Teleostei (teleosts) >
Siluriformes (Catfishes) >
Schilbeidae (Schilbid catfishes)
Etymology: Siluranodon: Greek, silouros = a cat fish + Greek, odous = teeth (Ref. 45335); auritus: From the Latin "auritu" (literally "listening"), referring to the local Arabian name of this species in Egypt, "schilbe oudney", which means "schilbe with ear" (those "ears" probably refer to the large rounded pectoral fins just behind the head)(Ref. 43912).
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Freshwater; demersal; potamodromous (Ref. 51243). Tropical; 35°N - 5°N
Africa: Nile basin (Ref. 3570, 28714, 43912) and Chad, Niger, Volta and Comoe rivers (Ref. 57127).
Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ?, range 9 - ? cm
Max length : 14.0 cm SL male/unsexed; (Ref. 57127)
Short description
Identification keys | Morphology | Morphometrics
Dorsal spines (total): 0; Dorsal soft rays (total): 5; Anal spines: 0; Anal soft rays: 67 - 87. Diagnosis: 67-87 anal-fin rays; 49-60 thin and flexible gill rakers on lower limb of first gill arch; 4 pairs of well developed barbels; small, spineless dorsal fin with 4-5 branched rays; jaws and palatine bones entirely without teeth (Ref. 43912, 57127).
Pelagic, occurs large and moderate lakes and rivers (Ref. 43912). In the Sudd, they occur beneath fringing Eichornia (Ref. 28714). Microphagous, feeding mainly on algae and occasionally rotifers, planktonic and benthic crustaceans, immature insects (Ref. 43912) and mud/debris (Ref. 28714, 43912). Probably reproduces during the floods, migrating from lakes to rivers; howver in Lake Kainji fish were reported to migrate from the river to the Lake to spawn (Ref. 43912). Oviparous, eggs are unguarded (Ref. 205). Max. reported total length 175 mm (Ref. 3570, 43912). Might locally represent an important species for fisheries since it is sometimes extremely abundant, but this may be negated by its small size (Ref. 43912).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Distinct pairing (Ref. 205).
De Vos, L., 1995. A systematic revision of the African Schilbeidae (Teleostei, Siluriformes). With an annotated bibliography. Ann. Mus. R. Afr. Centr., Sci. Zool., 271:1-450. (Ref. 43912)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-1)
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
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Internet sources
Estimates based on models
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref.
82804): PD
50 = 1.0000 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00661 (0.00347 - 0.01260), b=2.99 (2.82 - 3.16), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this species & (Sub)family-body (Ref.
93245).
Trophic level (Ref.
69278): 2.9 ±0.34 se; based on food items.
Resilience (Ref.
120179): High, minimum population doubling time less than 15 months (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref.
59153): Low vulnerability (10 of 100).
