Teleostei (teleosts) >
Anabantiformes (Gouramies, snakeheads) >
Osphronemidae (Gouramies) > Luciocephalinae
Etymology: Luciocephalus: Latin, lucius, Greek, lykos = wolf = pike, by its predatory habits + Greek,kepahle = head (Ref. 45335).
More on author: Gray.
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Freshwater; benthopelagic; pH range: 6.0 - 7.5; dH range: ? - 15. Tropical; 22°C - 26°C (Ref. 1672)
Asia: Peninsular Thailand, Malaysia, Brunei Darussalam and Indonesia (Ref. 56386) and Singapore (Ref. 85309).
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ? range ? - ? cm
Max length : 20.0 cm SL male/unsexed; (Ref. 57235)
Short description
Identification keys | Morphology | Morphometrics
Dorsal soft rays (total): 10 - 12; Anal spines: 0 - 1; Anal soft rays: 19 - 21; Vertebrae: 38 - 40. Distinguished from Luciocephalus aura in the following characters: absence of numerous iridescent green spots on central stripe when live (vs. presence); presence of black irregular pattern on area below preorbital to central stripe (vs. absence); area just above anal-fin base with 3-4 dark brown blotches, which appear circular when body is viewed ventrally (vs. absence of such markings); yellowish caudal fin with 3-5 broad vertical black bars (vs. brownish caudal fin with 3-7 narrow iridescent vertical gold bars); presence of markings on anal and pelvic (vs. absence); shorter caudal-fin length (total length 120.0-125.6% SL vs. 123.7-127.1); shorter postdorsal length (10.4-12.4% SL vs. 12.0-13.2); greater head length (44.1-48.6% SL vs. 43.3-45.9); smaller caudal peduncle depth (8.9-10.6% SL vs 10.7-11.2); and relatively shorter anal-fin base length (19.3-23.4% SL vs. 23.6-24.5) (Ref. 56386).
Facultative air-breathing (Ref. 126274); Occurs in streams and flooded forest among dense vegetation (Ref. 56749). Found in primary peats swamps. Mouth brooder (Ref. 57235). Highly protrusible jaws. The premaxillae can extend about 1/3 of the head length. Prey is captured by the fish making a rapid lunge and surrounding the prey with the open mouth.
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Males are mouthbrooding for about 30 days.
Nelson, J.S., 1984. Fishes of the world. 2nd edition. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York. 523 p. (Ref. 245)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-1)
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
Fisheries: commercial; aquarium: commercial
Tools
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Internet sources
Estimates based on models
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref.
82804): PD
50 = 0.7500 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00389 (0.00180 - 0.00842), b=3.12 (2.94 - 3.30), in cm total length, based on all LWR estimates for this body shape (Ref.
93245).
Trophic level (Ref.
69278): 3.4 ±0.4 se; based on size and trophs of closest relatives
Resilience (Ref.
120179): High, minimum population doubling time less than 15 months (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref.
59153): Low vulnerability (14 of 100).
