About Xenentodon cancila (Hamilton, 1822)
This species, commonly known as the freshwater garfish, shares key morphological traits with other needlefish. It has an elongated body with long, beak-like jaws filled with teeth. Its dorsal and anal fins are set far back along the body, near the tail. The body is silvery-green, darker on the upper side and lighter on the underside, with a dark horizontal band running along the flank. It shows slight sexual dimorphism: males typically have black edges on their anal and dorsal fins. This species reaches a maximum length of 40 cm (16 in). It is widely distributed across South and Southeast Asia, ranging from India and Sri Lanka to the Malaysian Peninsula. It is an oviparous species. At least in aquarium settings, spawning occurs in the morning, with small numbers of eggs laid among aquatic plants. The eggs are roughly 3.5 mm (0.14 in) in diameter, and attach to plant leaves via sticky threads around 20 mm (0.79 in) long. Eggs take ten days to hatch; newly hatched fry are almost 12 mm (0.47 in) long, and will eat small live foods including week-old labyrinth fish.
