Firewood catfish
| Firewood catfish | |
|---|---|
| |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Siluriformes |
| Family: | Pimelodidae |
| Genus: | Sorubimichthys Bleeker, 1862 |
| Species: | S. planiceps
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| Binomial name | |
| Sorubimichthys planiceps | |
| Synonyms | |
The firewood catfish (Sorubimichthys planiceps) a species of South American pimelodid catfish, is the sole member of the genus Sorubimichthys. Known by locals along the Amazon Basin as peixe-lenha,[1] the firewood catfish is so called because it is of little eating value and is often dried and used for firewood.[2]
Distribution and habitat[edit]
Firewood catfish occur in the Orinoco and Amazon Basins.[3] It is normally found in whitewater high in suspended sediments.[4]
Appearance and anatomy[edit]
This species attains about 150 cm (5 ft) in standard length.[3]
These fish change in appearance as they grow.[5] In adults, the upper jaw is extremely long, about one-third the length of the snout.[5] The dorsum is ash-gray with darker spots. The sides have a white band, bordered below by a dark gray or brown band. The venter is usually white with some large spots. The dorsal fin and adipose fin are spotted.[5] However, in juveniles, the snout is short and the pectoral fins are large and rounded. The white band does not appear until the fish is about 40 0m (1.6 in).[clarification needed] The full adult color pattern and fin shapes appear by at least 20 cm (8 in).[5]
Ecology[edit]
This fish is mainly nocturnal.[3] Firewood catfish are highly predatory and feed on other fish.[4]
References[edit]
- ^ The Catfish Connection-Ronaldo Barthem and Michael Goulding pg. 38
- ^ Sorubimichthys planiceps (Spix & Agassiz, 1829)
- ^ a b c Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.) (2012). "Sorubimichthys planiceps" in FishBase. February 2012 version.
- ^ a b "PlanetCatfish::Cat-eLog::Pimelodidae::Sorubimichthys planiceps". 2006-02-09. Retrieved 2007-05-15.
- ^ a b c d Lundberg, John G.; Nass, Pedro; Mago-Leccia, Francisco (1989). "Pteroglanis manni Eigenmann and Pearson, a Juvenile of Sorubimichthys planiceps (Agassiz), with a Review of the Nominal Species of Sorubimichthys (Pisces: Pimelodidae)". Copeia. Copeia, Vol. 1989, No. 2. 1989 (2): 332–344. doi:10.2307/1445429. JSTOR 1445429.