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Sperata seenghala (Sykes, 1839)

Image contributors to this species:

Balaram Mahalder (1) Staticd (1)

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Other Sources:

Relevant Information:

Description: Dorsal spines (total): 1; Dorsal soft rays (total): 7 ; Anal spines: 0; Anal soft rays: 11 - 12. Body elongate and compressed; snout broad and spatulate. Barbels extend posteriorly to pelvic fins or beyond to anal fin. Dorsal spine weakly serrated on its posterior edge; adipose fin base short, about as long as the rayed dorsal fin base. S. seenghala differs from S. aor by the presence of a spatulate snout and a shorter maxillary barbel. The largest recorded size in Bangladesh was 112.3cm in total length (Rahman, 2005). The pictured specimen was caught in Sunamganj, Bangladesh Jan. 18th. 2008. The recorded size was 29cm. Habitat: Found in rivers, canals, beels, ditches, inundated fields and other freshwater areas. Colouration: Colour is brownish-gray on back, silvery on flanks and belly. A dark well-defined spot is on the adipose dorsal fin. Reproduction: Breeding occurs before the commencement of monsoons. Oviparous, distinct pairing possibly like other members of the same genus. Aquarium Care: This species is not intended to be housed in a community aquarium apart from the reason of aggression towards other fish and conspecifics, and it grows too large for the normal tanks in our homes. Diet: Carnivore. Etymology: The genus name of Sperata: a-, belonging to: Maria Adolfine Sperat, Holly’s late mother-in-law, who had supported Holly’s studies with “great understanding” or “sympathy” (depending on the translation) [replacement name for Macrones Duméril 1856, preoccupied by Macrones Newman 1841 in Coleoptera]. The specific name of seenghala: marathi vernacular for this species in India, which, as Sykes explained in 1841, he adopted “so that naturalists who travel the country can always obtain” the species.

Common Name:

Giant river-catfish

Synonyms:

Platystoma seenghala, Bagrus Lamarrii Valenciennes, in Cuvier & Valenciennes, Bagrus aorinus Valenciennes, 1840, in Jacquemont.

Family:

Bagridae

Distribution:

Asia: Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Nepal and Bangladesh. Ganges River system and peninsular India at least as far south as the Krishna River. Type locality: Deccan, India.

Size:

130.0cm. (52ins)

Temp:

23-26°C (73-79°F)

p.H.

6.0-7.2.

IUCN Red List

Although Sperata seenghala is assessed as Least Concern for now because current field surveys still indicate that it is still relatively abundant, closer monitoring of its fisheries is badly needed. The effects of current (and future) levels of harvesting on population size are badly in need of study for this species. Should more detailed catch data for this species become available, it may be necessary to reassess this species (IUCN 2010).

Reference:

Chowdhury, M.M., 2007, Encyclopedia of Flora and Fauna of Bangladesh. Vol. 23. Freshwater Fishes. Asiatic Society of Bangladesh. 300p.
Ferraris, C.J. Jr., 2007. Checklist of catfishes, recent and fossil (Osteichthyes: Siluriformes), and catalogue of siluriform primary types. Zootaxa 1418:1-628.
Froese, R. and D. Pauly. Editors. 2009.FishBase. World Wide Web electronic publication. www.fishbase.org, version (07/2010).
Ng, H.H. 2010. Sperata seenghala. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2010.
The ETYFish Project Fish Name Etymology Database © Christopher Scharpf.

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

Sperata seenghala
Juvenile

Sperata seenghala

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