Morphometric-meristic characters of Sumatran featherback (Chitala hypselonotus, Bleeker 1852) from Kelekar River, South Sumatra, Indonesia

The Sumatran featherback (Chitala hypselonotus, Bleeker 1852) is an endemic freshwater fish species native to the island of Sumatra in Indonesia. The objective of this study was to measure and calculate the morphometric-meristic characters of C. hypselonotus. The study utilized a total of ten specimens, collected between July and September 2024, from the Kelekar River in Indonesia. The morphometric and meristic characters of C. hypselonotus were measured at the Fisheries Laboratory, Department of Fisheries, Faculty of Agriculture, Universitas Sriwijaya, Indonesia. The results demonstrated that the total length of C. hypselonotus samples ranged from 340 to 500 cm, with a standard length ranging from 310 to 470 cm. Additionally, the body weight of the specimens ranged from 276 to 1066 g, with a proportion of standard length to total length of 94.16% and a head length to standard length ratio of 21.28%. The number of rays on the dorsal fin is 9 (D. 9), the pectoral fin has between 12 and 15 rays (P. 12-15), the ventral fin has between 2 and 3 rays (V. 2-3), and the anal fin is fused to the caudal fin, with a range of 118 to 131 rays (A-C. 118-131). The findings of our present study may prove useful to students, fisheries biologists, and taxonomists in the future, facilitating the correct identification and classification of C. hypselonotus. It is recommended that further studies be conducted on the morphometric-meristic and other biometric parameters of the threatened and commercially important fish C. hypselonotus, to enable the management and conservation of populations in natural water bodies.