Walking Catfish Care Guide
Clarias batrachus is an air-breathing Asian catfish that can move over land; it is predatory and needs a secure, tight-fitting lid.
Compiled by Aquairi from published sources · Published · Updated
Overview
Clarias batrachus, the walking catfish, is an air-breathing catfish whose true range is confirmed only from the Indonesian island of Java. FishBase records a maximum total length of about 47 cm and weight up to 1.2 kg. It can move short distances over land using snakelike movements and pectoral-fin support, and has been introduced and become invasive in regions such as Florida.
Taxonomy
- Family: Clariidae
- Genus: Clarias
- Scientific name: Clarias batrachus
- Describer: Linnaeus, 1758
Habitat
The species inhabits stagnant, often low-oxygen waters including muddy ponds, canals, ditches, swamps and flooded rice paddies. FishBase lists it as freshwater and brackish, demersal and potamodromous, with a broad temperature tolerance from about 10 to 28 °C. Auxiliary breathing organs let it survive in hypoxic water.
Tank requirements
- Minimum tank volume: 400 L
- Temperature: 22–26 °C
- pH: 6–7.5
- GH: 2–15 °dGH
- Adult size: 40–50 cm
- Lifespan: 5–10 years
Diet
Clarias batrachus is a carnivorous, omnivorous scavenger with a trophic level near 3.4. It feeds on insect larvae, earthworms, shells, shrimps, small fish, aquatic plants and debris. Captive feeding is typically offered once daily.
Compatibility
A semi-aggressive, predatory, nocturnal, bottom-dwelling catfish. It will eat small fish and shrimp, so tankmates must be large and robust. Hiding spots and a gentle current suit it.
Breeding
The species is oviparous and spawns during the rainy season in Southeast Asia. Aquarium breeding is uncommon.
Conservation status
IUCN Red List: Least Concern, assessed 16 January 2019.
Breeding Clarias batrachus
Overview
Clarias batrachus is an air-breathing catfish of the family Clariidae, native to Java, Indonesia, and widely introduced elsewhere, with several countries reporting adverse ecological impacts after its introduction. It reaches about 47 cm total length and 1.2 kg in weight. It is a facultative air-breather able to survive out of water for extended periods and to move short distances over land, and it inhabits lowland streams, swamps, ponds, ditches and rice paddies, including stagnant, muddy water. According to FishBase, length at first maturity is around 28 cm, and reproduction is strongly tied to seasonal flooding rather than to stable aquarium conditions.
Conditioning
In the wild the reproductive cycle is governed by the monsoon. FishBase reports that spawning occurs during the rainy season, when rivers rise and the fish are able to excavate nests in submerged mud banks and in the dikes of flooded rice fields. Rising water levels and access to newly inundated habitat are the natural conditioning trigger.
Spawning Behavior & Trigger
FishBase records that the pair performs the 'spawning embrace' widely observed in other catfish, with the male wrapping around the female while she releases a stream of adhesive eggs into the nest. Spawning is timed to the rainy season and the availability of submerged mud banks and flooded rice-field dikes in which nests can be excavated.
Egg & Fry Care
The eggs are adhesive and are deposited into the excavated nest. Reported fecundity ranges from roughly 2,300 to 13,400 eggs. FishBase does not detail subsequent parental care or hatching timing for this species, so those aspects are not described here.
Common Challenges
The main obstacles to captive reproduction are the species' large adult size, predatory nature and dependence on a seasonal flood cycle for natural spawning. Reproducing those conditions in a home aquarium is impractical, which is why documented reproduction comes from wild and pond settings rather than tanks.