Silurus asotus • Siluridae • Cat-eLog

Cat-eLog Data Sheet
Scientific Name	**Silurus asotus** Linnaeus, 1758
Common Name(s)	Chinese Catfish, Namazu
Type Locality	Asia.
Synonym(s)	Parasilurus asotus, Parasilurus japonicus, Silurus bedfordi, Silurus cinereus, Silurus dahuricus, Silurus japonicus, Silurus punctatus
Pronunciation	See loo russ - ass ott us
Etymology	From the Greek silouros which is the name of the fish.
Species Information
Size	1000mm (39.4") SL. Find near, nearer or same sized spp.
Identification	Elongated, cylindrical body. 2 pairs of barbels (mandibular and maxillary). Small dorsal fin, anal fin connected with caudal fin. Dark brown to greenish yellow-brown back, light yellow to yellowish white belly. Average adult size is around 300~500mm. Fry have a second pair of mandibular barbels that fall off spontaneously when the fish reach a length of 60-70 mm TL.
General Remarks	An important food fish. Can often be seen in holding tanks in restaurants in China. Also used in Chinese medicine. Just as Siluris glanis was the prototypical catfish in early Western civilization, S. asotus was the prototypical catfish in early Chinese civilization. Its original Chinese name "Nian", is now the root of the term ("Nianke") for the order Siluriformes and of the common name ("Nianyu") for all catfish.
Habitat Information
Distribution	China, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, Mongolia and Russian Far East. China Waters (click on these areas to find other species found there) Japan Waters (click on these areas to find other species found there) Taiwan Waters (click on these areas to find other species found there) Mongolia Waters (click on these areas to find other species found there) Korea Waters (click on these areas to find other species found there) (Click the map-icon to show/hide map of species distribution)
pH	6.0 - 8.0
Temperature	5.0-26.0°C or 41-78.8°F (Show others within this range)
Other Parameters	A hardy fish that can survive and thrive in a wide variety of water conditions, notably including wide variations in temperature.
Husbandry Information
Feeding	Carnivore. In the wild, eats smaller fish, crustaceans and insects.
Compatibility	Not recommended as an aquarium fish due to its large adult size and propensity to eat other fish.
Breeding	Sexually mature at two years. Spawns in May through July. Eggs are slightly sticky, yellowish green or green and spherical in shape, measuring 1.1 - 1.2 mm in diameter.
Further Information
References	Systema Nat. ed. 10v. 1 - pp304
Registered Keepers	(1) Silurus, (2) cochito, (3) EmpowerMaui (k: 3). Click on a username above to see all that persons registered catfish species. You can also view all "my cats" data for this species.
Breeding Reports	None.
Articles	- CotM 2005 January
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Last Update	2011 Oct 05 12:10 (species record created: 2001 Apr 21 00:00)

Cat-eLog Data Sheet

Scientific Name

Silurus asotus Linnaeus, 1758

Common Name(s)

Chinese Catfish, Namazu

Type Locality

Asia.

Synonym(s)

Parasilurus asotus, Parasilurus japonicus, Silurus bedfordi, Silurus cinereus, Silurus dahuricus, Silurus japonicus, Silurus punctatus

Pronunciation

See loo russ - ass ott us

Etymology

From the Greek silouros which is the name of the fish.

Species Information

Size

1000mm (39.4") SL. Find near, nearer or same sized spp.

Identification

Elongated, cylindrical body. 2 pairs of barbels (mandibular and maxillary). Small dorsal fin, anal fin connected with caudal fin. Dark brown to greenish yellow-brown back, light yellow to yellowish white belly. Average adult size is around 300~500mm. Fry have a second pair of mandibular barbels that fall off spontaneously when the fish reach a length of 60-70 mm TL.

General Remarks

An important food fish. Can often be seen in holding tanks in restaurants in China. Also used in Chinese medicine.
Just as Siluris glanis was the prototypical catfish in early Western civilization, S. asotus was the prototypical catfish in early Chinese civilization. Its original Chinese name "Nian", is now the root of the term ("Nianke") for the order Siluriformes and of the common name ("Nianyu") for all catfish.

Habitat Information

Distribution

China, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, Mongolia and Russian Far East.
China Waters (click on these areas to find other species found there)
Japan Waters (click on these areas to find other species found there)
Taiwan Waters (click on these areas to find other species found there)
Mongolia Waters (click on these areas to find other species found there)
Korea Waters (click on these areas to find other species found there)

(Click the map-icon to show/hide map of species distribution)

6.0 - 8.0

Temperature

5.0-26.0°C or 41-78.8°F (Show others within this range)

Other Parameters

A hardy fish that can survive and thrive in a wide variety of water conditions, notably including wide variations in temperature.

Husbandry Information

Feeding

Carnivore. In the wild, eats smaller fish, crustaceans and insects.

Compatibility

Not recommended as an aquarium fish due to its large adult size and propensity to eat other fish.

Breeding

Sexually mature at two years. Spawns in May through July. Eggs are slightly sticky, yellowish green or green and spherical in shape, measuring 1.1 - 1.2 mm in diameter.

Further Information

References

Systema Nat. ed. 10v. 1 - pp304

Registered Keepers

(1) Silurus, (2) cochito, (3) EmpowerMaui (k: 3).

Click on a username above to see all that persons registered catfish species. You can also view all "my cats" data for this species.

Breeding Reports

None.

Articles