions of availability

set by Article 12 of the International Code of

Zoological Nomenclature. The original illustra-

tions of G. gotyla show the following combination

of features: a prominent proboscis; two rows of

small-sized tubercles on the anterior and lateral

regions of the proboscis; small-sized tubercles on

the transverse lobe; presence of a spot at the up-

per angle of gill opening; posteriorly-situated

anus (preanal scales 3); and width of adhesive

disc about twice its length.

Menon (1964) identified material collected

from four different river drainages (Brahmaputra,

Ganga, Indus, Irrawaddy) as G. gotyla. However,

the specimens from the Ganga and Irrawaddy

drainages that he illustrated (Menon, 1964: pl. 13

figs. 1-4) do not appear to represent the same

species. The specimen from the Ganga drainage

has a narrow, unilobed, triangular proboscis with

a rounded tip while that from the Irrawaddy

drainage has a broad, bilobed, quadrate probos-

cis that is highly protruding forward with large

tubercle on each lobe. Menon’s illustrations of

G. gotyla are based on material apparently repre-

senting two species, neither of which appears

conspecific with the specimen illustrated by Gray

(1830).

The presence of a distinct black spot at the

upper angle of gill opening is evident in Gray’s

(1830) illustration of G. gotyla. Of the populations

in different river systems under study here,

specimens collected from the Dikrong, Ranga-

nadhi, Poma, Sipu, and Tista Rivers have a distinct

black spot at the upper angle of the gill opening.

Although specimens collected from the first four

localities have a black spot and an adhesive disc

closely similar with the illustrated adhesive disc

of Gray’s (1830) G. gotyla, they differ from it by

having a forwardly protruding bilobed proboscis

with one large tri- or tetracuspid acanthoid tu-

bercle on each lobe and 1 or 2 small tubercles on

the lateral margin of the proboscis.

The material of the Tista River represents two

distinct species which differ in the morphology

of the proboscis, the distribution of the tubercles

on it, the morphology of the adhesive disc, the

number of lateral-line scales, circumpeduncular

scale rows, transverse scale rows, and the presence

of a black spot at or immediately anterior to the

upper angle of the gill opening. The characters

associated with one species, i. e. small-sized tu-

bercles arranged on two or three rows on antero-

dorsal surface or as one patch on each lateral side

of anterodorsal surface of the proboscis, small-

sized tubercles on the transverse lobe, presence

of a black spot at the upper angle of gill opening,

posteriorly situated anus (preanal scales 3-4), and

adhesive disc width about twice of the adhesive

disc length match the characters illustrated in

Gray (1830). This species is treated as G. gotyla.

The tuberculation pattern on the head of our

material of G. gotyla and the illustration in Gray

(1830) are compared in Figures 8c and 8d, respec-

tively. There are slight differences in the morphol-

ogy of the Gray’s (1830) figure and the material

from Tista under study. However, our experience

shows that there are certain ontogenic changes

in the morphology, especially of the disc width

and anus position in Garra. In the same plate of

Gray (1830) with Cyprinus gotyla, figures 1 and 2

show Balitora brucei and B. maculata, respectively.

The captions for all three species indicates ‘Moun-

tain stream, India’. Kottelat (1988) designated

neotype for B. brucei and B. maculata, synonymized

the later with the former and considered the spe-

Nebeshwar & Vishwanath: Three new Garra and redescription of G. gotyla

Ichthyol. Explor. Freshwaters, Vol. 24, No. 2

115

cies to be definitively known from Assam, Dar-

jeeling, Meghalaya, Bhutan and Bangladesh. Most

likely, G. gotyla is also distributed in the Hima-

layan foothills.

The other species with tubercles arranged in

one row on anterior and lateral margins of the

proboscis; a black spot immediately anterior to

the upper angle of the gill opening; and more

lateral-line scales (37 vs. 33-34), pectoral-fin rays

(14-15 vs. 12-13) and total vertebrae (35-36 vs.

32-33); fewer transverse scale rows (3 1

2-4 vs. 4 1

scales between dorsal-fin origin and lateral line;

2 1

2 vs. 3-3 1

2 scales between lateral line and

pelvic-fin origin and 3

2 vs. 4

2 scales between

lateral line and anal-fin origin), and circumpe-

duncular scale rows (12 vs. 16); larger adhesive

disc (disc width 57-65 % HL vs. 51-57; length

43-48 % HL vs. 33-40; central callous-pad width

38-46 % HL vs. 30-37; and length 28-37 % HL vs.

20-24); and a more anteriorly-situated anus (dis-

tance from anus to anal fin 37-44 % of pelvic-anal

distance vs. 22-28), is treated here as new and

described as Garra quadratirostris.

After examination of several specimens of

Garra with a prominent proboscis and a transverse

lobe on snout with tubercles from the Himalayan

foothills and comparison with Gray’s (1830) il-

lustration, some uncertainties may remain and it

appears G. gotyla can objectively be defined only

by the designation of a neotype (Code, art. 75).

We designate specimen MUMF 4300, 104.3 mm

SL (Fig. 7a-d) as neotype. It has been collected in

the Tista River, Sikkim, which is a mountain

stream of northern India.

Jerdon (1849) identified as G. gotyla specimens

from the tributaries of the Cauvery River of Pen-

insular India. He, however, felt that his specimens

were probably distinct from the one illustrated

in Gray (1830) in the absence of the fleshy pen-

dulous point at each corners of the mouth. Jerdon

(1849) used ‘cirri’ for barbels and thus his ‘fleshy

pendulous point’ are not the maxillary barbels,

but most likely refers to the ‘anterolateral lobe’

of the lower lip. Thus it is evident that Jerdon’s

(1849) specimens were not G. gotyla and Silas

(1958) considered it a synonym of G. lamta. Al-

though Day (1867) reported G. gotyla from Penin-

sular India, Day (1878) considered the same

species a junior synonym of G. jerdoni. Garra

gotyla from Tista has well-developed anterola-

teral lobes of the lower lip, a black spot at the

upper angle of gill opening, posteriorly situated

anus (preanal scales 3-4) and has two rows of

small tubercles on the anterior and lateral margins

of the proboscis.

