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FACTSHEETS: February 2023 - no. 320

Gagata gagata (Hamilton, 1822)

ollowing on from our December 2022 factsheet we welcome back Indian aquarist Abhisek Mishra and a further contribution to our February factsheet of 2023 with another east Asian catfish, this time from the Sisoridae family of the Gagatta genera namely Gagatta gagatta.

Gagata gagata

Gagata gagata

In the Gagatta genera it is most similar to Gagata melanopterus in colouration and having the highest gill raker counts among its congeners. Differs from Gagata melanopterus from Myanmar in the length of the dorsal spine which extends beyond ad-pressed adipose fin dorsal (vs. short) and in having four rows of teeth on pre-maxilla vs. two rows in G. melanopterus.

Gagata gagata

Gagata gagata - notice the black in the dorsal fin.

Gagata gagata can be found in the Ganges-Brahmaputra drainage and also known to enter the estuaries formed by these two rivers (Mishra, A.).

Gagata gagata was described from the fresh water rivers and estuaries of Bengal by Hamilton (1822). This would place the type locality more likely within the Brahmaputra River drainage (IUCN 2010).

Distrbution: Asia: Ganges River basin, India and Bangladesh. Type locality: Fresh water rivers and estuaries of Bengal.

The threats to this species are unknown, since there is little information on the biology of this species and therefore the impact of potential threats (especially those of an anthropogenic nature) remains unknown. The current threats to aquatic biodiversity in all of its known distribution have also not been adequately identified (IUCN 2010). This species inhabits larger rivers with sandy or muddy bottoms. Although the type locality includes estuarine habitats, there is no current evidence to suggest that this species is found in brackish water (IUCN 2010).

Common Name

None

Synonyms

Pimelodus gagata, Gagata typus

Family

Sisoridae

Subfamily

Sisorinae

Distribution

Asia: Ganges River basin, India and Bangladesh. Type locality: Fresh water rivers and estuaries of Bengal.

Size

31.0cm. TL (12½ins)

Temp.

23-26°c (73-79°f.)

p.H.

6.5-7.5.

Characteristics

Dorsal spines (total): 1 - 1; Dorsal soft rays (total): 6 - 6; Vertebrae: 38 – 39. Dorsal spine extending well past adipose-fin origin when adpressed. Anal fin with 5-6 simple rays, 11 branched rays. Premaxilla with 4 rows of teeth.

Colouration

Head and body silvery, without pattern. Fins, except caudal fin, black distally, with clear basal portions; caudal fin entirely clear.

Aquarium Care & Compatibility

Probably the most hardiest gagata among all species found in India, but will still require pristine water conditions with low temperatures and live food. A bigger tank is recommended by me as they are constant swimmers, if not acclimated properly will swim to their death. A beautiful addition to any riverine tank with a sandy/cobbly substrate (Mishra, A.)

Reproduction

Not recorded

Sexual differences

Not recorded

Diet

Live, frozen and tablet foods.

Glossary of Terms

Adipose fin: Fleshy finlike projection without rays, behind the rayed dorsal fin.
Anthropogenic: Of, or relating to, or resulting from the influence of human beings on nature.
Caudal fin: The tail.
Dorsal fin: The primary rayed fin(s) on top of the body.
Gill rakers: Structure on the upper portion of the gill arches.
Premaxilla: In relation to the premaxilla (an upper jaw bone) e.g. premaxillary tooth band.
Vertebrae: The bones of the axial skeleton; divided into two sections, precaudal and caudal vertebrae.

Etymology

Gagata: Local fish name, kenyakatta, in Bengal.

References

Froese, R. and D. Pauly. Editors. 2008. FishBase. World Wide Web electronic publication. www.fishbase.org, version (09/2008).
Jayaram. K.C. 2006, Catfishes of India. Narendera Publishing House. 383p.
Mishra, Abhisek. pers comm.
Ng, H.H. 2010. Gagata gagata. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2010.
Sadoff, Claudia & Harshadeep, Nagaraja & Blackmore, Donald & Wu, Xun & O'Donnell, Anna & Jeuland, Marc & Lee, Sylvia & Whittington, Dale. (2013). Ten fundamental questions for water resources development in the Ganges: Myths and realities. Water Policy.
Talwar, P.K. and A.G. Jhingran, 1991. Inland fishes of India and adjacent countries. Volume 2. A.A. Balkema, Rotterdam.
Sadoff, Claudia & Harshadeep, Nagaraja & Blackmore, Donald & Wu, Xun & O'Donnell, Anna & Jeuland, Marc & Lee, Sylvia & Whittington, Dale. (2013). Ten fundamental questions for water resources development in the Ganges: Myths and realities. Water Policy.

Photo Credits

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ScotCat Sources

Etymology-genus

Other Sources

Fishbase

Wikipedia

Catalog of Fishes

GBIF

Fishnet 2

iNaturalist

IUCN