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his species from the Ariidae family was one of the earliest described by the "father of modern taxonomy" Carl Linnaeus. It was originally described in his twelve edition of "System of nature, or the three kingdoms of nature, according to classes, orders, genera, species, with characters, differences, synonyms, and places" in 1766 as Silurus bagre.

 Bagre bagre

As can be seen above, this is a pretty spectacular species but not really suited to your home aquarium due to its adult size and predatory nature and it being chiefly a marine fish. It is common around river mouths and also entering river estuaries. Interestly enough it is preyed upon by the smalltail shark (Carcharhinus porosus).

Bagre bagre - showing its beauty

From W. C. da Silva, A. P. Marceniuk, J. B. L. Sales & J. Araripe 2016. Early Pleistocene lineages of Bagre bagre (Linnaeus, 1766) (Siluriformes: Ariidae), from the Atlantic coast of South America, with insights into the demography and biogeography of the species.

Coastal and marine environments are characterised by a lack of evident physical barriers or geographic isolation, and it may be difficult to understand how divergence can arise and be sustained in marine environments. The identification of 'soft' barriers is a crucial step towards the understanding of gene flow in marine environments. The marine catfishes of the family Ariidae are a demersal group with restricted migratory behavior, no pelagic larval stages, and mechanisms of larval retention, representing a potentially useful model for the understanding of historical processes of allopatric speciation in the marine environment. In the present study, two lineages of the Coco sea catfish, Bagre bagre, were recognised from their complete segregation at both mitochondrial and morphological levels. One lineage is distributed between Venezuela and the northern coast of Brazil, including the semiarid northeast coast, while the second lineage is found on the eastern coast of Brazil, including the humid northeast coast. Based on distribution area, habitats preference, and genetic variability, inferences are made in relation to biogeography and demography of lineages in the Atlantic coast of South America.

Coco sea catfish

Silurus bagre, Felichthys filamentosus, Galeichthys gronovii, Bagrus macronemus, Mystus carolinensis

Bagreinae

South America: Caribbean and Atlantic coastal rivers of South America, from Colombia to the mouth of the Amazon River.

50.0cm.TL (20ins)

12-26°c (61-79°f)

Two pairs of barbels on rostral region, one pair on lower jaw, one pair on posterior end of maxilla; end of maxilla barbel beyond anal fin origin; pectoral spine filament long, reaching anal fin origin.

Chiefly marine, common around river mouths and also entering river estuaries so not really suitable for aquarium keeping, so basically marine or brackish.

Reproductive season in French Guiana is from May to November; male incubates the eggs in his mouth until they hatch; for a few days the newborn (30-40mm) may hide in the mouth of the male in the presence of danger.

Not recorded

Feeds on small fishes and invertebrates, such as crustaceans.

Anal fin: The median, unpaired, ventrally located fin that lies behind the anus, usually on the posterior half of the fish.
Dorsal fin: The primary rayed fin(s) on top of the body.
Maxilla: One of the two bones that comprise each half of the upper jaw, displaced inwards by the premaxilla in more modern Teleostei. It may bare teeth. Also called maxillary which is also the adjective: plural maxillae.
Pectoral fin: The paired fins just behind the head.
Pelvic fin: The paired fins, between the pectorals and the anal fins. (also referred to as ventrals).
Rostral: Snout (usually applied to long snouts).

Bagre: The genus and specific name of bagre: meaning tautonymous with Silurus bagre; according to Marcgrave (1648), a Portuguese word for catfish used in Brazil, presumably first applied to B. bagre.

Photo Credits

© Jeppe Kolding @  

© Drake Shaw @
© AquaMaps (2019, October).