Puntius mahecola is a cyprinid from rivers draining much of the Western Ghats mountains in Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu states, southern India. The name was misapplied to members of Dawkinsia for over a century, while the fish itself was widely misidentified as P. amphibius. A relatively plain fish, it has a single dark blotch on the caudal peduncle behind the anal fin. D. assimilis and other Dawkinsia species appear on trade lists as 'mahecola barb'.

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