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Mystus malabaricus (Jerdon, 1849)

Image contributors to this species:

Hayath (3) Karsten Schönherr (1) Abhisek Mishra (1) Beta Mahatvaraj (1)

ScotCat Sources:

Other Sources:

Relevant Information:

Colouration: Freshly collected specimens have a dark band on the sides along the lateral line ending in a dark blotch at the base of the caudal fin. Also a dark band along the anal fin and upper half of the dorsal fin. (Grant 2009). Reproduction: Oviparous, distinct pairing possibly like other members of the same family. Diet: In the aquarium they will readily feed on dried pellets though some raw protien should be added to their diet since these are predatory catfishes in nature (Mishra, A.). Etymology: The specific name malabaricus: from the Malabar coast, India.

Common Name:

None

Synonyms:

Bagrus malabaricus, Hara malabarica, Macrones malabaricus

Family:

Bagridae

Distribution:

Asia: India: Malabar Coast, Wayanad hills and Travancore hill ranges. Type locality: Mountain streams of Malabar, India.

Size:

11.0cm (4¼ins)

Temp:

22-27°C (71-81°F)

p.H.

6.0-7.0.

IUCN Red List

Although Mystus malabaricus is distributed over a wide range in the Western Ghats, the species is under threat in Kerala and Tamil Nadu from overfishing, while information on population trends are not available from Karnataka and Maharashtra. Since the decline is about 40% in the last six years in Kerala, the global status of this species is presumed to be in decline to similar factor even if it is not at the same rate as in Kerala. Hence the species is assessed as Near Threatened, but needs updating (IUCN 2011).

Reference:

Abraham, R. 2011. Mystus malabaricus (errata version published in 2020). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2011.
Ferraris, C.J. Jr., 2007. Checklist of catfishes, recent and fossil (Osteichthyes: Siluriformes), and catalogue of siluriform primary types. Zootaxa 1418:1-628.
Grant, Steven. ScotCat Article: The striped catfishes of the genus Mystus Scopoli, 1777 (Siluriformes: Bagridae).
Mishra, A. pers. comm.

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

Mystus malabaricus

Mystus malabaricus

Mystus malabaricus
Kerala, India

Mystus malabaricus

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