Seriously Fish
AdminAccount
AdminAccount

Edit Wallago attu

You can suggest changes to this profile. A moderator will review each change.

Name

Scientific name

Wallago attu

Described by

Not recorded

Family

Siluridae

Common names

Helicopter Catfish

Photograph credits

All 3 credited

Summary

The helicopter catfish, Wallago attu, is a giant predatory catfish found through much of Asia, from Afghanistan and Pakistan to Indonesia. …

Size and aquarium

Maximum size

2400mm, standard length

Aquarium size

Minimum length 360 cm, Minimum depth 120 cm, Minimum height 120 cm

Water

Water conditions

Temperature 19–29°C, pH 6–7.6

Hardness

1–20dGH

Conductivity

Not recorded

Behaviour

Temperament

Predatory

Social needs

Not recorded

Community suitability

Not recorded

Where it lives

Countries, regions, rivers and lakes

Not recorded

Writing

Etymology

Not written yet

Distribution

Widely distributed throughout much of Asia. It has been recorded in Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, China, Thailand, Laos,…

Habitat

Prefers turbid, deep slow-moving or still bodies of water such as large lakes and rivers. It tends to hide in muddy areas, often hiding around river banks. It …

Aquarium size

An adult fish would require a truly enormous aquarium or better still, pond. Minimum size would be something in the region of 360 ∗ 120 ∗ 120 cm - ~5184 litres…

Maintenance

Decor is not critical, and would most likely be destroyed or continually buffeted around at any rate, so a bare tank, perhaps with a gravel substrate is probab…

Where does this come from?

Paste the address of the page that says this. What counts as a source

Paste a DOI and we will look up the rest of the reference. A DOI looks like 10.11646/zootaxa.4694.4.1, and most papers print it on the first page.

Enter the title of the paper, book or page. If you leave it empty, we will use the website's address.

Separate authors with semicolons, e.g. Tan, H.H.; Ng, P.K.L.

Enter the page that says this, e.g. 218 or 218–221.

Describe what you saw, or which part of the source says this.

Water conditions

Temperature: 19 – 29 °C. pH: 6.0-7.6 Hardness: 1-20°H

Diet

Highly piscivorous, although wild specimens have been found with amphibians, birds, small mammals and even human remains in their stomachs! In the aquarium sma…

Behaviour and compatibility

Should be kept alone as a single specimen as it will consume any fish it can fit in its capacious mouth, and will usually kill anything it can't.

Sexual dimorphism

Unknown.

Reproduction

Not achieved in aquaria for obvious reasons, but has been bred commercially in ponds in Malaysia.

Notes

This species is clearly not an aquarium fish, and thankfully is not imported with any great regularity. Young specimens are occasionally seen for sale however …

References

References

No references