Jerdon (1849) described Gonorhynchus steno-

rhynchus from the Nilgiri Hills and described the

genus to have mouth beneath, head covered with

thick integuments and snout perforated by nu-

merous mucous pores. Although Jerdon (1849)

made no mention about the presence of a probos-

cis on the snout, this character was observed in

a specimen from the Nilgiri Hills labeled as

G. stenorhynchus examined in ZSI by one of the

authors (WV). While Hora (1921) considered

G. stenorhynchus to be a valid species of Garra,

Menon (1964) considered it a subspecies of

G. gotyla. Menon (1964) also mentioned the pres-

ence of a distinct black spot immediately anterior

to the upper angle of the gill opening. The four

species treated in this study differ from G. steno-

rhynchus in having a forward projection of the

proboscis not reaching (vs. reaching beyond) the

transverse groove on the snout; shorter predorsal

distance (45.6-52.8 % SL vs. 62.9); and (except for

G. quadratirostris) in the absence (vs. presence) of

a distinct black spot immediately anterior to the

upper angle of the gill opening. Garra quadratiros-

tris further differs from G. stenorhynchus in having

a greater distance from anus to anal fin (37-44 %

of pelvic-anal distance vs. 25) and more lateral-

line scales (37 vs. 34).

McClelland (1838) described G. nasuta from a

single specimen collected from the Kasya Moun-

tains (Khasi hills). The identity of G. nasuta is

confusing. Neither McClelland’s text nor the ac-

companying illustration displays sufficient infor-

mation to diagnose the species from its congeners.

He however clearly mentioned the presence of a

pit between the nares. The illustration (McClel-

land, 1838: pl. 55 figs. 2, 2a; reproduced here as

Figure 9) also shows the pit and also probably a

proboscis with anteriorly truncated margin and

a transverse lobe. Menon’s (1964: pl. 13 fig. 12)

species from the Kasya mountain, the type local-

ity, shows a trilobed proboscis and a transverse

lobe on the snout. Talwar & Jhingran (1991) and

Jayaram (1999) follow Menon in considering this

proboscis morphology as the diagnostic for

G. nasuta. However, Menon’s definition of G. na-

suta is clearly different from that of McClelland

(based on a comparison of the illustrations alone),

making it very likely that the identification in

Menon (1964) is incorrect. Subsequent workers

(e. g. Kottelat, 2000; Zhang, 2005) have suggested

that the material which Menon (1964) identified

as G. nasuta could be referred to Gonorhynchus

caudatus McClelland, 1839, a species originally

described from the Mishmee mountains. Garra

nasuta sensu McClelland can be easily distin-

guished from G. arunachalensis, G. birostris, G. qua-

dratirostris and G. gotyla in having a distinct pit

between the nares.

Although Hora (1921) considered G. gotyla to

be distributed along the foothills of the entire

length of the Himalayan range, he mentioned

some differences in the shape and proportion of

the head of the specimens of the Western Hima-

laya from those of the Eastern Himalaya, par-

ticularly of the Mahananda River of Darjeeling.

Two nominal species known from the western

Himalayas in Punjab are G. montisalsi and G. kan-

grae, both of which Menon (1964) had considered

synonyms of G. gotyla. Hora (1921) described

G. montisalsi based on one specimen collected

from the Nilwan ravine near the Shapur salt

ranges in Punjab. The holotype (ZSI 9953/1;

Fig. 9a-c) has the following combination of snout

characters: a proboscis that is strongly projecting

forward to the level of the tip of the snout; 16

distinct tubercles arranged in three rows on the

proboscis, with the upper one on its anterior

margin and two rows on the ventral surface; a

transverse lobe, with 23 distinct tubercles on its

anterior and dorsal surfaces, demarcated poste-

riorly by a deep transverse groove; the ventral

surface of the proboscis not contacting the de-

pressed rostral surface of the snout. These char-

acters easily differentiate G. montisalsi from G. aru-

nachalensis, G. birostris, G. quadratirostris and

G. gotyla, in which the proboscis is not strongly

projecting forward; the tubercles are arranged on

a single row on the anterior and lateral margins,

or two rows or patches of small tubercles on the

anterodorsal surface of the proboscis; a transverse

lobe with small- to large-sized tubercles on its

dorsal surface, demarcated posteriorly by a shal-

low or deep transverse groove; and proboscis

delineated from the depressed rostral surface by

a shallow groove.

Prashad (1919) described G. kangrae based on

four specimens collected from a hill stream at

Jaugal-khad, Kangra district, Punjab. The types

of the species in the ZSI could not be traced.

However, Prashad’s (1919) description and figure

shows the fish to have the following diagnostic

characters: scales extending forward on the chest

in the form of a triangle, its vertex pointing for-

ward; a proboscis not projecting forwards, with

its anterior margin sharply delineated from the

depressed rostral surface by a deep semicircular

groove extending along the lateral surfaces of the

snout up to the nostrils; and a weakly developed

transverse lobe on the snout. Rao (1920) examined

the syntypes of G. kangrae and reported 35 scales

on lateral line and 3 1

2 scales between lateral line

and anal-fin origin instead of the respective val-

ues of 34 and 5 as reported in the original descrip-

tion. Taking into consideration data from both

the original description and Rao (1920), G. kangrae

can be differentiated from G. arunachalensis, G. bi-

rostris, G. quadratirostris and G. gotyla in having

(vs. lacking) scales extending forward on the chest

in the form of a triangle; and a greater interorbital

distance (16.7 % SL vs. 9.5-12.8). Garra kangrae

further differs from G. arunachalensis and G. qua-

dratirostris in having a longer caudal peduncle

(17.8 % SL vs. 14.2-16.3) and a shorter snout

(13.6 % SL vs. 14.0-16.1).

