Catfish family

Catfish is freshwater fish which many found in ASEAN countries, especially in Malaysia. In some place especially in Selangor, catfish cited as "semilang fish". To persons Perak, just alive semilang fish at sea.

Available catfish in most paddy field, for example in Pahang, in Paya Pahang Tua, Mambang, Ganchong and Paloh Hinai, Pekan. It also often found in Tasik Chini, Paya Bungor or Bera. River cat-fish also inhabit in little stream confluence such as Sungai Lepar in Paloh Hinai to to Jerantut and Kuala Lipis, apart from in Sungai Bera and Sungai Serting.

1. Wood Catfish
2. Flower Catfish
3. Eksotika Catfish
4. Catfish Catfish
5. Kati Eye 's Catfish
6. Russia Catfish
7. Africa Catfish
8. Rapids Catfish
9. Forest Catfish

Livestock fish

Catfish can be preserved in large pool or just in pool. It easy to breed by feed chicken residue, chicken fat and so on. Price one kilo catfish already cleaned fish only RM5.00 Semenyih at market.

In Javanese language and in Indonesia generally, catfish mentioned "fish lele".

Belief
For some place especially in Hilir Perak and Kampung Gajah, Perak, catfish uneaten or less eaten because belief 'ancient' catfish derived from tadpole, namely young frog.

If drowning people in Sungai Perak, body drift and have been decomposed the usually eaten by catfish. They found in that body a few catfish. May be because stories as such, catfish 'less favoured' in Hilir Perak and Kampung Gajah, Perak.

On the other hand in Semenyih, Selangor, catfish be special dish in family feast.

Catfish family

1. Akysidae
2. Amblycipitidae
3. Amphiliidae
4. Ariidae
5. Aspredinidae
6. Astroblepidae
7. Auchenipteridae
8. Bagridae
9. Callichthyidae
10. Cetopsidae
11. Chacidae
12. Clariidae
13. Claroteidae
14. Cranoglanididae
15. Diplomystidae
16. Doradidae
17. Hypophthalmidae
18. Ictaluridae
19. Lacantuniidae
20. Loricariidae
21. Malapteruridae
22. Mochokidae
23. Nematogenyidae
24. Pangasiidae
25. Parakysidae
26. Pimelodidae
27. Plotosidae
28. Schilbeidae
29. Scoloplacidae
30. Siluridae
31. Sisoridae
32. Trichomycteridae

Catfish Distribution

Catfish are primarily river residents (though
channel catfish also live in lakes and ponds) and are most prevalent in the major river systems of
southwestern and western Wisconsin. The channel catfish has a wider range and is more abundant in Wisconsin than the flathead. Channel cats are found as far north as the upper St. Croix River and in the St. Louis River, which flows into Lake Superior. Flatheads are at the northern-most reaches of their range in the lower St. Croix. Both species are found in the Mississippi, Wisconsin and Fox rivers and in Lake Winnebago. Channel catfish have also been taken from Green Bay and tributaries of Lake Michigan.

Habits and habitats
Catfish, especially channels, are more tolerant of turbid water than many game fish, with the
exception of bullheads and carp. While they tolerate turbidity, catfish prefer clear, slow-moving
water. During the day, both species seek out dark, deep pools, such as those below rock dams, wing dams or below the concrete aprons of larger dams. Pools with submerged logs, rocks or other debris offer prime habitat. These structures disrupt stream flows, creating swirling eddies that maintain the holes and give catfish some shelter from swift river currents.

A flathead, if undisturbed, will often return to the same snot each day to rest. Flatheads tend to have a home range (area within which they remain), rarely traveling more than five miles from their resting spot. Studies have shown that flatheads captured in one location and released in another part of the same river system will return to the spot where they were captured. Channel catfish, on the other hand, don't have strong homing tendencies. They make extensive upstream migrations in spring to spawn and then tend to move downstream throughout the year. After resting for most of the day, catfish move into shallows and muddy backwaters at night to
feed. Young catfish feed primarily on insects, insect larvae and small aquatic zooplankton. As they srow, thev also feed on snails,. crav- fish and small fish. channel catfish are primarily scavengers, moving along shore feeding on any type of vegetable or animal matter that floats by; but they are also swift swimmers, and larger channel cats may feed heavily on small forage fish. Flatheads feed almost exclusively on live fish. While they will pursue fish, flatheads are known to wait motionless with their mouths wide open for fish to come to them. When a prey fish swims by, the flathead lunges forward and swallows it. Channel cats feed heavily following rains when they search the turbid water with their barbels for food washed into the river. Neither species feeds in the winter, when they congregate in deep pools, settling in the muddy bottom and going into semihibernation.

By Paul Holtan

Catfish Identification

These bottom dwellers derive their common name, catfish, from the "whiskers" on their snouts, but they share other traits with earthbound felines. Catfish prefer to rest during the day and prowl at night. Like their curious namesakes, catfish seek out and explore secluded spots. And flathead catfish will engage each other in "cat" fights to rival any back alley tomcats. On the other hand, there are traits catfish don't share with the feline family. Channel catfish are anything but finicky, feeding on almost anything that floats by. Unlike sharp-eyed feline predators, catfish depend more on their well-developed senses of smell and touch to seek their dinner. Finally, some people might argue, a fury cat is a somewhat more appealing creature than the scaleless catfish.

That notion may run into some argument in communities along the Mississippi and lower Wisconsin rivers, where catfish are held in high regard. Catfish dinners are featured in many riverfront restaurants as well as at the dinner tables of many anglers. In some river towns, flathead catfish in particular are considered a delicacy, even earning the nickname "candy bar. "

The channel catfish and the flathead catfish are Wisconsin's largest members of the bullhead catfish family (Ictaluridae), which also includes the bullheads, the madtoms and the stonecat. The flathead is the granddaddy of Wisconsin catfish. It can be one fat cat, reaching weights of 30 to 40 or more pounds.

All members of the family are scaleless, having instead a thick, tough skin. Catfish are darkly
colored, reflecting the murky depths where they linger. Channel catfish have blue to olive backs,
whitish bellies and silvery sides mottled with distinctive black'spots of varying sizes - the only
species of this family to have such spots. The spots often disappear from older males, which are
sometimes erroneously identified as another relative, the blue catfish. Blue catfish are not found
as far north as Wisconsin. Flathead catfish have light brown to yellow sides (hence the common name yellow cat) that may have darker brown or black areas. The belly is yellow to cream white.
Channel catfish are smaller and have a more slender body than flatheads. Both species have
broad heads, but as its name implies, the flathead has the flattest and broadest. The two species can be easily distinguished by their caudal (tail) fins.

The channel cat has a deeply-forked tail while the flathead has a squared tail fin with only slight forks. Catfish have eight whiskers, called barbels (fleshy sensors capable of feeling and tasting). There is one barbel at each corner of the mouth; one adjacent to each nostril; and four protruding from the lower jaw. A common misconception is that barbels sting if they are touched. While this is not true, catfish have three sharp spines (rigid supports) - one in their dorsal (back) fin and one in each of the pectoral (side) fins - with venomous mucus glands that secrete a painful but not dangerous poison. Handle catfish with care to avoid these spines. The pelvic (belly) fins and the anal (bottom rear) fin are supported by rays (soft, flexible supports). Catfish have an adipose (fatty tissue) fin on their backs just in front of the tail. Another distinctive feature of the flathead is a protruding lower lip; the channel catfish's upper lip protrudes farther than its lower lip.