You can sponsor this page

Netuma thalassina (Rüppell, 1837)

Giant catfish
Add your observation in Fish Watcher
Native range | All suitable habitat | Point map | Year 2050
This map was computer-generated and has not yet been reviewed.
Netuma thalassina   AquaMaps   Data sources: GBIF OBIS
Upload your photos and videos
Pictures | Stamps, coins, misc. | Google image
Image of Netuma thalassina (Giant catfish)
Netuma thalassina
Picture by Shao, K.T.

Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes(genus, species) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa

Teleostei (teleosts) > Siluriformes (Catfishes) > Ariidae (Sea catfishes) > Ariinae
Etymology: Netuma: A Tamil word that means "dance".
More on author: Rüppell.

Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range Ecology

Marine; freshwater; brackish; demersal; amphidromous (Ref. 51243); depth range 10 - 195 m (Ref. 12260). Subtropical; 34°N - 34°S, 32°E - 154°E

Distribution Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Point map | Introductions | Faunafri

Indo-West Pacific: known with certainty from the Red Sea and the northwestern Indian Ocean. Also reported from Australia, Polynesia and Japan and rarely in the Mekong delta (Ref. 12693).

Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: Lm 36.3, range 33 - 45 cm
Max length : 185 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 30573); common length : 70.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 9987); max. published weight: 1.0 kg (Ref. 4883)

Biology     Glossary (e.g. epibenthic)

A marine species often found in estuaries, but rarely enters freshwater. Typically euryhaline (Ref. 3876). Reported to occasionally ascend into fresh water (Ref. 12693). Recorded at temperatures ranging from 26-29°C. Feeds mainly on crabs, prawns, mantis shrimps (Squilla species) but also on fishes and mollusks. An important food fish. Marketed mostly fresh; often dried.

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae

Incubates eggs in the mouth. The fry continue to take refuge in the mouths of the male fish for the first 2 months and once they leave, the males start to eat avidly and may consume their ouwn young.

Main reference Upload your references | References | Coordinator : Ferraris, Jr., Carl J. | Collaborators

Rainboth, W.J., 1996. Fishes of the Cambodian Mekong. FAO species identification field guide for fishery purposes. FAO, Rome, 265 p. (Ref. 12693)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-1)

  Least Concern (LC) ; Date assessed: 14 August 2023

CITES

Not Evaluated

CMS (Ref. 116361)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

  Traumatogenic (Ref. 58010)





Human uses

Fisheries: commercial; gamefish: yes
FAO - Fisheries: landings; Publication: search | FishSource | Sea Around Us

More information

Trophic ecology
Food items
Diet composition
Food consumption
Food rations
Predators
Ecology
Ecology
Life cycle
Reproduction
Maturity
Maturity/Gills rel.
Fecundity
Spawning
Spawning aggregations
Eggs
Egg development
Larvae
Larval dynamics
Distribution
Countries
FAO areas
Ecosystems
Occurrences
Introductions
BRUVS - Videos
Anatomy
Gill area
Brain
Otolith
Physiology
Body composition
Nutrients
Oxygen consumption
Swimming type
Swimming speed
Visual pigments
Fish sound
Diseases & Parasites
Toxicity (LC50s)
Genetics
Genetics
Heterozygosity
Heritability
Human related
Aquaculture systems
Aquaculture profiles
Strains
Ciguatera cases
Stamps, coins, misc.
Outreach
Collaborators
References
References

Tools

Special reports

Download XML

Internet sources

AFORO (otoliths) | Aquatic Commons | BHL | Cloffa | BOLDSystems | Websites from users | Check FishWatcher | CISTI | Catalog of Fishes: genus, species | DiscoverLife | ECOTOX | FAO - Fisheries: landings; Publication: search | Faunafri | Fishipedia | Fishtrace | GenBank: genome, nucleotide | GloBI | Google Books | Google Scholar | Google | IGFA World Record | MitoFish | National databases | Otolith Atlas of Taiwan Fishes | PubMed | Reef Life Survey | Socotra Atlas | Tree of Life | Wikipedia: Go, Search | World Records Freshwater Fishing | Zoological Record

Estimates based on models

Preferred temperature (Ref. 123201): 22.1 - 28.3, mean 26.8 °C (based on 839 cells).
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref. 82804):  PD50 = 0.6250   [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00759 (0.00654 - 0.00880), b=3.07 (3.03 - 3.11), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this species (Ref. 93245).
Trophic level (Ref. 69278):  3.5   ±0.2 se; based on diet studies.
Generation time: 17.2 ( na - na) years. Estimated as median ln(3)/K based on 2 growth studies.
Resilience (Ref. 120179):  Low, minimum population doubling time 4.5 - 14 years (K=0.06-0.45; tm=2-4; tmax=19; Fec=34-88).
Prior r = 0.31, 95% CL = 0.20 - 0.46, Based on 4 data-limited stock assessments.
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref. 59153):  Moderate to high vulnerability (48 of 100).
Climate Vulnerability (Ref. 125649):  High vulnerability (57 of 100).
Price category (Ref. 80766):   Medium.
Nutrients (Ref. 124155):  Calcium = 26.3 [14.3, 64.9] mg/100g; Iron = 0.78 [0.47, 1.40] mg/100g; Protein = 18.1 [16.3, 19.9] %; Omega3 = 0.348 [0.179, 0.692] g/100g; Selenium = 46.2 [23.4, 97.4] μg/100g; VitaminA = 6.46 [2.31, 18.39] μg/100g; Zinc = 0.682 [0.451, 1.055] mg/100g (wet weight);