Garra litanensis and G. elongata are the only

species of Garra with a proboscis present in the

Chindwin system (Vishwanath, 1993; Vishwanath

& Kosygin, 2001). Garra arunachalensis, G. birostris,

G. quadratirostris and G. gotyla differ from G. litan-

ensis in the presence (vs. absence) of the scales on

the chest and coarsely (vs. sparsely) scattered

large (vs. small) scales on the belly; fewer trans-

verse scale rows above the lateral line (3

2-4 1

vs. 5

2); longer prepelvic distance (50.2-57.6 %

SL vs. 48.5-49.5), and preanal distance (75.2-

82.6 % SL vs. 65.3-67.5); medium- or large-sized

(vs. small-sized; except G. gotyla) tubercles on the

transverse lobe and the anterior margin of the

proboscis; and more branched pectoral-fin rays

(14-15 vs. 13). Garra arunachalensis and G. quadra-

tirostris further differ from G. litanensis in having

a longer adhesive disc (disc length 43-53 % HL

Fig. 9. Garra nasuta, dorsal view of head, redrawn after

McClelland (1838).

Nebeshwar & Vishwanath: Three new Garra and redescription of G. gotyla

Ichthyol. Explor. Freshwaters, Vol. 24, No. 2

117

vs. 34-36); and more lateral-line scales (35 or 37

vs. 32-33). Garra birostris further differs from

G. litanensis in having a bilobed (vs. quadrate)

proboscis. Garra gotyla further differs from G. li-

tanensis in having tubercles on the anterior mar-

gin (vs. anterodorsal region) of the proboscis.

Garra arunachalensis, G. birostris, G. quadratirostris

and G. gotyla differ from G. elongata in having a

prominent (vs. poorly developed) proboscis and

a transverse lobe; fewer lateral-line scales (33-37

vs. 40-41) and predorsal scales (10-12 vs. 14-15);

more branched dorsal-fin rays (8

2 vs. 7

2) and

branched pectoral-fin rays (14-15 vs.11-12; except

G. gotyla); more posteriorly-situated anus (dis-

tance from anus to anal fin 21-44 % of pelvic-anal

distance vs. 48-51); presence (vs. absence) of the

scales on the chest and coarsely (vs. sparsely)

scattered large (vs. small) scales on the belly; and

absence (vs. presence) of a submarginal transverse

black band on the dorsal fin and a horizontal

black band on the median caudal-fin rays.

The species of Garra with a proboscis pres-

ently recognized from China and Southeast Asia

are G. orientalis, G. fuliginosa, G. salweenica, G. bi-

spinosa, G. qiaojiensis, G. cyrano, G. rotundinasus

and G. gravelyi (Menon, 1964; Zhang, 2005, 2006).

Garra orientalis, G. salweenica and G. fuliginosa

share the following combination of snout charac-

ters: a roughly triangular and trilobed proboscis,

anterior margin of the median lobe of the probos-

cis heavily tuberculated, inferior surface of the

proboscis not in contact with the depressed rostral

surface. This last character signifies that the pro-

boscis projects forwards. These characters easily

differentiate G. orientalis, G. fuliginosa, and G. sal-

weenica from the four species treated in this study.

Garra arunachalensis, G. birostris, G. quadratirostris

and G. gotyla further differ from G. orientalis and

G. fuliginosa in having (vs. lacking) black spots at

the base of the dorsal-fin rays; from G. salweenica

and G. fuliginosa in lacking (vs. having) a dark

blotch on the caudal peduncle; and from G. sal-

weenica in lacking (vs. having) a black mark at the

tip of the upper caudal-fin lobe.

Garra arunachalensis, G. quadratirostris and

G. gotyla differ from G. bispinosa in having a

quadrate (vs. bilobed) proboscis. Garra birostris

differs from G. bispinosa in having a large tri- or

tetracuspid (vs. unicuspid) acanthoid tubercle on

each lobe of the bilobed proboscis and a deep (vs.

shallow) notch between the lobes of the proboscis.

Garra gotyla further differs from G. bispinosa in

having 2-7 small or medium-sized tubercles on

anterodorsal region of the proboscis (vs. one large

unicuspid acanthoid tubercle on each lobe of the

proboscis). Garra arunachalensis differs from

G. qiaojiensis in having (vs. lacking) a large acan-

thoid tubercle on each anterolateral marginal

Fig. 10. Garra montisalsi, ZSI F 9953/1, holotype, 103 mm SL; India: Punjab: Nilwan ravine; a, lateral view; b, dor-

sal view of head; and c, mental adhesive disc.

corner of the proboscis; a shallow (vs. deep)

transverse groove on the snout; and lacking (vs.

having) an anterolateral lobe of the lower lip.

Garra birostris differs from G. qiaojiensis in having

a bilobed (vs. quadrate) proboscis; a larger eye

(21-25 % HL vs. 14-19); and more circumpedun-

cular scale rows (16 vs. 12). Garra quadratirostris

differs from G. qiaojiensis in having more lateral-

line scales (37 vs. 34) and preanal scales (5-6 vs.

3-4); a shorter head (18.8-21.4 % SL vs. 21.8-23.9);

and more anteriorly-situated anus (distance from

anus to anal fin 37-44 % of pelvic-anal distance

vs. 23-28). Garra gotyla differs from G. qiaojiensis

in having tubercles on the anterodorsal region

(vs. anterior margin) of the proboscis. As per

Kottelat’s (2000: 41, fig. 6) illustration and descrip-

tion, G. cyrano possesses the following combina-

tion of snout characters: proboscis highly protrud-

ing forwards (slightly longer than its width at

basis), anterior and lateral margins and inferior

surface of the proboscis covered with large tu-

bercles, inferior surface of the proboscis not in

contact with the depressed rostral surface, trans-

verse scale row between lateral line and pelvic

fin 5

2. These characters easily differentiate

G. cyrano from the four species treated in this

study. Garra arunachalensis, G. birostris, G. quadra-

tirostris and G. gotyla differ from G. rotundinasus

and G. gravelyi in having a well-developed (vs.

poorly developed) proboscis.

