Sciades
seemanni (Günther, 1864) |
hose of us that have been in the hobby for more years that we care
to mention...may recognise this species from the Ariidae family
of sea catfishes as, Arius seemanni, and later on as
Hexanematichthys seemanni or by its favourite common name of
the "Colombian Shark".
These past scientific names are now synonyms of Sciades seemanni.
MARCENIUK et al. (2007) in their
paper, "Systematics of the family Ariidae (Ostariophysi,
Siluriformes), with a redefinition of the genera" reclasified
quite a few species in this family and also erected some new genera.
They placed Arius seemanni in the Sciades genus
as they are the largest number of ariid species from the eastern
and western Americas, south and southeast Asia, southern New Guinea
and northern Australia.
In this paper they differentiated the species Sciades from
all other genera of the Ariidae by the combination of the following
exclusive and shared characters: (1) medial groove of neurocranium
delimited mostly or exclusively by frontal bones. (2) temporal fossa
very reduced or entirely closed during ontogenetic development (with
exception of Sciades leptaspis); (3) otic capsules little
developed; (4) space between transcapular process and otic capsule
very wide; (5) subvertebral process indistinct or little differentiated;
(6) posterior cranial fontanel absent (with exception of Sciades
platypogon and shared with Batrachocephalus); (7)
epiphyseal bar indistinct (with exception of Sciades platypogon
and shared with Batrachocephalus); (8) exoccipital posterior
process sutured to Muller’s ramus (with exception of Sciades
platypogon and shared with Potamarius izabalensis).
This is a peaceful species when young and
small specimens are not a problem in aquaria but when they get
bigger they can get restless and slightly more aggresive and will
require a larger tank for swimming space and also a requirement
for added salt as they grow into adulthood.
The problem as this fish grows is that
it will require more salt and from a sub-adult brackish water
system they will progress into a marine environment which will
need marine salt to be added. Another problem of course is that
your previous tropical tankmates will not be able to tolerate
the added salt and would need to be moved to a tropical tank setup
immediately. A juncture to this is that they can get aggresive
as they mature so not really a catfish for the hobbyist unless
you know what is ahead of you and you can maitain this species
through the stages of tropical(juvenile) brackish (sub-adult)
and adult (marine). This of course mimicks the lifestyle of this
species in the wild as they migrate from the rivers of the Pacific
coast countries of Mexico,
Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia,
Ecuador and Peru and out into the sea where they can fend for
themselves as large adults.
A large tank will be needed. 72inch or
larger would be good for four adults. Growing plants will be difficult
due to the added salt. Provide caves for hiding, a dark substrate
and low lighting. They will also need good filtration with a swift
current.
Broad head with a large mouth. The eyes are
large and protrude from the head. Three pairs of barbels; one on
the upper jaw and two on the lower.
Silver base colour on body with a white
underside. Fins are black with white edges when young.
When young they can be combined
with other brackish water fish such as Scats and Archer Fish. When
adult they can be kept with other compatable sized Marine species.
Not been reported in aquaria. They are
mouthbrooders where the male will brood them in his mouth. They
will breed at the mouth of brackish estuaries.
| Sexual
Differences |
Females are usually fuller
in the girth than the slimmer males.
|
| Feeding |
Omnivore: insect larvae, frozen foods such
as mosquito larvae, tubifex and bloodworm. Tablet and flake foods
are also taken.
| Glossary
of Terms |
Neurocranium
: The portion of the skull surrounding the brain,
including the elements that surround the olfactory, optic,
orbital or sphenotic, and otic or auditory capsules and
the anterior end of the notochord (endocranium) and the
series of overlying dermal bones (dermocranium). Also called
braincase.
Medial: Toward the middle or median plane
of the body; opposite of lateral.
Otic capsules: Sensory anlage from which
the ear develops; clearly visible during early development,
also: the skeleton surrounding the inner ear or otic vesicle,
composed of the prootic, opisthotic, exoccipital, and supraoccipital.
Transcapular process: Prefix meaning across.
Fontanel: A gap between bones in the skull,
closed by a membrane, where ossification of cartilage or
connective tissue did not occur. Commonly found on top of
the skull between the frontal bones (anterior fontanel)
and between the parietal bones (posterior fontanel),
|
| Etymology |
| References |
Marceniuk,
Alexandre P.; Menezes, Naércio A.
(2007). "Systematics of the family Ariidae (Ostariophysi,
Siluriformes), with a redefinition of the genera" Zootaxa
1416: 1–126.
Mongabay:
http://fish.mongabay.com/ariidae.htm
Froese, R. and D. Pauly.
Editors. 2009. FishBase.World Wide Web electronic publication.www.fishbase.org,
version (10/2009).
|
| Photo
Credits |
Bill McBurnie |
|
|
| Synonyms:
|
| Arius
seemanni, Tachysurus seemani, Arius jordani, Hexanematichthys
seemani |
| Common
Name: |
| Shark
Cat,, Jordans Catfish, Colombian
Shark, Tete sea catfish. |
| Family: |
| Ariidae
|
| Subfamily: |
| |
| Distribution: |
| Western
America: Mexico, Guatemala,
El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Ecuador
and Peru. Type locality: Central America (Pacific). |
| Size: |
| 35cm. SL (14ins) but can
grow larger in the wild. |
| Temp: |
| 22-26°c (71-79°f
) |
| pH.: |
| 7.0-8.0. |
| Donation: |
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