Category:Catfish
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Catfish (order Siluriformes) are a diverse group of ray-finned fish with over 2,700 species known. Named for their prominent barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, catfish range in size and behaviour from the heaviest, the Mekong Giant Catfish from Southeast Asia and the longest, the Wels Catfish of Eurasia, to detritivores (species that eat dead material on the bottom), and even to a tiny parasitic species commonly called the Candiru, Vandellia cirrhosa. There are armour-plated types and also naked types, neither having scales. Despite their name, not all catfish have prominent barbels; members of the Siluriformes order are defined by features of the skull and swimbladder. Catfish are of considerable commercial importance; many of the larger species are farmed or fished for food. Many of the smaller species, particularly the genus Corydoras, are important in the aquarium hobby.
Most catfish are bottom feeders. In general, they are negatively buoyant, which means that they will usually sink rather than float due to a reduced gas bladder and a heavy, bony head. Catfish have a variety of body shapes, though most have a cylindrical body with a flattened ventrum to allow for benthic feeding.
A flattened head allows for digging through the substrate as well as perhaps serving as a hydrofoil. Most have a mouth that can expand to a large size and contains no incisiform teeth; catfish generally feed through suction or gulping rather than biting and cutting prey. However, some families, notably Loricariidae and Astroblepidae, have a suckermouth that allows them to fasten themselves to objects in fast-moving water. Catfish also have a maxilla reduced to a support for barbels; this means that they are unable to protrude their mouths as other fish such as carp.
Catfish may have up to four pairs of barbels: nasal, maxillary (on each side of mouth), and two pairs of chin barbels, although pairs of barbels may be absent, depending on the species. Because their barbels are more important in detecting food, the eyes on catfish are generally small. Like other ostariophysans, they are characterized by the presence of a Weberian apparatus. Their well-developed Weberian apparatus and reduced gas bladder allow for improved hearing as well as sound production.
Catfish have no scales; their bodies are often naked. In some species, the mucus-covered skin is used in cutaneous respiration, where the fish breathes through its skin. In some catfish, the skin is covered in bony plates called scutes; some form of body armour appears in various ways within the order. In Loricarioids and in the Asian genus Sisor, the armour is primarily made up of one or more rows of free dermal plates. Similar plates are found in large specimens of Lithodoras. These plates may be supported by vertebral processes, as in scoloplacids and in Sisor, but the processes never fuse to the plates or form any external armour. By contrast, in the subfamily Doumeinae (family Amphiliidae) and in hoplomyzontines (Aspredinidae), the armour is formed solely by expanded vertebral processes that form plates. Finally, the lateral armour of doradids, Sisor, and hoplomyzontines consists of hypertrophied lateral line ossicles with dorsal and ventral lamina.
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Subcategories
This category has the following 8 subcategories, out of 20 total.
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Pages in category "Catfish"
The following 172 pages are in this category, out of 436 total.
(previous page) (next page)L
- Lamontichthys filamentosus
- Lasiancistrus heteracanthus
- Leiarius marmoratus
- Leiarius pictus
- Leiocassis longirostris
- Leiocassis siamensis
- Leporacanthicus galaxias
- Leporacanthicus joselimai
- Leporacanthicus sp "L326"
- Leporacanthicus triactis
- Lepthoplosternum pectorale
- Liosomadoras morrowi
- Liosomadoras oncinus
- Lophiobagrus cyclurus
- Lophiosilurus alexandri
- Loricaria simillima
M
- Macrotocinclus affinis
- Malapterurus electricus
- Megalancistrus barrae
- Megalancistrus parananus
- Megalechis picta
- Megalechis thoracata
- Megalodoras uranoscopus
- Microsynodontis batesii
- Mochokiella paynei
- Mystus bimaculatus
- Mystus bleekeri
- Mystus bocourti
- Mystus gulio
- Mystus leucophasis
- Mystus mysticetus
- Mystus rhegma
- Mystus singaringan
- Mystus tengara
O
P
- Panaqolus albivermis
- Panaqolus changae
- Panaqolus maccus
- Panaqolus sp "L206"
- Panaqolus sp "L448"
- Panaque armbrusteri
- Panaque nigrolineatus
- Panaque suttonorum
- Pangasius hypophthalmus
- Pangasius sanitwongsei
- Parancistrus aurantiacus
- Parancistrus nudiventris
- Parauchenipterus galeatus
- Parauchenoglanis loennbergi
- Pareutropius buffei
- Pareutropius debauwi
- Pareutropius longifilis
- Parotocinclus jumbo
- Parotocinclus maculicauda
- Peckoltia arenaria
- Peckoltia braueri
- Peckoltia brevis
- Peckoltia caenosa
- Peckoltia compta
- Peckoltia multispinis
- Peckoltia oligospila
- Peckoltia sabaji
- Peckoltia sp "L008"
- Peckoltia vittata
- Pelteobagrus fulvidraco
- Perrunichthys perruno
- Phractocephalus hemioliopterus
- Phractura ansorgii
- Pimelodella dorseyi
- Pimelodella linami
- Pimelodella metae
- Pimelodella odynea
- Pimelodus albofasciatus
- Pimelodus blochii
- Pimelodus maculatus
- Pimelodus ornatus
- Pimelodus pictus
- Pinirampus pirinampu
- Platydoras armatulus
- Platydoras costatus
- Platynematichthys notatus
- Platysilurus malarmo
- Platystacus cotylephorus
- Platystomatichthys sturio
- Pseudacanthicus cf leopardus
- Pseudacanthicus sp "L273"
- Pseudacanthicus spinosus
- Pseudauchenipterus nodosus
- Pseudohemiodon apithanos
- Pseudomystus stenomus
- Pseudoplatystoma fasciatum
- Pseudoplatystoma tigrinum
- Pseudostegophilus nemurus
- Pterodoras granulosus
- Pterygoplichthys anisitsi
- Pterygoplichthys multiradiatus
- Pterygoplichthys pardalis
- Pterygoplichthys scrophus
- Pterygoplichthys weberi
R
S
- Schilbe intermedius
- Scleromystax barbatus
- Scobinancistrus aureatus
- Scobinancistrus cf. pariolispos
- Silurus glanis
- Sisor rhabdophorus
- Sorubim lima
- Sorubimichthys planiceps
- Spectracanthicus sp "L030"
- Spectracanthicus zuanoni
- Sperata aor
- Sturisoma aureum
- Sturisoma festivum
- Sturisoma panamense
- Sturisomatichthys leightoni
- Synodontis acanthomias
- Synodontis alberti
- Synodontis angelicus
- Synodontis batensoda
- Synodontis brichardi
- Synodontis caudovittatus
- Synodontis clarias
- Synodontis decorus
- Synodontis dhonti
- Synodontis eupterus
- Synodontis flavitaeniatus
- Synodontis gambiensis
- Synodontis lucipinnis
- Synodontis membranaceus
- Synodontis multipunctatus
- Synodontis nigrita
- Synodontis nigriventris
- Synodontis njassae
- Synodontis notatus
- Synodontis obesus
- Synodontis ocellifer
- Synodontis pleurops
- Synodontis polli