Channel catfish
Channel catfish | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Actinopterygii |
Order: | Siluriformes |
Family: | Ictaluridae |
Genus: | Ictalurus |
Species: | I. punctatus
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Binomial name | |
Ictalurus punctatus (
Rafinesque , 1818) | |
Synonyms | |
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The channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) is North America's most numerous catfish species. It is the official fish of Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, and Tennessee, and is informally referred to as a "channel cat". In the United States, they are the most fished catfish species with around 8 million anglers targeting them per year. They also have very few teeth and swallow food whole. The popularity of channel catfish for food has contributed to the rapid expansion of aquaculture of this species in the United States.[2] It has also been widely introduced in Europe, Asia and South America, and it is legally considered an invasive species in many countries.[3][4][5]
Distribution and habitat
Channel catfish are native to the
Characteristics
Channel catfish possess very keen senses of smell and taste. At the pits of their
Length and weight
A member of the American catfish genus Ictalurus, channel catfish have a top-end size of about 40–50 pounds (18–23 kg). The world record channel catfish weighed 58 pounds, and was taken from the Santee-Cooper Reservoir in South Carolina, on July 7, 1964.[11] Realistically, a channel catfish over 20 lb (9 kg) is a spectacular specimen, and most catfish anglers view a 10-lb (4.5-kg) fish as a very admirable catch. Furthermore, the average size channel catfish an angler could expect to find in most waterways would be between 2 pounds (1 kg) and 4 pounds (2 kg), and between 12 in (31 cm) and 24 in (61 cm).
Channel catfish often coexist in the same waterways with its close relative, the blue catfish, which is somewhat less common, but tends to grow much larger (with several specimens confirmed to weigh above 100 lb).
As channel catfish grow longer, they increase in weight. The relationship between length and weight is not linear. The relationship between length (L, in cm) and weight (W, in kg) for nearly all species of fish can be expressed by an equation of the form:
Invariably, b is close to 3.0 for all species, is the length of a typical fish weighing 1 kg. For channel catfish, b = 3.2293, somewhat higher than for many common species, and cm.
Ecology
Feeding
Catfish have enhanced capabilities of taste perception, and thus are called the “swimming tongue,” due to the presence of taste buds all over the external body surface and inside the oropharyngeal cavity. Specifically, they have high sensitivity to amino acids, which explains their unique communication methods as follows. The catfish has a facial taste system that is extremely responsive to
Diet
Adult channel catfish, over 45 cm (17.7 in), consume
Communication
The channel catfish is adapted to limited light conditions.
Chemical communication
The North American channel catfish is an
Territoriality in channel catfish is identifiable by a change in body odor, which is recognizable by other members of the same species.[15] This chemical change in the amino-acid composition of the skin mucus can be noted by chromatographic methods, and are not long-lasting; rather, they last only long enough to communicate to other fish in the vicinity.[15] Changes may be the result of the release of the contents of the club cells. These cells do not open directly to the surface of the skin, but injury caused by fighting and other agonistic behaviors may release the cells' contents.[15] Since catfish have a dominance hierarchy system, information relative to the change of status of any fish is important in recognition of the social strata.[15]
Signal distinction
In the channel catfish, while a communication signal is directed toward the receiver and contains a specific message, an information signal is a part of the general existence of the individual or the group.[15] For example, release of an alarm signal will communicate danger, but the individual's recognition odor is only an information signal identifying one fish from another.[15] With regards to the function and contents of the club cells, the club cells may serve different functions throughout the fish's lifecycle. Variation in the contents of the club cells' information signals therefore may change with the species' needs at different stages of life.[15]
Sound production
All species of catfishes can generate sound through stridulation, and many produce sounds through drumming.[17] Stridulation consists of the clicking or grinding of bony parts on the fish's pectoral fins and pectoral girdle, and drumming consists of the contraction of specialized sonic muscles with subsequent reverberation through the swim bladder.[16] Variability in the sound signals created by the channel catfish depends on the mechanism by which the sound is produced, the function of the resultant sound, and physical factors such as sex, age, and temperature.[16] This variation may result in increased complexity of the outgoing signal and may allow for increased usefulness of the signal in interspecies communication.[16] In the channel catfish, sounds are produced only by pectoral stridulation, as this species does not express sonic muscles.[16] However, the swim bladder may still be used to help with audition.[17]
Due to the high density of water, sound travels 4.8 times faster and over longer distances under water than in air. Consequently, sound production via stridulation is an excellent means of underwater communication for channel catfish.
