Bleekeriella
| Bleekeriella | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Siluriformes |
| Family: | Ariidae |
| Genus: | Marceniuk, Oliveira & Ferraris, 2023 |
| Species: | B. leptaspis
|
| Binomial name | |
| Bleekeriella leptaspis (Bleeker, 1862)
| |
| Synonyms[1] | |
| |
Bleekeriella leptaspis, the triangular shield catfish, boofhead catfish, freshwater forked tailed catfish, salmon catfish, or lesser salmon catfish,[2] is a monospecific genus of catfish in the family Ariidae.[3] It was described by Pieter Bleeker in 1862, originally under the genus Hexanematichthys.[3] It inhabits marine, brackish and freshwaters in Australia and New Guinea, at a maximum known depth of 135 m (440 ft). It reaches a maximum standard length of 60 cm (24 in).[3]
The generic name honours Dutch ichthýologist Pieter Bleeker.[3][4]
It is the only member of the monospecific genus Bleekeriella.[5]
The diet of the triangular shield catfish includes insects, mollusks, prawns, finfish and aquatic plants.[6] It is preyed upon by fish such as Scleropages jardinii and the Barramundi, and snakes in the species Acrochordus arafurae.[7]
The triangular shield catfish breeds between September and January.[3]
References
- ^ Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Species related to Bleekeriella leptaspis". Catalog of Fishes. California Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 13 August 2025.
- ^ Common names of Bleekeriella leptaspis at www.fishbase.org.
- ^ a b c d e Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.). "Bleekeriella leptaspis". FishBase. August 2025 version.
- ^ Christopher Scharpf & Kenneth J. Lazara (18 July 2024). "Family ARIIDAE Bleeker 1858 (Sea Catfishes)". The ETYFish Project Fish Name Etymology Database. Christopher Scharpf and Kenneth J. Lazara. Retrieved 13 August 2025.
- ^ Marceniuk, A. P.; C. Oliveira; C. J. Ferraris, Jr. (2023). "A new classification of the family Ariidae (Osteichthyes: Ostariophysi: Siluriformes) based on combined analyses of morphological and molecular data". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 200 (2): 426–476. doi:10.1093/zoolinnean/zlad078.
- ^ Food items reported for Bleekeriella leptaspis at www.fishbase.org.
- ^ Organisms Preying on Bleekeriella leptaspis at www.fishbase.org.