Pabdah catfish
Small spotted freshwater catfish from South Asia
The Pabdah catfish is a small sheatfish native to rivers and lakes across South Asia. It features a silver body with coloured spots and is valued locally as a food fish.
- Grows to a maximum length of 30 cm
- Native to five Asian countries
- Females lay over 40,000 eggs
- Has silver body with coloured spots
- Found in both clear and muddy water
What it is
This species belongs to the sheatfish family and lives in fresh water. Its body is long and becomes flatter towards the tail. The head is large with a wide mouth that has two barbels pointing down. A small dorsal fin sits on the back, while the anal fin runs along most of the belly. The tail fin is small and round. The skin is silver with spots in brown, blue or pink hues. The underside is white. Adults grow up to thirty centimetres in length.
Where it lives
The fish is native to several Asian nations including Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Pakistan and Afghanistan. It inhabits various inland water bodies such as streams, ponds and lakes. These habitats may contain clear water or be muddy. The species adapts to these different local conditions across its geographic range in South and Central Asia.
Breeding and life cycle
Reproduction takes place during the warmer months from May through August. Each female releases a large number of eggs, averaging more than forty thousand per spawning event. This high fecundity helps maintain population levels in its native waters despite fishing pressure.
Fish and people
Local communities in its native range catch this catfish for food. It is a target for fisheries in the countries where it lives. The meat is consumed by people in these regions as part of their regular diet.
Questions people ask about Pabdah catfish
How big does the Pabdah catfish get?
This fish reaches a maximum length of thirty centimetres. It has an elongated body that becomes compressed along the sides.
Where does the Pabdah catfish live?
It is native to Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Pakistan and Afghanistan. It lives in streams, ponds and lakes with clear or muddy water.
When does the Pabdah catfish breed?
Breeding and egg laying occur between May and August. Each female produces an average of over forty thousand eggs during this period.
Good reading and sources
The facts on this page come from the Wikipedia article "Ompok pabda", written by its contributors and used under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence, and from its Wikidata record (CC0). EveryFish rewrote the text in its own words, with AI assistance, and compares every page with the article to make sure no passage is copied. It may be reused under the same CC BY-SA 4.0 licence with a link back.
It may contain mistakes, and figures change over time. Nothing here is investment or buying advice. If something is wrong, tell us. Last refreshed 2026-11-15.
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