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Netuma thalassina (Rüppell, 1837)

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Relevant Information:

Habitat: Known with certainty from the Red Sea and the northwestern Indian Ocean. A closely related form occurs in the Philippines and Gulf of Thailand. The wider distribution usually given for this species stems from misidentifications of similar species overlapping its range. Also reported from Australia, Polynesia and Japan and rarely in the Mekong delta. A marine species often found in estuaries, but rarely enters freshwater. Typically euryhaline. Reported to occasionally ascend into fresh water. Recorded at temperatures ranging from 26-29°C. Diet: Feeds mainly on crabs, prawns, mantis shrimps (Squilla species) but also on fishes and mollusks. An important food fish. Marketed mostly fresh; often dried. Etymology: The genus name Netuma: a Tamil word that means "dance". The specific name thalassina: of the sea, a marine and brackish-water catfish described from the Red Sea.

Common Name:

Giant seacatfish

Synonyms:

Bagrus thalassinus, Bagrus netuma, Bagrus laevigatus, Arius nasutus, Catastoma nasutum, Bagrus carchariorhynchos, Sarcogenys rostratus, Arius andamanensis, Arius serratus, Ariodes aeneus, Netuma thalassina jacksonensis, Netuma thalassinus

Family:

Ariidae

Distribution:

Eastern Africa, south and southeast Asia to New Guinea and Australia: India, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, China, Papua New Guinea and Australia. Type locality: (Bagrus thalassinus Rüppell, 1837:) Massawa, Eritrea, Red Sea.

Size:

180.0cm. (6ft)

Temp:

26-29°c (79-85°f)

p.H.

7.0-8.5.

Reference:

Froese, R. and D. Pauly. Editors. 2009. FishBase. World Wide Web electronic publication. www.fishbase.org, version (10/2009).
Marceniuk, Alexandre P.; Menezes, Naércio A. (2007). "Systematics of the family Ariidae (Ostariophysi, Siluriformes), with a redefinition of the genera" Zootaxa 1416: 1–126.
The ETYFish Project Fish Name Etymology Database © Christopher Scharpf.

Family: Ariidae Back to Ident-A-Cat Click on Thumbnails

Netuma thalassina
Juvenile

Netuma thalassina
Juvenile

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