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Golden mahseer
महाशीर (mahseer)
A large golden-scaled river fish of Himalayan rivers, able to grow past a metre and to hold position in fast white water.
How to recognise it
Watch the temple pools and the still water below rapids, where the fish are fed and visible in shoals. Large golden scales the size of a thumbnail.
Where to see it
Haridwar
The fish crowding the water beside Haridwar's bathing steps are protected by custom rather than by fence: they are fed by pilgrims and never taken. This is one of the few places in India where a large, Endangered river fish can be watched at arm's length.
Har Ki Pauri · Rajaji National Park, Chilla (in season)
Rishikesh
Fish in temple stretches of the Ganga are protected by custom: they are fed and never caught, which is why the shoals there are visible at all.
Triveni Ghat (often) · Shivpuri (in season) · Goa Beach (in season)