Description
Introduced North American species.
How to identify it
Eight barbels, adipose fin, spines on the pectoral fins, no scales.
Appearance
A stocky catfish, which as an adult generally measures between 20 and 50 centimetres, with a wide head and smooth skin. The back is greenish-brown marbled with dark, the belly cream. The tail is only slightly notched, not forked. It is easily told apart from the Wels catfish by the presence of the adipose fin, the short anal fin and the greater number of barbels; from the black bullhead (Ameiurus melas) by the chin barbels mottled with dark and yellowish and by the absence of a pale band at the base of the tail.
Habitat and habits
It is a North American species introduced into many European countries. It adapts to environments where few other fish survive: muddy ponds, small lakes, gravel pits, canals and slow stretches of river, even with turbid, warm, oxygen-poor water. It lives in groups, does not migrate and during the day stays hidden near the bottom, among mud, stones and branches. At dusk and at night it comes out to search the bed for insects, molluscs, small fish and plant material. It spawns in spring in sheltered burrows.
Related species and forms
Black bullhead
Ameiurus melas
North American catfish introduced into much of Europe, where it is considered an invasive alien species.
There's more in the app
This species' bite index, recommended baits and methods, and the rules of the day for every water. Offline too.
Soon on Android and iPhone
