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SpeciesScientists Discover Mysterious New Fish in the Red Sea – and Have Never Seen It AgainOceanEye to eye with Britain's hidden sharks at SharkAdemy - OceanographicRiversIn October, biologists surveying a New York harbor for invasive fish pulled up a bright yellow one. It wasn't an invasive species at allOceanShedd Aquarium Sends Shark Eggs to Bolster Wild PopulationsSpeciesA rare fish has been found in Lake Ontario, North America, whose entire body is golden. It is a nati..OceanThe Great Sea Reef Is Fiji’s Wildest Dive, and a New Frontier for ConservationOceanEckerd College professor contributes to designating Biscayne Bay an Important Shark and Ray AreaSpeciesRio Verde Grande Survey Identifies Fifty-Three Fish Species Facing Flow ReductionsFisheriesAdams River Salmon Run in Thompson-NicolaIndiaHilsa production dropped 26% in five years, fisheries minister tells parliamentSpeciesScientists Discover Mysterious New Fish in the Red Sea – and Have Never Seen It AgainOceanEye to eye with Britain's hidden sharks at SharkAdemy - OceanographicRiversIn October, biologists surveying a New York harbor for invasive fish pulled up a bright yellow one. It wasn't an invasive species at allOceanShedd Aquarium Sends Shark Eggs to Bolster Wild PopulationsSpeciesA rare fish has been found in Lake Ontario, North America, whose entire body is golden. It is a nati..OceanThe Great Sea Reef Is Fiji’s Wildest Dive, and a New Frontier for ConservationOceanEckerd College professor contributes to designating Biscayne Bay an Important Shark and Ray AreaSpeciesRio Verde Grande Survey Identifies Fifty-Three Fish Species Facing Flow ReductionsFisheriesAdams River Salmon Run in Thompson-NicolaIndiaHilsa production dropped 26% in five years, fisheries minister tells parliament
EveryFish

Catfishes

Singhi, magur, pangas, wels and the Mekong giant catfish. 57 fish on EveryFish so far.

Catfishes, the order Siluriformes, are named for the whisker-like barbels around their mouths. There are more than 3,000 species, roughly one in ten of all fish, living on every continent except Antarctica, mostly in fresh water. Most have no scales; some are armoured in bony plates. Many have sharp, locking spines on their pectoral and dorsal fins, and some of those spines carry venom.

Giants and air-breathers

The Mekong giant catfish and the wels catfish of Europe are among the largest freshwater fish, and the goonch of Himalayan rivers can grow well over a metre. At the other end, many small catfish are kept in aquariums, and the candiru of the Amazon is a thin parasite of other fish. In South Asia, magur and singhi breathe air through organs above the gills and live in swamps, paddies and ponds where oxygen runs low. Bengali tradition holds them to be light food for the sick.

Farmed and eaten

The iridescent shark catfish, pangasius, is farmed in vast numbers in Vietnam's Mekong delta and in Andhra Pradesh, and sold worldwide as cheap white fillets. The channel catfish is the main farmed fish of the southern United States. The African catfish has been farmed widely but is invasive, and its farming is banned in India. Pabda, boal, tengra and pangas are popular catfish in Bengali kitchens.

Famous catfish fish

Mekong giant catfishCan weigh around 300 kgWels catfishEurope's largest freshwater fishChannel catfishThe main farmed fish of the US southAsian stinging catfishSinghi, the stinging catfishGoonch catfishThe goonch of Himalayan rivers

Still to be written: Iridescent shark, Clarias magur, Ompok pabda.

