Cladus: Eukaryota Name Chaca Gray, 1831 References Carl J. Ferraris, Jr., 2007, Zootaxa 1418: 1-628 [1] Chaca is the only genus in the catfish family Chacidae. These fish are commonly known as squarehead catfishes, frogmouth catfishes, or angler catfishes.[1] These unusual fish have a sedentary lifestyle and spend much of their time immobile. The name Chaca is derived from the fact that when removed from the water, they will rapidly repeat the sound "chaca".[2] Only C. chaca makes these sounds; the other species do not.[3]
Chaca species are found in freshwater from eastern India to Borneo. C. chaca is found in the Ganges-Brahmaputra River system of India and the Ayeyarwady River of Myanmar.[2] C. bankanensis originates from the Sundaland region.[2] C. burmensis is found in the Sittang River in Myanmar and possibly the Ayeyarwady drainage.[4] C. chaca is found in rivers, canals, and ponds of grassland, scrubland, deciduous forest, and rainforest habitats.[2][5] On the other hand, C. bankanensis is only found in the rainforest, where it inhabits peat.[2][6] Appearance and anatomy Chaca catfish have an elongated, broad, and flattened head. The mouth is terminal and very wide.[2] There are three or four pairs of barbels, though if the nasal barbels are present they are minute.[7] These fish grow to a length of about 20 centimetres (7.9 in).[5][6][8] The dorsal fin is short and possesses strong, serrated, fin spines, which are strong enough to inflict wounds.[2] Ecology These fish live in soft substrates where they will bury themselves as camouflage, both for protection and to feed.[5] These fish are ambush predators. They feed on prey such as small fish, including cyprinids and pupfishes.[2] They will lie in wait, well camouflaged, in preparation for prey to swim by. Sometimes, they use their maxillary barbels to lure prey fish closer to its mouth, similar to a worm jerking in the water,[2] although this behavior is contested by some aquarists who do not observe this behavior.[3] When the catfish is ready to strike, the Chaca will open its large mouth rapidly, creating a vacuum that pulls in water and its prey, which may be up to half the fish's own length.[2] These fish are also able to use this large mouth as a means of propulsion; when frightened, they will gulp a large amount of water and expel it through their gills.[3] In the aquarium Chaca species are occasionally available as aquarium fish. These fish are nocturnal and are usually inactive. [9] A bizarre phenomenon is shown in that Chaca appear to lower the pH of the water, and so maintenance of water chemistry is necessary.[3] These fish have been bred in captivity.[3] References 1. ^ "Chacidae". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. http://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=164133. Retrieved May 8, 2007.
Source: Wikipedia, Wikispecies: All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License |
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