Garra arunachalensis, G. birostris, G. quadrati-

rostris and G. gotyla differ from G. gravelyi in

having more predorsal scales (10-12 vs. 8-9), and

branched pectoral-fin rays (14-15 vs. 13; except

G. gotyla). Garra arunachalensis, G. birostris and

G. quadratirostris further differ from G. rotundina-

sus in having a narrower disc (disc width 56-66 %

HL vs. 69-82). Garra arunachalensis, G. birostris

and G. gotyla further differ from G. rotundinasus

in having fewer lateral-line scales (33-35 vs. 36-

37). Garra birostris and G. gotyla further differ from

G. rotundinasus in having a more posteriorly situ-

ated anus (distance from anus to anal fin 21-30 %

of pelvic-anal distance vs. 32-39); more circumpe-

duncular scale rows (16 vs. 12). Garra arunacha-

lensis and G. quadratirostris further differ from

G. rotundinasus in having more transverse scale

rows above lateral line (3

2-4 1

2 vs. 2

2); from

G. cyrano in having fewer narrow black stripes on

caudal peduncle (3 or 4 vs. 6); and more lateral-

line scales (35 or 37 vs. 33-34) and circumpedun-

cular scale rows (12 vs. 16). Garra birostris and

G. quadratirostris further differ from G. qiaojiensis

in having more branched pectoral-fin rays (14-15

vs. 13); a shorter adhesive disc (disc length 36-

48 % HL vs. 49-56); and a deeper caudal pedun-

cle (12.7-14.4 % SL vs. 11.3-12.6).

Garra arunachalensis further differs from G. bi-

spinosa, G. qiaojiensis and G. salweenica in having

a shorter dorsal fin (16.4-20.1 % SL vs. 20.9-26.6);

a longer head (24.6-27.1 % SL vs. 16.4-24.1) and

fewer circumpeduncular scale rows (12 vs. 16;

except G. qiaojiensis); from G. bispinosa, G. qiaojien-

sis and G. orientalis in having a greater predorsal

distance (49.2-51.9 % SL vs. 42.4-48.3); from

G. bispinosa and G. orientalis in having a longer

pelvic fin (21.5-25.5 % SL vs. 15.1-21.2) and ad-

hesive disc (disc length 45-53 % HL vs. 33-44);

from G. bispinosa and G. rotundinasus in having a

more posteriorly-situated anus (distance from

anus to anal fin 19-25 % of pelvic-anal distance

vs. 26-39); from G. rotundinasus in having fewer

preanal scales (3-4 vs. 5); from G. gravelyi in hav-

ing more lateral-line scales (35 vs. 32-34).

Garra birostris further differs from G. bispinosa,

G. orientalis, G. qiaojiensis, G. salweenica and G. ro-

tundinasus in having more transverse scale rows

above lateral line (4 1

2 vs. 2 1

2 or 4); from G. qiaoji-

ensis and G. salweenica in having more branched

pectoral-fin rays (14-15 vs. 12-13).

Garra quadratirostris further differs from G. bi-

spinosa, G. orientalis, G. qiaojiensis, and G. sal-

weenica in having more lateral-line scales (37 vs.

32-35); more anteriorly-situated anus (distance

from anus to anal fin 37-44 % of pelvic-anal dis-

tance vs. 17-31); fewer circumpeduncular scale

rows (12 vs. 16); and fewer preanal scales (5-6 vs.

3-4). Garra quadratirostris further differs G. sal-

weenica in having more branched pectoral-fin rays

(14-15 vs. 12-13); from G. bispinosa and G. sal-

weenica in having a longer anal fin (20.5-24.9 %

SL vs. 17.3-20.2).

Garra gotyla further differs from G. bispinosa,

G. orientalis, G. qiaojiensis, G. salweenica and G. ro-

tundinasus in having more transverse scale rows

above lateral line (4

2 vs. 2

2 or 4). Garra gotyla

further differs from G. qiaojiensis and G. rotundi-

nasus in having a smaller adhesive disc (disc width

51-57 % HL vs. 63-82; disc length 33-40 % HL

vs. 47-61); and deeper caudal peduncle (13.0-15.7

vs. 11.3-12.6 % SL); from G. orientalis in having

fewer branched pectoral-fin rays (12-13 vs.

14-15).

Nebeshwar & Vishwanath: Three new Garra and redescription of G. gotyla

Ichthyol. Explor. Freshwaters, Vol. 24, No. 2

119

Comparative material. Garra elongata: MUMF 2311,

holotype, 86.2 mm SL; MUMF 2308-2310, paratypes, 3,

72.0-80.8 mm SL; India: Manipur: Ukhrul district: a

small stream near Tolloi (Chindwin basin).

G. litanensis: MUMF-68/1, holotype, female,

92.5 mm SL; MUMF-69/1-5, paratypes, 69.0-74.0 mm

SL; India: Manipur: Ukhrul district: Litan stream at

Litan (Chindwin basin)..

G. montisalsi: ZSI F 9953/1, holotype, 103 mm SL;

India: Punjab: Nilwan ravine near Shapur salt ranges.

G. gotyla stenororhynchus: ZSI/F-1748/1; India:

Tamil Nadu: Nilgiri Hills.

Menon’s (1964) and Zhang’s (2005, 2006) data for

G. bispinosa, G. orientalis, G. salweenica, G. qiaojiensis,

G. rotundinasus and G. gravelyi are used for comparison.

In the original data of the first five species, the decimal

values in the percentages of head length and pelvic-anal

distance are rounded.

Acknowledgements

We are grateful to Maurice Kottelat for the image of

Hardwicke’s drawings of Cyprinus gotyla and comments

on the snout morphology of Garra dealt in this work

and for his critical comments which have improved the

manuscript; to D. N. Das (Rajiv Gandhi University,

Arunachal Pradesh, India [RGU]) and A. K. Karmakar

(ZSI) for giving access to the materials under their care;

to Kenjum Bagra (RGU) for his help in the field and to

Neelesh Dhanukar (IISER, Pune, India) for literature.

Literature cited

Day, F. 1867. On the fishes of the Neilgherry Hills and

rivers around their bases. Proceedings of the Zoo-

logical Society of London, 1867: 281-302.

— 1877. The fishes of India; being a natural history of

the fishes known to inhabit the seas and fresh wa-

ters of India, Burma, and Ceylon. William Dowson

& Co., London, 3: 369-552, pls. 79-138.

Gray, J. E. 1830-1835. Illustrations of Indian zoology;

chiefly selected from the collection of Major-Gen-

eral Hardwicke, F.R.S. Richter, London & Parbury,

Allen & Co., London, 2 vols., 200 pls.

