Catfish
Catfish are in the fish order Siluriformes. To
put in perspective what an ‘order’ is
in the classification of organisms, in
mammals, the Bats make up one order, the Rodents another and Primates
another. As you can see, the
classification ‘order’ can include a lot of different animals. For example consider the difference between
the primates, including Humans, apes, lemurs and others. As with the primates, the Catfish of the
order Siluriformes are a diverse group of animals.
Catfish range in length
from a couple of centimetres to several metres. In aquariums and ponds there are a lot of different catfish
kept. The name “Catfish” comes from the
‘whiskers’ (barbels) that most Catfish have.
Some of the most
popular catfish for aquariums are the corydoras catfish such as the Bronze and
the Peppered catfish. There are hundreds
of different species of corydoras catfish. These are mostly tropical but some of them have a range extending well
out of the tropics and these can tolerate lower temperatures. As a general rule, the corydoras catfish are
intolerant of very high temperatures and high concentrations of salt.
Some catfish like the Bristlenose Catfish are specialized
for eating algae.
Although most Catfish are bottom feeders there are some
midwater catfish like the Glass Catfish.
Catfish
Loaches