Systematic position
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii (Ray-finned fishes)
Order: Perciformes (Perches)
Family: Sillaginidae (Sillagos; whitings, smelt-whitings)
Genus: Sillaginopsis
Species: S. panijus
Synonyms
Cheilodipterus panijus Hamilton, 1822
Sillaginopsis domina (Cuvier, 1829)
Sillago domina Cuvier, 1829
Sillago panijus (Hamilton, 1822)
Common/local names
English: Flathead sillago and Gangetic sillago
Bangladesh: Hundra (হুন্দ্রা) and Tular Dandi (তুলার ডাণ্ডি)
India: Tool-mach and (West Bengal), Tool-danti (Orissa) and Yarra-soring (Andhra Pradesh) (Talwar and Jhingran, 1991).
Conservation status: Not threatened in Bangladesh (IUCN Bangladesh, 2000). Abundant in Bay of Bengal and the estuaries (Rahman, 1989 and 2005).
Distributions: Bangladesh (Rahman, 1989 and 2005); India (Southwest coast, Ganges delta and east coast), Myanmar, southwards to Malaysia and rarely to the Indonesian archipelagic (Talwar and Jhingran, 1991).
Morphology: Body elongate with depressed head and snout. Eyes 3-11% of head length (Talwar and Jhingran, 1991). Two dorsal fins, second spine of first dorsal fin very elongate and filamentous. Eyes are small and almost covered by fleshy orbits. Scales small. 90-93 (Rahman, 1989 and 2005); 84-88 (Talwar and Jhingran, 1991) scales on lateral line.
Body color greenish-yellow above, paler to whitish below. Fins are pale brownish with a light dusting of fine black spots.
Fin formula:
D1. IX; D2. I/26-27; P. 23-24; P2. 6 (1/5); A. II/25-26 (Rahman, 1989 and 2005)
D X+I 26-27; A II 24-26; P 24; V I 5 (Talwar and Jhingran, 1991)
Maximum lengths: 27.5 cm (Rahman, 1989 and 2005) and 44 cm (Talwar and Jhingran, 1991; Huda et al., 2003).
Habitats: Shallow, open muddy bays and estuaries (Talwar and Jhingran, 1991). In Bay of Bengal and estuaries of Bangladesh; also in Meghna rivers (Rahman, 1989 and 2005).
Breeding: Probably spawns in the Hooghly estuary twice a year; during November-February and August-September; juveniles migrate during March and April towards upper reaches (Talwar and Jhingran, 1991).
Fishery information: Of commercial importance, white flesh and of good quality (Talwar and Jhingran, 1991). Common in the fishermen’s catch in Meghna river near Chandpur of Bangladesh (Rahman, 1989 and 2005).
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REFERENCES
Cuvier G and Valenciennes A (1829) Histoire naturelle des poissons. Tome troisième. Suite du Livre troisième. Des percoïdes à dorsale unique à sept rayons branchiaux et à dents en velours ou en cardes. Histoire naturelle des poissons. v. 3: i-xxviii + 2 pp. + 1-500, Pls. 41-71.
Hamilton F (1822) An account of the fishes found in the river Ganges and its branches. Edinburgh & London. An account of the fishes found in the river Ganges and its branches.: i-vii + 1-405, Pls. 1-39.
Huda MS and Haque ME. 2003. Field Guide to Finfishes of Sundarban, Aquatic Resource Division, Sundarban, Sundarban Biodiversity COnservation Project, Bangladesh Forest Department, Khulna, Bangladesh, p. 111.
IUCN Bangladesh (2000) Red book of threatened fishes of Bangladesh, IUCN- The world conservation union. xii+116 pp.
Rahman AKA (1989) Freshwater Fishes of Bangladesh, 1st edition, Zoological Society of Bangladesh, Department of Zoology, University of Dhaka, Dhaka-1000, pp. 318-319.
Rahman AKA (2005) Freshwater Fishes of Bangladesh, 2nd edition, Zoological Society of Bangladesh, Department of Zoology, University of Dhaka, Dhaka-1000, pp. 344-345.
Talwar PK and Jhingran AG (1991) Inland Fishes of India and Adjacent Countries, Vol. 2, Oxford & IBH Publishing Co. Pvt. Ltd. New Delhi-Calcutta, pp. 816-817.
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