Hora, S. L. 1921. Indian cyprinoid fishes belonging to

the genus Garra, with notes on related species from

other countries. Records of Indian Museum, 22:

633-687.

Jayaram, K. C. 1999. The freshwater fishes of the Indian

region. Narendra Publishing House, Delhi, 551 pp.

Jerdon, T. C. 1849. On the fresh-water fishes of southern

India. Madras Journal of Literature and Science, 15:

302-346.

Karmakar, A. K. 2000. Fish communities and their

distribution in Himalayan drainage system. Records

of the Zoological Survey of India, 98: 25-37.

Kottelat, M. 1988. Indian and Indochinese species of

Balitora (Osteichthyes: Cypriniformes) with descrip-

tions of two new species and comments on the

family-group names Balitoridae and Homalopteri-

dae. Revue Suisse de Zoologie, 95: 487-504.

— 2000. Diagnosis of a new genus and 64 new species

of fishes from Laos (Teleostei: Cyprinidae, Balito-

ridae, Bagridae, Syngnathidae, Chauduriidae and

Tetradontidae). Journal of South Asian Natural

History, 5: 37-82.

— 2001. Fishes of Laos. Wildlife Heritage Trust, Co-

lombo, 198 pp.

Kundu, D. K. 2000. On a small collection of fishes from

Sikkim. Records of the Zoological Survey of India,

98: 95-102.

McClelland, M. 1838. Observations on six new species

of Cyprinidae with an outline of a new classification

of the family. Journal of Asiatic Society of Bengal,

Culcutta, 7: 941-948.

Menon, A. G. K. 1964. Monograph of the cyprinid

fishes of the genus Garra Hamilton. Memoirs of the

Indian Museum, 14: 173-260.

— 1999. Check list – fresh water fishes of India. Records

of the Zoological Survey of India, Miscellaneous

Publication, Occasional Paper, 175: ixxviii + 366 pp.

Mirza, M. R. 2003. Checklist of freshwater fishes of

Pakistan. Pakistan Journal of Zoology, Suppl. Ser.,

3: 1-30.

Prashad, B. 1919. On a new species of Discognathus from

the Kangra valley. Records of the Indian Museum,

16: 163-165.

Rahman, A. K. A. 1989. Freshwater fishes of Bangladesh.

The Zoological Society of Bangladesh, Dhaka,

xvii + 364 pp.

Rao, C. R. N. 1920. On new cyprinoid fishes from Myso-

re: Some new species of cyprinoid fish from Mysore.

Annals and Magazine of Natural History, Ser. 9, 6:

45-64, pls. 1-2

Sen, N. 1995. Pisces. Pp. 483-606, pls. 2 + 39 + 12 in:

Zoological Survey of India, State Fauna Series 4.

Fauna of Meghalaya, Part 1. Vertebrates. Zoological

Survey of India, Calcutta.

Shrestha, T. K. 2008. Ichthyology of Nepal. A study of

fishes of the Himalayan waters. Himalayan Eco-

sphere, Kathmandu, 389 pp., 72 pls.

Silas, E. G. 1958. Remarks on Indian cyprinid fishes

described by Jerdon (1849) under Gonorhynchus

McClelland. Journal of the Bombay Natural His-

tory Society, 55: 523-531.

Talwar, P. K. & A. G. Jhingran. 1991. Inland fishes of

India and adjacent countries. Oxford & IBH Publish-

ing Co., New Delhi, 541 pp.

Vishwanath, W. 1993. On a collection of fishes of the

genus Garra Hamilton from Manipur, India, with

a description of a new species. Journal of Freshwa-

ter Biology, 5: 59-68.

Vishwanath, W. & I. Linthoingambi. 2008. Redescription

of Garra abhoyai Hora (Teleostei: Cyprinidae: Gar-

rinae) with a note on Garra rupecula from Manipur,

India. Journal of the Bombay Natural History So-

ciety, 105: 101-104.

Vishwanath, W. & L. Kosygin (2000). Garra elongata, a

new species of the subfamily Garrinae from Ma-

nipur, India (Cyprinidae, Cypriniformes). Journal

of Bombay Natural Histry Society, 97: 408-414.

Zhang, E. 2005. Garra bispinosa, a new species of cyprinid

fish (Teleostei: Cypriniformes) from Yunnan, South-

west China. The raffles Bulletin of Zoology, Sup-

plement, 13: 9-15.

— 2006. Garra rotundinasus, a new species of cyprinid

fish (Pisces: Teleostei) from the upper Irrawaddy

River basin, China. The Raffles Bulletin of Zoology,

54: 447-453.

Zhang, E. & Y. Y. Chen. 2002. Garra tengchongensis, a

new cyprinid species from the upper Irrawaddy

River basin in Yunnan, China (Pisces: Teleostei).

The Raffles Bulletin of Zoology, 50: 459-464.

Zhang, E., S. P. He & Y.-Y. Chen. 2002. Revision of the

cyprinid genus Placocheilus Wu, 1977 in China, with

description of a new species from Yunnan. Hydro-

biologia, 487: 207-217.

Received 25 July 2012

Revised 12 July 2013

Accepted 15 August 2013

Nebeshwar & Vishwanath: Three new Garra and redescription of G. gotyla

Warning

Prospective authors should read carefully the following instructions and

follow them when submitting a manuscript. Doing so significantly hastens

publication and saves money and efforts. Manuscripts which do not satisfy

the instructions below may be rejected at the Editor’s discretion and will

not be returned.

Submission of manuscripts

The original manuscript should be sent to the Editor, Maurice Kottelat, by

e-mail (mkottelat@dplanet.ch). Additional information is requested:

1) the name, postal and e-mail addresses, telephone and fax numbers

of the corresponding author;

2) the names, postal and e-mail addresses of up to four persons outside

the authors’ institutions who are qualified to review the paper; and

3) a statement that the material has not been published and is not consid-

ered for publication elsewhere and that it will not be submitted elsewhere

unless it is rejected or withdrawn. In submitting a manuscript, the author(s)

accept(s) transfer of the copyright to the Publisher.

