Fish Orders Found in Nepal

 Here’s a list of fish orders found in Nepal, along with their distinctive characteristics and examples of popular families:

1. Cypriniformes

• Characteristics:
• Includes freshwater fishes with soft fins, toothless jaws, and pharyngeal teeth for grinding food.
• Typically found in rivers and lakes.
• Popular Family: Cyprinidae (Carp family)
• Example: Tor putitora (Golden Mahseer), Schizothorax (Asala/Snow Trout)

2. Siluriformes

• Characteristics:
• Known as catfish, these species have whisker-like barbels around the mouth and no scales.
• Often found in murky or slow-moving waters.
• Popular Family: Siluridae (Catfish family)
• Example: Ompok bimaculatus (Butter Catfish), Mystus species

3. Perciformes

• Characteristics:
• The largest order of vertebrates, includes species with spiny fins and ctenoid scales.
• Found in a variety of freshwater habitats.
• Popular Family: Channidae (Snakehead family)
• Example: Channa punctata (Spotted Snakehead), Channa gachua (Dwarf Snakehead)

4. Salmoniformes

• Characteristics:
• Coldwater fish typically found in fast-flowing, oxygen-rich rivers and lakes.
• Streamlined bodies with an adipose fin between the dorsal and caudal fins.
• Popular Family: Salmonidae (Salmon and Trout family)
• Example: Schizothorax spp. (Snow Trout), Oncorhynchus mykiss (Rainbow Trout)

5. Synbranchiformes

• Characteristics:
• Elongated, eel-like bodies with reduced or absent fins.
• Often adapted to burrowing and living in muddy or stagnant waters.
• Popular Family: Mastacembelidae (Spiny Eel family)
• Example: Mastacembelus armatus (Tire Track Eel)

6. Osteoglossiformes

• Characteristics:
• Primitive bony fish with a distinctive tongue bone that has teeth.
• Typically found in freshwater environments.
• Popular Family: Notopteridae (Featherback family)
• Example: Notopterus notopterus (Bronze Featherback)

7. Clupeiformes

• Characteristics:
• Mostly small, schooling fish with compressed bodies and silvery scales.
• Found in both freshwater and marine environments.
• Popular Family: Clupeidae (Herring family)
• Example: Gudusia chapra (Indian River Shad)

8. Anguilliformes

• Characteristics:
• Eel-like fish with long, cylindrical bodies and reduced or absent fins.
• Many species migrate between freshwater and marine environments.
• Popular Family: Anguillidae (Freshwater Eel family)
• Example: Anguilla bengalensis (Indian Longfin Eel)

These are some of the primary fish orders found in Nepal, each contributing to the diverse aquatic life in the country.