| Cooper Creek catfish | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Siluriformes |
| Family: | Plotosidae |
| Genus: | Neosiluroides Allen & Feinberg, 1998 |
| Species: | N. cooperensis |
| Binomial name | |
| Neosiluroides cooperensis Allen & Feinberg, 1998 |
|
The Cooper Creek catfish, Neosiluroides cooperensis, is a species of catfish (order Siluriformes) of the family Plotosidae, and is the only species of the genus Neosiluroides.[1][2] It is known from the Cooper Creek system of the Lake Eyre drainage.[1][3] This species grows up to about 46.0 centimetres (18.1 in) SL.[3]
It is usually found in larger, more permanent waterholes with an earth and clay substrate, where significant flow occurs only after severe rainfall events; at this time, water is typically very turbid. It is very aggressive towards other fishes, particularly in captivity.[3] These fish feed on gastropods and crustaceans.[3] This species has the largest egg size (3–4 millimetres or .12–.16–in) and the lowest fecundity (about 1000 eggs per spawning) per unit length of any plotosid catfish in Australia.[3]