Gymnarchus niloticus Cuvier, 1829

Aba

Catalog of Fishes (gen., sp.) | ITIS | CoL

Classification	Actinopterygii \| Osteoglossiformes \| Gymnarchidae
Synonyms	... more
Common names	Aba aba, Frankfish, Yor, ... more

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Picture by Moreau, J.

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Main reference

Bigorne, R. 1990. (Ref. 2911)
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Size / Weight / Age

Max length : 167 cm SL male/unsexed; (Ref. 2915); max. published weight: 18.5 kg (Ref. 2915)

Environment

Demersal; potamodromous (Ref. 51243); freshwater; pH range: 6.5 - 8.0; dH range: 10 - 25

Climate / Range

Tropical; 23°C - 28°C (Ref. 13614); 5°N - 18°N

Africa: occurring widely in the Nile, Niger, Volta, Chad, Senegal and Gambia basins and Lake Rudolf.
Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Introductions

Short description

Dorsal spines (total): 0; Dorsal soft rays (total): 183230. Body depth 7.2-10.3 x SL. Head 5.6-6.9 x SL. Snout prominent. Pectorals 1.9-5.0 x head length. Body terminates in thin point. Head without scales. Scales small.

Following flooding of the river banks (Gambia River), this species builds large elliptical floating nests in densely vegetated swamps at depths of about 1-1.5 m; lays about 1000 `amber-like' eggs; larvae hatching after 5 days (Ref. 10609). Feeds on crustaceans, insects and fish (Ref. 28714). No pelvic, anal or caudal fins. Possesses an electric organ that extends along almost the entire trunk to the tip of the tail (Ref. 10840). Also equipped with ampullary receptors and two types of tuberous receptors for electroreception (Ref. 10841). Showed increased electric organ discharge (EOD) rate by 50-60 Hz between 21 and 31°C (Ref. 10837).


IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 57073)	Threat to humans
Not Evaluated	Harmless

Human uses
Fisheries: commercial


More information
Countries FAO areas Ecosystems Occurrences Introductions Ecology Diet Food items Food consumption Ration	Common names Synonyms Metabolism Predators Ecotoxicology Reproduction Maturity Spawning Eggs Egg development	Age/Size Growth Length-weight Length-length Length-frequencies Morphometrics Morphology Larvae Larval dynamics Recruitment	Other references Biblio Aquaculture Aquaculture profile Strains Genetics Allele frequencies Heritability Diseases Processing	Collaborators Pictures Stamps Sounds Ciguatera Speed Swim. type Gill area Otoliths Brains Vision

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Internet sources

Estimation of some characteristics with mathematical models

Resilience (Ref. 69278)

Low, minimum population doubling time 4.5 - 14 years (K=0.12-0.17)


Vulnerability (Ref. 59153)	Price category (Ref. 80766)
High to very high vulnerability (71 of 100)	Not marketed/unknown

Entered by Binohlan, Crispina B.

Modified by Froese, Rainer

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Page last modified by : elaxamana, 15 July 2009

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