Conta

Conta
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Siluriformes
Family: Erethistidae
Genus: Conta
Hora, 1950
Species

C. conta
C. pectinata

Conta is a small genus of South Asian river catfishes native to India and Bangladesh.

Species

There are currently two recognized species in this genus:[1]

Description

Conta can be distinguished from all other erethistids by the presence of a very long and narrow adhesive apparatus on its thorax about six times as it is long. It also has extremely narrow gill openings, a slender body, a serrated anterior margin on the dorsal fin spine, a papillate upper lip, and 910 anal fin rays. The eyes are small and located dorsolaterally. There is villiform (brush-like) teeth in both jaws. The pectoral fin spine is serrated anteriorly and posteriorly.[2]

C. pectinata differs from C. conta in that it has a longer and more slender caudal peduncle and in having anteriorly-directed serrations (instead of antrorse or distally-directed serrations) the anterior edge of the pectoral fin spine.[3]

References

  1. Froese, Rainer, and Daniel Pauly, eds. (2011). Species of Conta in FishBase. December 2011 version.
  2. Thomson, Alfred W.; Page, Lawrence M. (2006). "Genera of the Asian Catfish Families Sisoridae and Erethistidae (Teleostei: Siluriformes)" (PDF). Zootaxa 1345: 1–96.
  3. Ng, Heok Hee (March 2005). "Conta pectinata, a new erethistid catfish (Teleostei: Erethistidae) from northeast India" (PDF). Ichthyol. Explor. Freshwaters 16 (1): 23–28.