In many channel catfish, individuals favor one fin or another for stridulatory sound production (in the same way as humans are right-handed or left-handed).
Hearing
The inferior division of the inner ear, most prominently the utricle, is considered the primary area of hearing in most fishes.[21] The hearing ability of the channel catfish is enhanced by the presence of the swim bladder.[22] It is the main structure that reverberates the echo from other individuals' sounds, as well as from sonar devices.[22] The volume of the swim bladder changes if fish move vertically, thus is also considered to be the site of pressure sensitivity.[22] The latency of swim bladder adaptation after a change in pressure affects hearing and other possible swim bladder functions, presumably making audition more difficult.[22] Nevertheless, the presence of the swim bladder and a relatively complex auditory apparatus allows the channel catfish to discern different sounds and tell from which directions sounds have come.[17]
Communication to predators
Pectoral stridulation has been considered to be the main means of
Fishing
Channel catfish are
Juglines, trotlines, limb lines, and bank lines are popular methods of fishing for channel catfish in addition to traditional rod-and-reel fishing. Another method uses traps, either "slat traps"—long wooden traps with an angled entrance—and wire hoop traps. Typical bait for these traps include rotten cheese and dog food, or "stink bait", and old rotted shad work well. Catches of as many as 100 fish a day are common in catfish traps. An unusual method practiced in the Southeastern United States is noodling—catching catfish by hand.[citation needed]
When removing the hook from a catfish, anglers should be mindful of the sharp spines on the pectoral and dorsal fins.
Genetics
The channel catfish is one of only a handful of
In addition to the whole nuclear genome resources above, full mitochondrial genome sequences have been available for channel catfish since 2003.[27] Other studies of genetic diversity, outcrossing, etc. in channel catfish have focused primarily on inbred lines and farm strains of relevance to the aquaculture of this species. For example, earlier studies have compared the genetic diversity of domestic versus wild populations of channel catfish using AFLPs.[28]
References
- . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
- ^ Carlander KD (1969). Handbook of freshwater fishery biology. Vol. 1. Ames, Iowa: The Iowa State University Press.
- Centre for Agriculture and Bioscience International. Retrieved 5 September 2020.
- ^ "Ictalurus punctatus". Invasive Species of Japan. National Institute for Environmental Studies. Retrieved 5 September 2020.
- Ministerio para la Transición Ecológica y el Reto Demográfico. September 2013. Retrieved 5 September 2020.
- ^ Schoonover D. "Ictalurus punctatus Catfish". Animal Diversity Web, Museum of Zoology. University of Michigan. Retrieved 22 August 2010.
- ^ Sutton K (January 2000). "Understanding the catfish spawn". Game & Fish. Archived from the original on 16 January 2008.
- JSTOR 1447426.
- ^ "Catfish Sting". WebMD. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
- ^ Anderson RO, Neumann RM (1996). "Length, Weight, and Associated Structural Indices". In Murphy BE, Willis DW (eds.). Fisheries Techniques (second ed.). American Fisheries Society.
- ^ "Catfish, channel". The International Game Fish Association. Retrieved 2024-04-01.
- S2CID 12952490.
- ^ a b c "Channel catfish".
- ^ "Ictalurus punctatus (Catfish)". Animal Diversity Web.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-4757-9657-5.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Vance T (2000). "Variability in stridulatory sound production in the channel catfish, Ictalurus punctatus". BIOS. 71 (3): 79–84.
- ^ a b c Ladich, Friedrich; Michael J. Fine (2006). "Sound-Generating Mechanisms in Fishes: a Unique Diversity in Vertebrates". Communication in Fishes. 1: 3–43.
- ^ JSTOR 1447295.
- ^ a b c Ladich F, Myrberg AA (2006). "Agonistic Behavior and Acoustic Communication". Communication in Fishes. 1: 121–148.
- ^ PMID 8873247.
- ISBN 978-1-4615-7186-5.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-4615-7186-5.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-4615-7186-5.
- ISBN 978-1-4615-7186-5.
- ^ Sutton K (4 October 2010). "Off-The-Wall Baits for Persnickety Catfish". Game and Fish Magazine.
- ^ PMID 27249958.
- S2CID 8564981.
- .
Further reading
- Salmon MH (1997). The Catfish As A Metaphor. Silver City, New Mexico: High-Lonesome Books. ISBN 978-0-944383-43-8.
External links
- Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.) (2011). "Ictalurus punctatus" in FishBase. December 2011 version.
- "Channel Catfish". Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources. Archived from the original on 27 September 2011. Retrieved 22 August 2010.