Giant catfish

The giant catfish (Netuma thalassina), also known as the giant sea catfish, giant salmon catfish, giant marine-catfish, or the khagga, is a species of catfish in the family Ariidae. It was described by Eduard Rüppell in 1837, originally under the genus Bagrus. It inhabits estuaries and occasionally freshwater bodies, in Japan, Australia, Polynesia, southern Vietnam in the Mekong Delta, the Red Sea and the northwestern Indian Ocean. It dwells at a depth range of 10 to 195 m (33 to 640 ft). It reaches a maximum total length of 185 cm (73 in), but usually reaches a TL of 70 cm (28 in).

Not to be confused with Giant sea catfish.

Giant catfish
Scientific classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Siluriformes
Family: Ariidae
Genus: Netuma
Species:
N. thalassina
Binomial name
Netuma thalassina
(Rüppell, 1837)
Synonyms
  • Arius thalassinus (Rüppell, 1837)
  • Arius nasutus Valenciennes, 1840
  • Arius andamanensis Day, 1871
  • Arius serratus Day, 1877
  • Ariodes aeneus Sauvage, 1883
  • Bagrus thalassinus Rüppell, 1837
  • Bagrus carchariorhynchos Bleeker, 1846
  • Bagrus carchariorhijnchos Bleeker, 1846
  • Bagrus netuma Valenciennes, 1840
  • Bagrus laevigatus Valenciennes, 1840
  • Netuma thalassinus (Rüppell, 1837)
  • Netuna thalassina (Rüppell, 1837)
  • Netuma thalassina jacksonensis Whitley, 1941
  • Tachysurus thalassinus (Rüppell, 1837)
  • Tachysurus serratus (Day, 1877)

The diet of the giant catfish includes crustaceans such as crabs, shrimp, prawns and stomatopods; worms, finfish, cephalopods, sea cucumbers, and mollusks. It spawns between April and August.

The giant catfish is harvested commercially and recreationally.

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