Arapaima gigas  (Schinz, 1822)

Arapaima

Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes (gen., sp.) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa

Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes) > Osteoglossiformes (Bony tongues) > Arapaimidae (Bonytongues)
Etymology: Arapaima: From tupí-guaraní, arapaima (Ref. 45335).

Environment / Climate / Range Ecology

Freshwater; demersal; pH range: 6.0 - 6.5; dH range: 10 - ?.   Tropical; 25°C - 29°C (Ref. 2060); 5°N - 11°S

Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: Lm 212.0, range 170 - ? cm
Max length : 450 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 6398); common length : 200 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 557); max. published weight: 200.0 kg (Ref. 557)

Distribution Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Introductions | Faunafri

South America: Amazon River basin. International trade restricted (CITES II, since 1.7.75). The active fishing of this fish has reduced both the population size, and occurrence of large individuals, especially around the populated regions of the Amazon (Ref. 50891).

Biology     Glossary (e.g. epibenthic)

Often referred to as the largest freshwater fish. Builds a nest of about 15 cm depth and 50 cm width in sandy bottoms. Spawns in April and May and guards the eggs and the young. Obligate air breather. The fish rises to the surface of the water and inspires air in a noisy, distinctive gulp, which is reported to carry for long distances (Ref. 50891). Threatened due to over harvesting (Ref. 58490).

Main reference Upload your references | References | Coordinator | Collaborators

Ferraris, C.J. Jr., 2003. Arapaimatidae (Bonytongues). p. 31. In R.E. Reis, S.O. Kullander and C.J. Ferraris, Jr. (eds.) Checklist of the Freshwater Fishes of South and Central America. Porto Alegre: EDIPUCRS, Brasil.

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 90363)

  Data deficient (DD) 

Threat to humans

  Harmless




Human uses

Fisheries: commercial; aquaculture: commercial; gamefish: yes; aquarium: public aquariums
FAO(Aquaculture: production; fisheries: production; publication : search) | FisheriesWiki | Sea Around Us

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Ecology
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Ciguatera
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Summary page | Point data | Common names | Photos

Internet sources

Alien/Invasive Species database | BHL | Cloffa | BOLDSystems | Websites from users | Check FishWatcher | CISTI | Catalog of Fishes (gen., sp.) | DiscoverLife | Faunafri | Fishtrace | GenBank(genome, nucleotide) | GOBASE | Google Books | Google Scholar | Google | IGFA World Record | iSpecies | Public aquariums | PubMed | Scirus | SeaLifeBase | Tree of Life | uBio | Wikipedia(Go, Search) | World Records Freshwater Fishing | Zoological Record

Estimates of some properties based on empirical models

Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref. 82805):  PD50 = 1.2500   [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.01374 (-0.15129 - 0.17878), b=2.92 (2.82 - 3.01), based on LWR estimates for species & family-BS (Ref. 93245).
Trophic Level (Ref. 69278):  4.5   ±0.8 se; Based on diet studies.
Resilience (Ref. 69278):  Low, minimum population doubling time 4.5 - 14 years (tm=4-6; Fec=47,000).
Vulnerability (Ref. 59153):  Very high vulnerability (78 of 100) .
Price category (Ref. 80766):   Unknown.