Eel catfish
| Eel catfish | |
|---|---|
| |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Siluriformes |
| Family: | Clariidae |
| Genus: | Channallabes |
| Species: | C. apus
|
| Binomial name | |
| Channallabes apus Günther , 1873 | |
The eel catfish (Channallabes apus) is an airbreathing catfish found in the muddy swamps of the tropics of Central Africa. It grows up to 32.7 cm in total length (12.9 in), and is notable for its ability to propel itself out of the water to catch prey.
The thin, eel-shaped body of C. apus is black or dark brown, with widely spaced spines.
The eel catfish hunts both in and out of the water, having a different method for each. In water, C. apus sucks water and food into its mouth. To catch food on land, the eel catfish lifts the front of its body up, and bends its mouth down on the prey. Its specially adapted spine allows it to do so without weight-bearing pectoral fins.[4]
References
- ^ a b Boulenger, George Albert (1901), Les poissons du basin du Congo, État indépendant du Congo, p. 264
- ISBN 0-471-25031-7.
- ^ Anthony Herrel; Dominique Adriaens; Walter Verraes & Peter Aerts (2002), "Bite Performance in Clariid Fishes With Hypertrophied Jaw Adductors as Deduced by Bite Modeling" (PDF), Journal of Morphology (253): 196–205, archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-06
- ISBN 978-0-312-37116-6
- "Channallabes apus". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 18 April 2006.
- Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.) (2005). "Channallabes apus" in FishBase. November 2005 version.
- BBC NewsAfrican fish leaps for land bugs
- National Geographic Catfish Hunts on Land, Scientists Report
External links