Synodontis congicus is a species of upside-down catfish native to the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Republic of the Congo where it occurs in the upper and middle Congo Basin.[1] It was first described by Belgian ichthyologist Max Poll in 1971. The first specimen was found near the town of Gangala-na-Bodio, Democratic Republic of the Congo, in the Dungu River.[1][2] The meaning of the specific name "congicus" is "From the Congo".[3]
| Synodontis congicus | |
|---|---|
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Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Siluriformes |
| Family: | Mochokidae |
| Genus: | Synodontis |
| Species: | S. congicus
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| Binomial name | |
| Synodontis congicus Poll, 1971
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Description
editThe fish is light grey to silver in color, with one to four spots along the midlateral line of the body.[3]
Like other members of the genus, this fish has a humeral process, which is a bony spike that is attached to a hardened head cap on the fish and can be seen extending beyond the gill opening.[2] The first ray of the dorsal fin and the pectoral fins have a hardened first ray which is serrated.[2] The caudal fin is deeply forked with an extension on the top lobe.[2][3] It has short, cone-shaped teeth in the upper jaw.[2] In the lower jaw, the teeth are s-shaped and movable.[2] The fish has one pair of short maxillary barbels, and two pairs of mandibular barbels that are often branched.[2][3]
This species grows to a length of 16 centimetres (6.3 in) SL although specimens up to 20.2 centimetres (8.0 in) TL have been recorded in nature.[1][2]
In the wild, the species inhabits tropical waters with a temperature range of 22 to 25 °C (72 to 77 °F), a pH of 6.2 – 7.2, and dH range of 5-15.[1] It is found in the Kinsuka rapids in the Lower Congo basin, upstream to the upper Congo basin, excluding the Luapula River and Lake Mweru.[4]
References
edit- ^ a b c d Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.). "Synodontis congicus". FishBase. June 2016 version.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Synodontis congicus Poll, 1971". Planet Catfish. 23 Jun 2013. Retrieved 17 October 2016.
- ^ a b c d "Synodontis congicus Poll, 1971". scotcat.com. Retrieved 17 October 2016.
- ^ Moelants, T. (2010). "Synodontis congicus". The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2010. IUCN: e.T181909A7762436. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2010-3.RLTS.T181909A7762436.en. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
External links
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Data related to Synodontis congicus at Wikispecies.