Rhamdia quelen  (Quoy & Gaimard, 1824)

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

Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes) > Siluriformes (Catfish) > Heptapteridae (Three-barbeled catfishes)
Etymology: Rhamdia: Brazilian vernacular name, Nhamdia/Jamdia (Ref. 45335).

Environment / Climate / Range Ecology

Freshwater; benthopelagic; pH range: ? - 7.0; depth range 0 - 3 m (Ref. 35381).   Tropical; 22°C - 28°C (Ref. 2060)

Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm
Max length : 47.4 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 79585); max. published weight: 4.0 kg (Ref. 40637)

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

Central and South America: Mexico to central Argentina.

Biology     Glossary (e.g. epibenthic)

Occurs in littoral creeks, over sandy bottoms covered with dead leaves (Ref. 27188). Inhabits also lakes and rivers, but seems to prefer rivers with a very slight current (Ref. 6868). Prefers a muddy bottom covered with leaves and decaying wood, the latter providing for hiding places during the day (Ref. 35381). Feeds on fish and insects (Ref. 27188), benthic zooplankton and crustaceans (Ref. 35381). Omnivorous (Ref. 79585). Mainly nocturnal (Ref. 11225). Possesses poisonous spiny rays. Its sex ratio is 2:1 in favor of females. The male's reproductive apparatus includes multi-lobed testicles and accessory organs for secretion and storage. Fertilization is external. Non-sticking demersal eggs (1.1 to 2.8 mm diameter) are laid down, hatching after about 48 hours at 22°C. Ten days later, the larvae weigh approximately 100 mg but growth is slow (0.5 to 1.15 g per day).

Main reference Upload your references | References | Coordinator : Bockmann, Flavio | Collaborators

Bockmann, F.A. and G.M. Guazzelli, 2003. Heptapteridae (Heptapterids). p. 406-431. 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)

  Not Evaluated 

Threat to humans

  Harmless




Human uses

Fisheries: minor commercial; aquaculture: commercial
FAO(Publication : search) | FisheriesWiki | Sea Around Us

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Internet sources

Alien/Invasive Species database | BHL | Cloffa | 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 | National databases | 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 = 0.5000   [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00857 (-0.14742 - 0.16456), b=3.07 (2.97 - 3.16), based on LWR estimates for species & family-BS (Ref. 93245).
Trophic Level (Ref. 69278):  3.2   ±0.4 se; Based on diet studies.
Resilience (Ref. 69278):  .
Vulnerability (Ref. 59153):  Low vulnerability (24 of 100) .
Price category (Ref. 80766):   Unknown.