- Title
- Reproductive and feeding biology of the Natal mountain catfish, Amphilius natalensis (Siluriformes: Amphiliidae)
- Creator
- Marriott, Michael S, Booth, Anthony J, Skelton, Paul H
- Date
- 1997
- Type
- text
- Type
- article
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/10962/125837
- Identifier
- vital:35823
- Identifier
- https://doi.10.1023/A:1007361511052
- Description
- The family Amphiliidae comprises nine genera and about 60 species. Only five species are found in southern Africa, three of which belong to the genus Amphilius (Skelton 1993). These soft-bodied catlets inhabit clear, fast flowing mountain streams where they live amongst cobbles, feeding predominantly on benthic invertebrates (Crass 1964, Skelton 1993). The Natal mountain catfish, A. natalensis Boulenger, 1917, is a small, nocturnal species with a restricted distribution along the eastern seaboard of southern Africa. It occurs in mountain streams from the Umkomaas River north to the Limpopo system in South Africa. It is also present in the Marozi River, a tributary of the Zambezi River in Zimbabwe and in the Ruo River, Malawi (Skelton 1984, 1993). Skelton (1993) suggested that predation by introduced trout species has led to scarcity of A. natalensis in many streams. In spite of this, no studies on the biology of this catfish species have been published. This study presents the first quantitative information on the biology of an amphiliid catfish, A. natalensis including gametogenesis, spawning seasonality, size-at-maturity, adult sex ratio and diet.
- Format
- 10 pages, pdf
- Language
- English
- Relation
- Environmental Biology of Fishes, Marriott, M.S., Booth, A.J. and Skelton, P.H., 1997. Reproductive and feeding biology of the Natal mountain catfish, Amphilius natalensis (Siluriformes: Amphiliidae). Environmental Biology of Fishes, 49(4), pp.461-470, Environmental Biology of Fishes volume 49 number 4 461 470 1997 0378-1909
- Rights
- Environmental Biology of Fishes
- Rights
- Use of this resource is governed by the terms and conditions of the SpringerLink Terms of Use Statement ( https://link.springer.com/termsandconditions)
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Collections
Booth, Anthony John (Prof)
RU Department of Ichthyology and Fisheries Science
SDG 14. Life Below Water
RU South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity (SAIAB)
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