Co-authors, corresponding author

Authors are those who have played a significant role in designing and

conducting the research and in writing the manuscript. Individuals who

have only collected data, provided material or financial support, or re-

viewed the manuscript should be listed in acknowledgments. Honorary

authorship is not accepted.

Co-authors should designate a single corresponding author to whom

correspondence and proofs will be sent. All correspondence regarding the

paper should go through the corresponding author. Correspondence will not

be sent to other co-authors and correspondence from other co-authors re-

garding the manuscript will neither be answered nor taken into consideration.

Format

Files. The manuscript should be submitted in DOC or RTF format only.

The text, captions, tables etc. must all be included in the same file. It the

manuscript includes only a few illustrations, include them in low resolution

in the word file. If the manuscript includes numerous illustrations they must

be submitted in a separate PDF file; send all figures in low resolution and

with caption in a single file. The files should be less than 8 MB.

Text. All manuscripts are subject to editorial revision before final acceptance

for publication. Nothing in the manuscript should be underlined. Titles with

numerical series designations are not permitted. Titles should be brief,

fewer than 20 words and should indicate clearly the field of study and

the group of fishes investigated. All abbreviations should be explained in

the Method section (or figure caption when appropriate) or a reference to

published explanations should be provided; exceptions are very common

abbreviations, such as mm, km, kg, sec, min, yr, vs., SL. Footnotes are

not permitted. All measurements must be in metric units. The first page

should include: title of the paper, author(s), addresses and abstract, all

left justified. The text should be followed by Material Examined (if ap-

propriate), Acknowledgments (if any), Appendix (if any) and Literature

Cited, in that order. Keys are desirable in taxonomic papers. They should

be dichotomous and not serially indented.

Nomenclature. Names of living organisms should follow the appropriate

and current International Codes of Nomenclature. Only formal names of

genera and species should be written in italics. Names of authors and pub-

lication dates of scientific names should be mentioned once, in introduction

or discussion, depending where most convenient, exceptionally as a table;

bibliographical references must be included in the Literature cited section.

Very old and classical works can be omitted if not absolutely justified.

Language. Manuscripts should be written in English. All papers must

have a concise but informative abstract in English. In taxonomic papers,

the abstract must include at least clear diagnosis of the new taxa. This

maybe omitted for papers including the descriptions of many new taxa;

consult the editor first. A second abstract, provided by the author(s), in

the language of the country or area concerned by the text is acceptable.

A maximum of two abstracts is permitted.

Acknowledgments. Identify individuals by first name(s) and sur name. Do

not list titles, position or institution. Acknowledge individuals, not positions.

Idiosyncrasy and private jokes are not permitted.

Literature cited. Format for Literature Cited is that of the most recent

issue. Do not abbreviate the names of journals. For books, give full name

of publishing company or institution, and city. Manuscripts in preparation,

abstracts, in-house reports and other literature not obtainable through

normal library channels cannot be cited. In-press manuscripts can be

cited only if they have been formally accepted.

Tables. Tables should be included in the text file, at the end. Use Word

format and do not anchor them. Tables must be numbered sequentially with

Arabic numerals; they should have concise but self-explanatory headings.

Do not insert frames, vertical rules, dotted lines or footnotes. The location

of first citation of each table should be clearly indicated in the text.

Figures. Detailed instr uctions for the preparation of digital images are

here: http://pfeil-verlag.de/div/eimag.php

For the submission of new manuscript only low resolution copies are

needed. Do not send large files at this stage. Case by case, if needed, we

may ask you to send the original files at the time of submission.

All maps, graphs, charts, drawings and photographs are regarded as

figures and are to be numbered consecutively and in the sequence of

their first citation in the text. When several charts or photographs are

grouped as one figure, they must be trimmed and spaced as intended

for final reproduction. Each part of such a group figure should be lettered

with a lower case block letter in the lower left corner. Where needed, scale

should be indicated on the figure by a scale bar.

All illustrations should be designed to fit a width of 68 or 140 mm and a

depth no greater than 200 mm. Lettering should be large enough to be

easily seen when reduced onto a journal column (68 mm).

If a vector-graphics program is used, the original files saved by this

program and all linked files must be submitted. Do not expor t or save the

figure in a different format (for more details see the informations on http://

pfeil-verlag.de/div/eimag.php

If line drawings are scanned, the resolution must be 1200 dpi or more

and the format must be bitmap (1 pixel = 1 bit).

If halftones are scanned, the resolution should never be lower than

400 dpi, applied to a width of 14 cm, even for photographs designed for

column width.

Photographic prints and slides and original drawings must be scanned

for submission. We will ask to send the original after acceptance of the

manuscript.

Colour illustrations should preferably be submitted as slides (photographic

slides, not slides prepared by a printer). Digital images should be only

unmodified (raw) data files as originally saved by the camera or the

scanner. If the data files are modified, a copy of the original, unmodified

file should be submitted too.

The decision to print in colour or in black and white any figure originally

submitted in colour remains with the editor and publisher. This decision

will be based on scientific justification, quality of the original, layout and

other editorial, financial and production constraints. By submitting colour

originals, the authors know and accept that they may be published in black

and white.

Review

Each manuscript will be sent to two reviewers for confidential evaluation.

When justified, the reviewer’s comments will be forwarded to the corre-

sponding author. When submitting a revised manuscript, authors should

briefly indicate the reasons for disregarding any suggestion they consider

unacceptable. Remember that if a reviewer had questions or did not under-

stand you, other readers may make the same experience and the answers

should be in the manuscript and not in a letter to the editor. Changes in

style, format and layout requested by the Editor are non-negotiable and

non-observance will result in rejection of the manuscript.

Revised manuscripts received more than 6 months after the reviewers’

comments had been sent will not be considered or will be treated as new

submissions.

Proofs, Reprints and Page Charges

A PDF proof file will be sent to the corresponding author; it should be

checked and returned to the Editor within one week. If corrections are not

received within this delay, they may be done by the Editor, at the author’s

risks. Authors may be charged for any changes other than printer’s error.

Reprint orders must be forwarded with the corrections. The correspond-

ing author is responsible for contacting the co-authors and forwarding

their reprint orders.

