Studies on the extent of gill surface in a fresh water cat-fish Bagarius bagarius (Ham.)

The total gill area of the fish ranges from 37,537 to 56,551 lamellae. The number of lamellae per mm of the gill filament and area of lamellae knowing the respiratory gill area, the gill area per g of body weight and per cm3 of body volume were calculated to correlate the variation in gill surface area per unit weight and volume of the fish. The fish can survive for quite long out of water as the lamallae are spaced wide apart and do not adhere together.