Back br ownish to bluish-grey, flanks silveryand belly white. Eye red, white to yellowish. Fins yellowto orange with some darker melanophores. Peritoneumsilvery with melanophores. Mouth subterminal to terminaland oblique. Lips thin to moderate and lower lipwithout median lobe. Two pairs of thin short barbels,maxillary barbels longer than rostral ones, rostral onesnot extending beyond nostrils and maxillary ones not extendingto rear eye level. A moderately to strong serrateddorsal fin spine. Pelvic axillary scale absent. Gill rakersshort, reaching adjacent raker when appressed. Pharyngealteeth strongly hooked. Gut with one anterior and twoposterior loops. In deep, open waters of lakes and vegetatedmarshes and rivers. Mature fish move upstream tothe spawning grounds in February-March and spent fishdescend to lakes and marshes. Maximum age 11 years,total length 1.5 m and weight 8.6 kg. Maturity at 3-5years, 43 cm total length, in males and 48 cm, in females.Spawning at the beginning of fifth year in April andMay. Sex ratio 1male:1 female. Eggs deposited in wideholes excavated by fish on gravels in shallow waters. Absolutefecundity up to 549,000 grey eggs with a diameterof 2.3 mm. Food mainly include insects, vegetation andfilamentous algae, also, shrimps, isopods, molluscs, detritus,frogs, and fishes.