Heteropneustes is a genus of catfishes, the airsac catfishes, native to Asia. This genus is monotypic in the family Heteropneustidae.

Their bodies are elongated and compressed with greatly depressed heads. They have long air sacs that serve as lungs that extend from the gill chamber. Their dorsal fins are short and have no spine. Their pectoral fins have an associated venom gland, so the fish are considered dangerous.[1] They are oviparous; distinct pairing is possible.

Species

Up to six species in this genus are recognized:[2][3]

FishBase does not list H. fuscus[2] while the Catalog of Fishes considers H. microps a synonym of H. fossilis.[3]

References

  1. ^ Nelson, J. S. (2006). Fishes of the World (4 ed.). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons. pp. 180–181. ISBN 978-0-471-25031-9.
  2. ^ a b Froese, Rainer and Pauly, Daniel, eds. (2022). Species of Heteropneustes in FishBase. August 2022 version.
  3. ^ a b Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Heteropneustes". Catalog of Fishes. California Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 19 January 2023.
  4. ^ Plamoottil, Mathews (2021). "Heteropneustes fuscus (Siluriformes: Heteropneustidae), a new catfish species from Kerala, India". Biodiversitas. 23 (1): 87–98. doi:10.13057/biodiv/d230112.
  5. ^ Hossain, M.S.; Sarker, S.; Sharifuzzaman, S.M.; Chowdhury, S.R. (2013). "New species of stinging catfish Heteropneustes nani (Siluriformes: Heteropneustidae) from Noakhali, Bangladesh" (PDF). Vertebrate Zoology. 63 (3): 259–267.