Further reading

WaterRivers and lakesEstuaries and mangrovesCoasts and shelvesCoral reefsOpen oceanDeep seaPolar and cold seasCaves and springsBetween sea and river
UseFood fishFarmedAquarium fishSport fishingCulture and faithVenomous or dangerousInvasiveScience and research
OrderBest knownA to ZOldest firstNewest firstBy size
🇧🇷 Brazil and 4 moreRedtail catfish A large South American catfish known for its red tail and popularity in the aquarium trade.Catfish · Rivers and lakes 🇧🇷 Brazil and 3 moreBlue leopard corydoras Small peaceful armoured catfish from South AmericaCatfish · Rivers and lakes Sub-Saharan AfricaSynodontis A large African genus of spotted catfish known for squeaking sounds and belly-up swimming.Catfish · Rivers and lakes WorldHypostomus plecostomus A tropical armored catfish from South America, kept in aquariums for algae control.Catfish · Rivers and lakes · 1758 🇧🇷 Brazil and 4 moreAmazon sailfin catfish A large freshwater armored catfish from South America, often kept in aquariums and known as an invasive pest elsewhere.Catfish · Rivers and lakes 🇻🇪 Venezuela and 1 moreOtocinclus Small South American armored catfishes known for algae eating and air breathing.Catfish · Rivers and lakes 🇧🇷 BrazilZebra pleco Striped catfish from the Rio XinguCatfish · Rivers and lakes · 1991 Asian redtail catfish 🇹🇭 Thailand and 1 moreAsian redtail catfish Large Asian bagrid catfish with a bright red tail.Catfish · Rivers and lakes Sub-Saharan AfricaCuckoo catfish A brood-parasitic catfish from Lake TanganyikaCatfish · Rivers and lakes Latin America and the CaribbeanBanjo catfish A South American family of scaleless, benthic catfish with a distinctive banjo-shaped body.Catfish · Rivers and lakes 🇧🇴 Bolivia and 4 moreRipsaw catfish Large thorny catfish native to South American rivers.Catfish · Rivers and lakes WorldWhiskered twig catfish Slender South American armored catfish genusCatfish · Rivers and lakes WorldPangasius A genus of shark catfishes from South and Southeast Asia, widely farmed for food.Catfish · Rivers and lakes · 1822 🇹🇭 Thailand and 2 moreGiant pangasius A large freshwater catfish from Southeast Asia, now critically endangered due to overfishing and habitat loss.Catfish · Rivers and lakes · 1931 🇺🇦 Ukraine and 4 moreWels catfish A large freshwater catfish native to Europe and Western Asia, known for its size and bottom-feeding habits.Catfish · Rivers and lakes · 1758 🇧🇷 BrazilPiraíba A massive Amazonian catfish known for its long barbels and role as an apex predator.Catfish · Rivers and lakes WorldUpside-down catfish A small African catfish known for swimming on its back to feed.Catfish · Rivers and lakes 🇧🇷 Brazil and 4 moreTiger shovelnose catfish Large striped South American river catfishCatfish · Rivers and lakes · 1862 🇳🇬 Nigeria and 1 moreElectric catfish African catfish that generates strong electric shocksCatfish · Rivers and lakes 🇹🇭 ThailandGlass catfish A small, transparent freshwater catfish from Thailand.Catfish · Rivers and lakes · 2013 WorldBronze corydoras Small armored catfish popular in home aquariumsCatfish · Rivers and lakes · 1858 🇧🇷 Brazil and 2 morePygmy corydoras A tiny armored catfish from South America kept in community aquariums.Catfish · Rivers and lakes · 1966 🇧🇷 Brazil and 1 moreAncistrus A genus of small, nocturnal freshwater catfish native to South America and Panama.Catfish · Rivers and lakes 🇵🇪 Peru and 1 morePanda corydoras Small armoured catfish with distinctive black eye patchesCatfish · Rivers and lakes · 1971 🇮🇳 India and 4 moreAsian stinging catfish A small freshwater catfish with a painful stingCatfish · Rivers and lakes 🇮🇳 India and 1 moreChaca chaca A burrowing angler catfish from South Asian rivers with a flattened body and ambush hunting style.Catfish · Rivers and lakes 🇮🇳 IndiaSun catfish A yellow catfish with a black shoulder spot from India.Catfish · Rivers and lakes 🇮🇳 India and 1 moreGoonch catfish A massive river catfish native to South Asia.Catfish · Rivers and lakes

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The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

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