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Johnny Jensen's Photographic Library (3) Fishes of Mainland Southeast Asia (2)

Previously misidentified as Belodontichthys dinema from the Mekong River basin which has a longer head and snout. An excellent game fish which can be caught using hook and line. Presently large numbers are being taken near Stung Treng in Cambodia by explosives. They migrate upstream through the Khone Falls in June-July with other silurids and enter the flooded forest in July-October, where they feed heavily on cyprinids of the genus Henicorhynchus (pa soi, identified as Cirrhinus spp.). Description: Dorsal soft rays (total): 3-4; Anal soft rays: 79 - 96. Differs from its sole congener, B. dinema, in having a shorter pectoral fin, 21.9-25.8% SL, versus 25.9-28.9; a shorter head, 20.9-23.9% SL, versus 24.2-26.0; and a shorter snout, 35.4-39.6% HL, versus 39.0-43.1. Strongly compressed head and body; upturned mouth with conspicuous large teeth; pectoral fin longer than head. Habitat: Occurs in medium to large-sized rivers and found from middle depths to the surface in deeper parts of large rivers. Diet: Feeds on smaller fish near the water surface.

Dracula sheatfish

None

Siluridae

Asia: Mekong and Chao Phraya River basins. Type locality: Chao Phraya River, flood-waters 17.5 km north of Ayuthya, Maharaj Prov., Thailand.

60.0cm. (24ins)

22-26°C (71-79°F)

6.0-7.0.

Kottelat, M. and H.H. Ng, 1999. Belodontichthys truncatus, a new species of silurid catfish from Indochina ( Teleostei: Siluridae). Ichthyol. Explor. Freshwat. 10(4):387-391.
Froese, R. and D. Pauly. Editors. 2014. FishBase. World Wide Web electronic publication. www.fishbase.org, ( 11/2014 ).
Ferraris, C.J. Jr., 2007. Checklist of catfishes, recent and fossil (Osteichthyes: Siluriformes), and catalogue of siluriform primary types. Zootaxa 1418:1-628.