Country Species Summary

Bagrus bajad (Forsskål, 1775)
Family:	Bagridae (Bagrid catfishes)	picture (Babaj_u2.jpg) by Hippocampus-Bildarchiv
Order:	Siluriformes (catfish)
Class:	Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes)
FishBase name:	Bayad
Max. size:	112 cm FL (male/unsexed; Ref. 43434); max. published weight: 12.5 kg (Ref. 43434); max. reported age: 8 years
Environment:	demersal; potamodromous ; depth range - 60 m
Climate:	tropical; 22 - 28°C
Global Importance:	fisheries: commercial
Resilience:	Medium, minimum population doubling time 1.4 - 4.4 years (tm=4-5; tmax=8; K=0.18; Fec=18,630-47,920)
Distribution:	Africa: Nile River, Lake Chad, Niger and Senegal River, Lakes Mobutu (Lake Albert) and Turkana. Reported from Sanaga River basin (Ref. 27691).
Diagnosis:	Dorsal spines (total): 1-1; Dorsal soft rays (total): 8-12; Anal spines: 0-0; Anal soft rays: 13-15; Vertebrae: 48-53. Body more or less elongated, 5-6 times longer than high (Ref. 7324). Head much depressed, smooth above (Ref. 43434), but often ridged (Ref. 4903), and roundly pointed when viewed from above (Ref. 28714). Supralateral eyes with a free orbital margin (Ref. 367, Ref. 11410). Posterior and anterior nostrils are remote from each other, the posterior being provided with a barbel (Ref. 11410). Premaxillary tooth plate 6-7 times as long as broad, a little shorter than the vomerine tooth plate (Ref. 43434). Nasal barbel 0.3-0.6 times the head length (Ref. 367). Maxillary barbel reaching ventral or anal fin (Ref. 43434). External mandibular barbel 0.7-1.1 times head length; internal mandibular barbel 1.7-2.1 times head length (Ref. 367). Occipital processus in contact with the first interneural (Ref. 42499, Ref. 2756). Dorsal fin with smooth spine (Ref. 367) with the first branched rays prolonged into short filaments (Ref. 31256, Ref. 13851). Length of the longest filament 1/3-1/4 of standard length (Ref. 7324). Last ray of dorsal fin behind inner ray of ventral fin (Ref. 4912). Adipose fin height 2.5 times in length of its base (Ref. 3036) and its length twice as long as rayed dorsal fin, narrowly separated one from another (Ref. 43434). Lobes of caudal fin often with short filaments (Ref. 7324, Ref. 13851). Pectoral spine as long as dorsal spine and with serrations at the inside (Ref. 2756, Ref. 367). No pectoral filaments (Ref. 3036, Ref. 2756). Pelvic fins inserted under 5th or 6th branched ray of dorsal fin (Ref. 3036, Ref. 13851). Lateral line system consists of a straight line of tubular elevations, from the scapulare to the middle of the caudal fin (Ref. 562). Coloration: life specimens yellow-greenish or blackish with white belly (Ref. 7324, Ref. 13851). Fins darker, sometimes reddish purple; juveniles with little black spots on the sides (Ref. 7324).
Biology:	Found in lakes, swamps and rivers (Ref. 31256). Avoids salt water (Ref. 31439). Spends nearly the whole of the daylight hours in crevices of rocks and is therefor seldom seen (Ref. 51850). Lives and feeds on or near the bottom (Ref. 3034). Adults exclusively piscivorous (Ref. 31256). Preys on small fish, particularly Alestes spp. (Ref. 13851), or Chrysichthys auratus as in Lake Kainji (Ref. 3034); also feeds on insects, crustaceans, mollusks, vegetable matter (Ref. 28714). Efficiency of catching prey catfish is maximised by face to face attack, avoiding damage by dorsal and pectoral spines of the prey (Ref. 33614). There is some indication that the species comes to shallower water to breed (Ref. 43507). Spawning season extends from April to July (Ref. 51850). Parents build and guard the nest, which is like a flat disc with a central hole where the eggs are dropped (Ref. 51638). Size of the nest and the central hole depend on the fish size (Ref. 51638). Males become up to 7 years old, females 8 years (Ref. 51644). Mean sizes and weight of males are less than those of females from the same age (Ref. 51644, Ref. 51645). An important food fish. Flesh is good eating and of economic importance (Ref. 36900), commonly sold as food (Ref. 43521). Reputed to reach 100,000 g
Threatened:	, (Ref. 36508)
Dangerous:	harmless
Coordinator:
Main Ref:	Risch, L.M.. 1986. (Ref. 3236)
Update \| Add

Chad country information
Common names:	Abou'chanap, Deïng, Ab Chanap, Daï, De, Messeba	Ref: Chabanaud, P., 1934
Status:	native	Ref:
Salinity:	freshwater
Uses:	no uses
Comments:	Present in Lake Chad (Ref. 51686).
Country Information:	www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/cd.html
Occurrences:	Occurrences Point map
Main Ref:	Risch, L.M., 1986
Update

More information:

Countries

FAO areas

Occurrences

Introductions

Ecosystem

Ecology

Diet

Food items

Food consumption

Ration

Predators

Ciguatera

Fish loss

Common names

Synonyms

Pictures

Sounds

Reproduction

Maturity

Spawning

Eggs

Egg dev.

Larvae

Larval dynamics

References

Growth

L-W relationship

L-L relationship

Length frequencies

Recruitment

Max. age & size

Metabolism

Morphology

Morphometrics

Gill area

Brains

Vision

Collaborators

Genetics

Allele frequencies

Heritability

Strains

Aquaculture

Aquaculture profile

Diseases

Ecotoxicology

Processing

Speed

Swim. type

Stamps

Note: No data are available if label is black .

Tools:

Internet sources:

Note: use the Back button of your browser to return to FishBase.

Modified: Musschoot, Tobias

Entered: Luna, Susan M.

CGNET - US

Page created by: Eli, 20.10.03, last modified by Eli, 26.06.07

	Ref.:		Glossary
		(e.g. 9948)		(e.g. cephalopods)
ThisFishForum Comments & Corrections Sign our Guest Book
Back to Search