Contents: Preface. 1. Ornamental fishes: ... meant more than a hobby today. 2. Ornamental fishes: criteria of selection. 3. The Brahmaputra Basin: a goldmine for tropical ornamental fishes. 4. Ornamental ichthyofauna of the Brahmaputra basin. 5. Classical of ornamental fishes: an ecological approach: i. Featherbacks. ii. Clupeids. iii. Cyprinids (Minnows and Barbs). iv. Loaches. v. Catfishes. vi. Needlefish. vii. Spiny eels. viii. Glassfishes. ix. Leaffishes. x. Mullets. xi. Gobies. xii. Gouramies. xiii. Snakeheads. xiv. Puffers. 6. Selected references. 7. Index.

"Ornamental fisheries, especially rearing and breeding of freshwater aquarium fish have gained popularity in India over the last two decades or so. North-Eastern India being one of the mega-diversity regions in South Asia, the aquarium fish traders obviously identified the region, especially the floodplains of the Brahmaputra River as a hunting ground for exploitation of endemic and colourful fish species and their export to the far eastern countries. But what is surprising that we do not have a proper documentation or baseline information about the exact number of species currently available in the Brahmaputra Basin and their ornamental features, rating and compatibility. After all, one requires comprehensive biological informations of the fish and their habitats in order to rearing, feeding and breeds them in captive condition. This handbook on ornamental fishes of the Brahmaputra basin will serve as a baseline data not only for the naturalist but also for the aquarist who would like to venture the world of ornamental fishes."