Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes) >
Siluriformes (Catfish) >
Mochokidae (Squeakers or upside-down catfishes)
Etymology: Synodontis: Greek, syn, symphysis = grown together + Greek, odous = teeth (Ref. 45335).
Environment / Climate / Range
Ecology
Freshwater; benthopelagic; potamodromous (Ref. 51243). Tropical; 22°C - 25°C (Ref. 2060), preferred ?; 10°N - 5°N
Africa: Sassandra, Boubo, Bandama, Angébi, Mé, Comoé Bia and Tano rivers in Côte d'Ivoire (Ref. 272, 57223, 83625), Burkina Faso (Ref. 57223) and Ghana (Ref. 30488).
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ? range ? - ? cm
Max length : 20.2 cm SL male/unsexed; (Ref. 57223)
Short description
Morphology | Morphometrics
Dorsal
spines
(total): 1;
Anal
spines: 0. Diagnosis: gill slits not extending ventrally beyond pectoral-fin insertions; eye not more than 20% of head length, and 26% of head width; in adults, post-orbital length at least 60% of snout length; maxillary barbels usually longer than head (except in young individuals), unbranched, without tubercles but with a broad, black basal membrane; outer mandibular barbels with rather long, tuberculate ramifications; branches of inner mandibular barbels shorter and strongly globose; mandibular teeth long, numbering 27-38 (33 in the holotype); dorsal-fin spine smooth anteriorly; denticulations of pectoral-fin spines finer on outer than on inner margin; humeral process not keeled ventrally, triangular, slender and pointed in young specimens, and deep, more strongly arched, and more blunt posteriorly in adults; dorsal- and pectoral-fin spines prolonged into a black filament; adipose fin not very well developed; head more flattened in young than in adults; outer margins of caudal-fin lobes black-edged; body covered with fine specks (Ref. 57223).
Coloration: body rather pale and covered with fine black specks and with larger spots in young individuals; rayed fins light and often spotless, but adipose fin always spotted; outer margins of caudal-fin lobes black-edged; broad black spot above humeral process (Ref. 57223).
Maximum TL was recorded at 28.1 cm (Ref. 7362, 57223). Oviparous (Ref. 205).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Oviparous (Ref. 205). Distinct pairing during breeding (Ref. 205).
Paugy, D. and T.R. Roberts, 2003. Mochokidae. p. 195-268 In C. Lévêque, D. Paugy and G.G. Teugels (eds.) Faune des poissons d'eaux douce et saumâtres de l'Afrique de l'Ouest, Tome 2. Coll. Faune et Flore tropicales 40. Musée Royal de l'Afrique Centrale, Tervuren, Belgique, Museum National d'Histoire Naturalle, Paris, France and Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, Paris, France. 815 p. (Ref. 57223)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 115185)
CITES (Ref. 94142)
Not Evaluated
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
Fisheries:
More information
Age/SizeGrowthLength-weightLength-lengthLength-frequenciesMorphometricsMorphologyLarvaeLarval dynamicsRecruitmentAbundance
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