Plotosus
lineatus (Thunberg, 1787)
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| Image
contributors to this species: |
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The
Fishes of Taiwan
(1)
Frants Lehmann (2 Stamps) Johnny
Jensen's Photographic Library (2)
Danny Blundell (3) |
| ScotCat
Sources: |
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| Other
Sources: |
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| Relevant
Information: |
Dorsal spines (total):
1; Dorsal soft rays (total): 85 - 105; Anal spines: 0; Anal soft
rays: 70 - 81. Dorsal and anal fins continuous with caudal fin.
Four pairs of mouth barbels. A single highly venomous serrate
spine at the beginning of the first dorsal and each of the pectoral
fins. The only catfish found in coral reefs. Also found in estuaries,
tide pools and open coasts. Juveniles form dense ball-shaped schools
of about 100 fish; adults are solitary or occur in smaller groups
of around 20 and are known to hide under ledges during the day.
Adults search and stir the sand incessantly for crustaceans, mollusks,
worms, and sometimes fish. Oviparous, with demersal eggs and planktonic
larvae. The highly venomous serrate spine of the first dorsal
and each of the pectoral fins are dangerous, and even fatal in
rare cases. When very young they are mostly black and when they
start to mature the white to yellow ventral stripes begin to appear
gradually to make this catfish a real beauty to the enthusiast.
It is only when they get to the adult stage that they lose this
trait and revert to a murky brown colour. |
| Common
Name: |
Coral Catfish |
| Synonyms: |
Silurus arab, Silurus
lineatus, Platystacus anguillaris, Plotosus anguillaris, Plotosus
thunbergianus, Plotosus marginatus, Plotoseus ikapor, Plotosus
vittatus, Plotosus castaneus, Plotosus castaneoides, Plotosus
arab, Plotosus flavolineatus |
| Family: |
Plotosidaeycipitidae |
| Distribution: |
Indo-Pacific:
Indian Ocean and Western Pacific, in marine waters, but sometimes
entering freshwaters in East Africa and Madagascar, eastern Mediterranean.
Type locality: (East Indian Seas). |
| Size:
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30cm.
(12ins) |
| Temp: |
24-26°C
(75-79°F) |
| p.H. |
8.0-8.5. |
| Reference: |
Froese, R. and
D. Pauly. Editors. 2009.FishBase. World Wide Web electronic
publication. www.fishbase.org, version (02/2010).
Ferraris, C.J. Jr., 2007. Checklist of catfishes,
recent and fossil (Osteichthyes: Siluriformes), and catalogue
of siluriform primary types. Zootaxa 1418:1-628.
ScotCat Factsheet no. 131. May 2007 |
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Family: Plotosidae
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on thumbnails |
Plotosus lineatus
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Plotosus
lineatus
Stamp
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Plotosus
lineatus
Stamp
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Plotosus
lineatus
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Plotosus
lineatus
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Plotosus
lineatus
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Plotosus
lineatus
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Plotosus
lineatus
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