Freshwater catfish (eel-tailed catfish) | Primary industries & fisheries | Queensland Government

Freshwater catfish (eel-tailed catfish)

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Freshwater catfish (eel-tailed catfish)

Freshwater catfish

Scientific name

Tandanus tandanus
Other names

None
Frequent misidentifications

None
Description
  • body colouration: greenish-brown mottled skin, tending to whitish on the belly
  • large eel-like second dorsal fin starting about the middle of the body.
Distribution
  • Widely distributed in the Murray-Darling River system and east coast drainages
  • Often found on sand or gravel bottoms in slow moving streams, or in impoundments.
Size
  • common length - 40 cm
  • maximum length - 90cm.
Size and bag limits
  • size limit - 35 cm
  • bag limit - 5 combined for all eel-tail catfish species.
CAUTION

Has very sharp dorsal and pectoral spines that protrude when captured which can cause extreme pain if handled carelessly.

Resources

  • Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries, 1997, Fish Guide. Saltwater, Freshwater and Noxious Species. The Great Outdoors Publications, Brisbane
  • FishBase - A global information system on fishes
  • Fisheries Act 1994 and Fisheries Regulation 2008
  • Grant, EM, 1997, Grant's Guide To Fishes. EM Grant Pty Limited, Brisbane
  • Merrick, JR and Schmida GE, 1984. Australian Freshwater Fishes: Biology and Management. Griffin Press Limited, South Australia
  • Allen, G.R., Midgley, S.H., and Allen, M. Freshwater fishes of Australia. CSIRO Publishing, Victoria.
  • Schmida, G. Freshwater Fishes. Steve Parish Publishing Pty Ltd., Queensland.

Further information

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Page maintained by Brendan Johnson
Last updated 21 June 2010

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