Sorubimichthys_planiceps

Firewood catfish

Firewood catfish

Species of fish

The firewood catfish (Sorubimichthys planiceps) a species of South American pimelodid catfish, is the sole member of the genus Sorubimichthys.[2] Known by locals along the Amazon Basin as peixe-lenha,[3] the firewood catfish is so called because it is of little eating value and is often dried and used for firewood.[4]

Quick Facts Conservation status, Scientific classification ...

Distribution and habitat

Firewood catfish occur in the Orinoco and Amazon Basins.[5] It is normally found in whitewater high in suspended sediments.[6]

Appearance and anatomy

This species attains about 150 cm (5 ft) in standard length.[5]

These fish change in appearance as they grow.[7] In adults, the upper jaw is extremely long, about one-third the length of the snout.[7] 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.[7] 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).[7]

Ecology

This fish is mainly nocturnal.[5] Firewood catfish are highly predatory and feed on other fish.[6]

References

  1. [1]
    Salvador, G.N. (2023). "Sorubimichthys planiceps". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2023: e.T49829601A91631044. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2023-1.RLTS.T49829601A91631044.en. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  2. [2]
    Froese, Rainer and Pauly, Daniel, eds. (2006). Species of Sorubimichthys in FishBase. April 2006 version.
  3. [3]
    The Catfish Connection-Ronaldo Barthem and Michael Goulding pg. 38
  4. [4]
    Sorubimichthys planiceps (Spix & Agassiz, 1829)
  5. [5]
    Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.) (2012). "Sorubimichthys planiceps" in FishBase. February 2012 version.
  6. [6]
    "PlanetCatfish::Cat-eLog::Pimelodidae::Sorubimichthys planiceps". 2006-02-09. Retrieved 2007-05-15.
  7. [7]
    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. 1989 (2). Copeia, Vol. 1989, No. 2: 332–344. doi:10.2307/1445429. JSTOR 1445429.
Share this article:

This article uses material from the Wikipedia article Sorubimichthys_planiceps, and is written by contributors. Text is available under a CC BY-SA 4.0 International License; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.