Carlarius heudelotii

Carlarius heudelotii, the smoothmouth sea catfish, is a species of sea catfish.

Carlarius heudelotii
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Order:	Siluriformes
Family:	Ariidae
Genus:	Carlarius
Species:	C. heudelotii
Binomial name
Carlarius heudelotii (Valenciennes, 1840)
Synonyms
Bagrus goreensis Guichenot, 1858 Arius heudelotii Valenciennes, 1840 Tachysurus heudelotii (Valenciennes, 1840) Arius mercatoris Poll, 1949 Tachysurus mercatoris (Poll, 1949)

Location

It occurs along the western coast of Africa from Mauritania to Gabon or Angola. While mostly a marine species occurring on the continental shelf, it has also been reported from the Niger basin and the Benoué and Gambia Rivers.

Biology

The smoothmouth sea catfish stays buried in the mud and feeds on invertebrates and occasionally leaves the bottom to feed on open prey. These fish have rays on their fins which are known to be very venomous and painful if a wound is inflicted. The female in this species bear large eggs.^[1]

Size

The maximum published weight of the smoothmouth sea catfish is 8,500 g.^[1]