The authors will receive a PDF file for personal use free of charge;

high-resolution PDF files for unlimited use may be ordered. There will be

no page charges and no charges for justified colour illustrations.

INSTRUCTIONS TO CONTRIBUTORS

Ichthyological Exploration of Freshwaters

An international journal for field-orientated ichthyology

Articles appearing in this journal are indexed in:

AQUATIC SCIENCES and FISHERIES ABSTRACTS

BIOLIS - BIOLOGISCHE LITERATUR INFORMATION SENCKENBERG

CAMBRIDGE SCIENTIFIC ABSTRACTS

CURRENT CONTENTS/AGRICULTURE, BIOLOGY & ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES and SCIE

FISHLIT

ZOOLOGICAL RECORD

C O N T E N T S

Nebeshwar, Kongbrailatpam and Waikhom Vishwanath: Three new species of Garra

(Pisces: Cyprinidae) from north-eastern India and redescription of G. gotyla .................. 97

Batuwita, Sudesh, Madura de Silva and Udeni Edirisinghe: A review of the danionine

genera Rasboroides and Horadandia (Pisces: Cyprinidae), with description of a new

species from Sri Lanka ............................................................................................................... 121

Costa, Wilson J. E. M.: Hypsolebias caeruleus, a new seasonal killifish of the Hypsolebias ad-

ornatus complex from the Caatinga of north-eastern Brazil, São Francisco River basin

(Cyprinodontiformes: Rivulidae) ............................................................................................. 141

Mattos, José L. O., Felipe P. Ottoni and Maria A. Barbosa: Microglanis pleriqueater, a new

species of catfish from the São João river basin, eastern Brazil (Teleostei: Pseudopime-

lodidae) ......................................................................................................................................... 147

Caires, Rodrigo A.: Microphilypnus tapajosensis, a new species of eleotridid from the Tapa-

jós basin, Brazil (Gobioidei: Eleotrididae) .............................................................................. 155

Ng, Heok Hee and Rohan Pethiyagoda: Mystus zeylanicus, a new species of bagrid catfish

from Sri Lanka (Teleostei: Bagridae) ....................................................................................... 161

Plongsesthee, Rungthip, Maurice Kottelat and F. William H. Beamish: Schistura crocotula,

a new loach from Peninsular Thailand (Teleostei: Nemacheilidae) ................................... 171

Ng, Heok Hee and Kevin W. Conway: Pseudolaguvia assula, a new species of crypto-benthic

sisorid catfish from central Nepal (Teleostei: Sisoridae) ...................................................... 179

Decru, Eva, Jos Snoeks and Emmanuel Vreven: The true identity of the holotype of Hep-

setus odoe and the names of the two West African species of Hepsetus (Teleostei: Hep-

setidae).......................................................................................................................................... 187

Ichthyological Exploration of Freshwaters

An international journal for field-orientated ichthyology

Volume 24 • Number 2 • November 2013

Cover photograph

Horadandia atukorali (photograph by G. Ott)

Sudesh Batuwita, Madura de Silva and Udeni Edirisinghe

(this volume pp. 121-140)

A New Geographical Distribution of Garra jaldhakaensis in Kumaon Himalayas

Article

Full-text available

Jan 2022

The occurrence of Garra jaldhakaensis is recorded first in Uttarakhand, Northern India. The fish has been reported earlier only from the type locality Jaldhaka River near Jhalong, Kalimpong district, West Bengal, Brahmaputra River Drainage, India. The meristic counts, body measurements and descriptions are presented. The specimens have been compared with the type specimens and found out that the fish has a new distributional record from the Uttarakhand, Kumaon Himalayas, India.

First Record and Morphometric Evaluation of Garra simbalbaraensis(Teleostei : Cyprinidae) from Jammu, India

Article

Apr 2021

J. Environ. & Sociobiol.

Conservation status and endemicity of type fish species discovered from Arunachal Pradesh

Article

Full-text available

Nov 2021

Garra ranganensis, a new cyprinid fish (Teleostei: Cypriniformes) from Arunachal Pradesh, northeastern India

Article

Mar 2019

Garra ranganensis, is described from the Ranga River in the upper Brahmaputra River drainage in Arunachal Pradesh, northeastern India. Garra ranganensis is distinguished from its congeners belonging to Brahmaputra, Chindwin-Irrawaddy basins in north eastern India, from the Upper Irrawaddy basin, China and Southeast Asia (those bearing well developed transverse lobe and proboscis) in having a bilobed proboscis (except G. birostris, G. bispinosa and G. cornigera,), with a large unicuspid acanthoid tubercle at the end of each lobe. Further, can be distinguished from its congeners in exception of G. quadratirostris, G. rotundinasus, and G. minimus in having more and fewer lateral line scales (36–37 vs. 32–35; 39–40 in G. elongata; 40–42 in G. magnidiscus). Other combinations of characters are detailed in discussion section.

Garra rezai, a new species from two widely disjunct areas in the Tigris drainage (Teleostei: Cyprinidae)

Article

Oct 2022
ZOOTAXA

Garra rezai, new species, is described from the Chooman, a tributary of the Lesser Zab in Iran, and from headwaters of the Yanarsu, a tributary of the upper Tigris in Turkey. It is distinguished from its congeners in the Garra variabilis species group by having two pairs of barbels, a well-developed mental disc, 35-40 total scales along the lateral line, 15-19 scales along the predorsal midline, and 15-18 circumpeduncular scales. It is further characterised by having ten diagnostic nucleotide substitutions and the K2P genetic distances with the closest species i.e. G. klatti, G. kemali and G. variabilis as 11.9, 12.0, and 13.7%, respectively in the mtDNA COI barcode region.

Garra hormuzensis, a new species from the upper Kol River drainage in the Persian Gulf basin (Teleostei: Cyprinidae)

Article

Full-text available

Oct 2021

Garra hormuzensis, new species, is described from the Kol River drainage. It is distinguished from its congeners in the Iranian part of the Persian Gulf basin by having 7½ branched dorsal-fin rays, usually 9+8 branched caudal-fin rays, the breast, belly and back in front of the dorsal-fin origin covered by scales, and a free lateral and posterior margins of the gular disc. It is further characterised by having a minimum K2P distance of 1.16% to G. mondica in the mtDNA COI barcode region.

