Teleostei (teleosts) >
Siluriformes (Catfishes) >
Aspredinidae (Banjo catfishes) > Aspredininae
Etymology: Aspredo: Latin, aspredo, asperitas = roughness (Ref. 45335).
More on author: Linnaeus.
Issue
See Mees (1987: 184) for detailed description.
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Freshwater; brackish; demersal. Tropical
Central and South America: lower portions of coastal rivers from Venezuela to northern Brazil.
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm
Max length : 38.3 cm SL male/unsexed; (Ref. 36695); common length : 35.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 5217)
Benthic fish occurring on sandy-muddy bottoms of brackish waters (Ref. 35381) and coastal rivers (Ref. 36695). Found on soft bottoms of shallow turbid water near river mouths. The species has a peculiar mode of egg incubation wherein the female banjo catfish carries the eggs firmly attached to the underside of the body. This seems to be an adaptation to facilitate the oxygenation of the eggs in muddy environments. Reproduction probably occurs during the earlier part of the year (Ref. 35381).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Females carry their eggs and young attached to the ventral surface of the body.
Cervigón, F., R. Cipriani, W. Fischer, L. Garibaldi, M. Hendrickx, A.J. Lemus, R. Márquez, J.M. Poutiers, G. Robaina and B. Rodriguez, 1992. Fichas FAO de identificación de especies para los fines de la pesca. Guía de campo de las especies comerciales marinas y de aquas salobres de la costa septentrional de Sur América. FAO, Rome. 513 p. Preparado con el financiamento de la Comisión de Comunidades Europeas y de NORAD. (Ref. 5217)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-2)
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
Fisheries: minor commercial; aquarium: commercial
Tools
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