| Redtail catfish | |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Siluroformes |
| Family: | Pimelodidae |
| Genus: | Phractocephalus Agassiz, 1829 |
| Species: | P. hemioliopterus |
| Binomial name | |
| Phractocephalus hemioliopterus (Bloch & Schneider, 1801) |
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| Synonyms | |
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The redtail catfish, Phractocephalus hemioliopterus, is a pimelodid (long-whiskered) catfish named for its red or orange caudal fin. In Venezuela it is known as cajaro and in Brazil and even in a few parts of Bay of Bengal it is known as pirarara.[1] It is the only extant species of the genus Phractocephalus. This fish originates from South America. Despite reaching a large size, this fish is a common aquarium fish.
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Although the redtail catfish is the only living representative of this genus, there are other members that date back to the upper Miocene. P. nassi was described in 2003, and is from Urumaco, Venezuela. Another undescribed member is known to exist from Acre, Brazil.[1] This genus has a minimum age of about 13.5 million years.[1]
The redtail catfish is native to the Amazon, Orinoco, and Essequibo river basins of South America.[1] It is found only in fresh water.[2]
Due to the potential large size of this species, redtail catfish are considered a game fish by anglers.[2] The all-tackle world record for length is held by Michael Yiran Ma of the U.S. with a 109 cm specimen caught in the Ratchaburi Province of Thailand in June 2011. [3] [4] The current world record for weight belongs to the Brazilian Jorge Masullo de Aguiar with 51.5 kg.
It is said that the natives do not eat the meat of the Redtail catfish because it is black in coloration.[5] However, the redtail catfish has been hybridized with other fish such as the Tiger Shovelnose Pseudoplatystoma sp. through the use of hormones in attempts to create a viable food fish; these hybrid fish sometimes make it into the aquarium hobby under a variety of common names.[6]
The redtail catfish is an extremely popular fish in Amazonian themed exhibits at public aquaria, where they are often housed with other large fish such as Colossoma macropomum, Arapaima gigas, and other large catfish.
Juveniles are often available as aquarium fish despite their eventual large size. In an aquarium where they may be well-fed, these fish can grow quite rapidly.[5] Weekly feeding is appropriate for this catfish; overfeeding is a common cause of death in this species.[6] It feeds heavily on live and dead fishes and other meat. Even as a juvenile of only a few inches in length, they are able to swallow many of the more common aquarium fish such as tetras, and it is only appropriate to house this fish with other species of relatively large size. Redtail catfish also have a habit of swallowing inedible objects in the aquarium. Though these are often regurgitated, both the swallowing and the regurgitation can present a problem for the fish, and these objects are best kept out of the aquarium.[6] It is important that these fish are housed in large aquariums. A minimum size tank for a full grown (4-5 feet) is 1000+ gallons.
The tank should have plenty of room for the fish to move around, but also provide hiding spots for them. Decor should be heavy so it can't be moved around. Plants should be well rooted or they will be ripped out.