Ornate bichir
📖 Overview
Facultative air-breathing ; Inhabits calm waters of swamps and rivers . It feeds on worms and insect larvae when young, but takes larger food, mainly fish, when adult . It mainly hunts at night . In general they are more or less solitary fish and do not form schools .
🔬 Taxonomy
🐟 Physical Description
Dorsal spines (total): 9 - 11; Anal spines: 14 - 15. Subcylindrical body. Upper and lower jaw of equal length. Number of dorsal finlets: 9-11. Dorsal fin origin well behind pectoral fin. Ganoid scales: 58-65 lateral line scales, 38-44 scales around body, 22-27 predorsal scales. Dorsal side grey-brown colored, marbled with clear whitish spots , the belly is white to yellowish . Head finely reticulated. Fins with white spots alternating with dark spots, forming a continuous bar .: elongated; Cross section: circular.
🌀 Behaviour
Behavioural data for Ornate bichir is currently being reviewed.
🦐 Diet
Diet information for Ornate bichir is currently being compiled.
🥚 Reproduction
Male starts with the courtship and is the active partner . The male makes from the anal fin a sort of cup and the female lays the eggs in this cup . The male then spreads the eggs so that they attach, e.g., to plants.
🌍 Habitat & Distribution
Freshwater; demersal. Tropical; 26°C - 28°C
🌿 Ecology
worms and insect larvae when young, but takes larger food, mainly fish, when adult (Ref
📐 Morphometrics
🌡️ Water Parameters & Tolerance
🛡️ Conservation Assessment
📊 Population Risk & Fisheries
🔍 Similar Species
🗺️ Global Occurrence Map
Occurrence records from the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) — 133 records indexed .
👥 Community & Contribute
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