Garra biloborostris, a new labeonine species from north-eastern India (Teleostei: Cyprinidae)

Article

Full-text available

Oct 2017

Garra biloborostris, a new labeonine species is described from the Kanamakra River of the Brahmaputra River basin in Assam. It can be distinguished from its congeners of northeast India in having a unique combination of the following characters: a proboscis represented by two separate and slightly elevated arch-shaped lobes, each lobe with three acanthoid tubercles on its anterodorsal marginal aspect; bulgy lateral surface of the snout giving a lobe like appearance; a prominent knob-like transverse lobe with 10 – 16 small- to medium-sized acanthoid tubercles; 30 + 3 lateral line scales; 8½ branched dorsal fin rays; and 5½ branched anal fin rays.

FISH DIVERSITY OF SWARNAREKHA RIVER IN JHARKHAND WITH A FIRST REPORT ON CIRRHINUS CIRRHOSUS FROM THE STATE

Article

Full-text available

Jan 2023

The fish diversity of Swarnarekha River in Jharkhand is reported in the present study. A total of 65 species of fishes belonging to 45 genera 22 families and 11 orders are recorded from the river. Based on the IUCN status, the fish fauna of the river includes five vulnerable, four near threatened, 54 least concern. A checklist of the fish fauna of Swarnarekha River is presented based on the present collection and those reported by the earlier workers. Highest species composition was observed in Cyprinidae family followed by Sisoridae. Cirrhinus cirrhosus (Bloch,1795) is reported for the first time from the Dalma wildlife sanctuary, Jharkhand.

International Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Studies 2018; 6(5): 107-115 Garra moyonkhulleni, a new labeonine species (Cyprinidae: Labeoninae) from Manipur, Northeastern India

Article

Apr 2022

Garra moyonkhulleni, a new labonine species, is described from the Chindwin drainage in Manipur, India. It is distinguished from its congeners by the combination of the following characters: a weakly developed bilobe antrose proboscis, 1 acanthoid tubercle on each lobe of proboscis, 8 to 11 tubercles on transverse lobe, 3 to 6 tiny to medium tubercles on sublachrymal groove, distinct transverse groove and depressed rostral surface, base of the 2 nd , 3 rd , 4 th , 5 th and 6 th branched dorsal fin rays spotted with black; 5-6 narrow black stripes on lateral side of body and more distinct towards caudal fin.

Extension of Distributional Range with a New Record of Garra annandalei Hora, 1921, from River Tapti: Drainage System of the West coast of India

Article

Jan 2022
NATL ACAD SCI LETT

Garra annandalei Hora, 1921, a species belonging to the family Cyprinidae (order Cypriniformes) was recorded for the first time from the river Tapti drainage system of the west coast of India. A total of 5 specimens were collected during January 2020 by gill net (10–20 mm mesh size) at a water depth of 0.30–1.22 m. This species was so far reported only from the eastern side of India. The present findings extend its range of distribution in the rivers of the west coast of India.

Garra elongata, a new species of the subfamily Garrinae from Manipur, India (Cyprinidae, Cypriniformes)

Article

Full-text available

Jan 2000

Indian and Indochinese species of Balitora (Osteichthyes: Cypriniformes) with descriptions of two new species and comments on the family-group names Balitoridae and Homalopteridae

Article

Full-text available

Jan 1988
REV SUISSE ZOOL

Maurice Kottelat

Diagnoses of a new genus and 64 new species of fishes from Laos (Teleostei: Cyprinidae, Balitoridae, Bagridae, Syngnathidae, Chaudhuriidae and Tetraodontidae)

Article

Full-text available

Jan 2000

Maurice Kottelat

A new genus (Laocypris) and 64 new species of fishes are described from Laos. The new species belong to the genera Acrossocheilus (1), Crossocheilus (1), Danio (3), Garra (1), Laocypris (1), Mystacoleucus (1), Poropuntius (4), Puntius (1), Rasbora (2) (Cyprinidae), Hemimyzon (2), Homaloptera (1), Schistura (39), Sectoria (1), Vanmanenia (2) (Balitoridae), Pseudomystus (1) (Bagridae), Doryichthys (1) (Syngn ath id ae), C hauduria (1) (C hau d h u riid ae) and M onotrete (1) (Tetraodontidae). Introduction Fish surveys conducted in Laos between 1996 and 1999 have increased the number of species known in the country from some 210 recorded in the literature as at 1996 to 481 (15 of them not native to the country) recognized in a just-completed field guide (Kottelat, 2000a). Several of the species discovered during these surveys have been described elsewhere (e.g., Britz & Kottelat, 1999a, b; Chen et al., 1999; Chen & Kottelat, 2000; Fang & Kottelat, 1999,2000; Kottelat, 1998; Kottelat & Brehier, 1999; Kottelat & Ng, 1999; Larson & Vidthayanon, 2000; Ng, 1999a-b; Ng & Kottelat, 1998, 1999,2000a-c). The field guide is due to be published in the second quarter of 2000 (a time-frame beyond my control) and clearly, it is desirable that the large number of species still unnamed should be named and identified in this work. It would be counterproductive to omit them from the fieldguide or to list them without valid names. The purpose of the present paper is to make names formally available for them.

Garra tengchongensis, a new cyprinid species from the Upper Irrawaddy River basin in Yunnan, China (Pisces : Teleostei)

Article

Full-text available

Dec 2002
RAFFLES B ZOOL

Garra tengchongensis, a new cyprinid species from the upper Irrawaddy River basin in Tengchong county, Yunnan province, China, is differentiated from all other Chinese and Southeast Asian Garra species except G. kempi by having a combination of the following characters: two pairs of barbels, no proboscis on snout, 12 circumpeduncular scales and 37-42 lateral line scales. Garra tengchongensis is distinguished from G. kempi in having a cylindrical anterior body, a deeper body, a smaller mental adhesive disc, a scaled breast and belly, and a blunt snout

Fish Communities and Their Distribution in Himalayan Drainage System

Article