Fish Fauna of Asan River and Its Tributaries, Western Doon Valley, Dehradun (Uttarakhand), with Conservation Status of Species and Threats - Aquatic Ecosystem: Biodiversity, Ecology and Conservation - page 234

Distribution English Name

Barna Baril.

Uttarakhand
Garhwal Division: Chamoli, Dehradun, Pauri,
Haridwar, Tehri and Uttarkashi districts; Kumaon
Division: Almora, Nainital and Pithoragarh dis-
tricts. Rajaji National Park.

Local Names
Childi, Dhaur, Popta.

Localities Surveyed
Asan River above Kunja Grant, below its barrage
at Dhalipur, Herbertpur, villages Fatehpur,
Partitpur and Bairagiwala near Herbertpur,
Bhaironwala, Sahaspur, Bhurpur near Jhajra and
Chandrabani; Asan reservoir.

India
Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Haryana,
Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir,
Jharkhand, Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland,
Punjab, Sikkim, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh and
West Bengal (Darjeeling).

Diagnostic Characters
D.3/7, P. 2/12-13, V. 2/7, A.3/10-11, C.19 (10/9).
L.l. 40.
Body somewhat deep, mouth moderate, snout
and jaws with tubercles, barbels absent or rudi-
mentary; dorsal fi n origin in advance of anal fi n.
Body silvery with 7-11 vertical bars; dorsal and
caudal fi ns edged with black.
Sexual Dimorphism: Male deep bodied, larger in
size and with rough texture due to the presence of
fi ne tubercles on the body, head and jaws; well-
developed fi ns, outer few rays of pectoral and inner
few rays of pelvic fi ns thickened; yellowish ventrally.
Female streamlined and smooth with normal fi ns.

Elsewhere
Afghanistan, Bhutan, China, Nepal and
Pakistan.

Habitat and Ecology
Inhabits mountain streams and rivers, prefer-
ring to live among rocks and near big sub-
merged stones. It is a primarily bottom feeder
herbivore and feeds on algal slimes, aquatic
plants, detritus and insects encrusted on the
rocks. It breeds during April to May, before the
monsoon fl oods the rivers and streams; the fry
grows to such a size to bear the rigours of the
fl ood water.

Maximum Size
15.0 cm.

Conservation Status
IUCN Red List, vulnerable.

Distribution

Remarks
Of fi shery and game interest. The fl esh is much
relished.
Subfamily: Danioninae
Genus: Barilius Hamilton, 1822

Uttarakhand
Garhwal Division: Chamoli, Dehradun, Pauri,
Tehri and Uttarkashi districts; Kumaon Division:
Almora, Nainital and Pithoragarh districts.
Corbett Tiger Reserve and Rajaji National Park.

12. Barilius barna (Hamilton, 1822)
Cyprinus ( Barilius ) barna Hamilton, 1822, Fish
Ganges : 268-269, 384 (type locality: Yamuna
and Brahmaputra rivers, extreme branches of
Ganges).
Barilius barna Husain, 2003 . Faun. Asan
Wetland, Wetland Ecosystem Series 5 : 23-26
(Asan reservoir, Asan River above Kunja
Grant and below its barrage).

India
Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Himachal
Pradesh (Yamuna system), Meghalaya, Odisha,
Sikkim, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.

Elsewhere
Bangladesh, Bhutan, Laos, Mekong basin,
Myanmar and Nepal (Narayani river system,
Chitwan).