Wallago

Wallago is a genus of catfishes (order Siluriformes) of the family Siluridae, or "sheatfishes". They are found in rivers throughout southern Asia.^[1] Though the genus contains more than one species, name "wallago" is also used as a common name for Wallago attu.

Taxonomy

The monophyly of this genus is ambiguous and it is not diagnosed by any synapomorphies.^[1][2]

The genus has four species: W. attu, W. leerii, W. maculatus, and W. micropogon.^[3] W. hexanema is considered a species of uncertain validity.^[3]

Description

Wallago species are large, predatory catfishes.^[1] The have five rays in their dorsal fin. The caudal fin is deeply forked and has pointed lobes; it is disconnected from the anal fin, which differs from some of the other silurid genera.^[1]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d} Ng, Heok Hee (2004). Buth, D. G.. ed. "Wallago micropogon: A New Species of Silurid Catfish (Teleostei: Siluridae) from Mainland Southeast Asia". Copeia 2004 (1): 92–97. doi:10.1643/CI-02-192R3. 
2. ^ Roberts, Tyson R. (1982). "Systematics and Geographical Distribution of the Asian Silurid Catfish Genus Wallago, with a Key to the Species". Copeia 1982 (4): 890–894. doi:10.2307/1444099. JSTOR 1444099. 
3. ^ ^{a b} Ferraris, Carl J., Jr. (2007). "Checklist of catfishes, recent and fossil (Osteichthyes: Siluriformes), and catalogue of siluriform primary types" (PDF). Zootaxa 1418: 1–628. http://silurus.acnatsci.org/ACSI/library/biblios/2007_Ferraris_Catfish_Checklist.pdf. Retrieved 2009-06-25.