View source for Catfish

{{Short description|Order of fish}}
{{For|the deceptive online actions by one to another|Catfishing}}
{{About|the fish||Catfish (disambiguation)|}}
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{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2020}}
{{Automatic taxobox
| fossil_range = {{fossilrange|Campanian|present|earliest=Cenomanian|refs=<ref name=NT24>{{cite journal |last1=Near |first1=Thomas J |last2=Thacker |first2=Christine E |date=18 April 2024 |title=Phylogenetic classification of living and fossil ray-finned fishes (Actinopterygii) |journal=Bulletin of the Peabody Museum of Natural History |volume=65 |page=101 |doi=10.3374/014.065.0101 |doi-access=free|bibcode=2024BPMNH..65..101N }}</ref>}}<small>Possible earlier [[Late Cretaceous]] records<ref name=Patterson1993/><ref name=Afrocascudo>{{Cite journal |last1=Brito |first1=P. M. |last2=Dutheil |first2=D. B. |last3=Gueriau |first3=P. |last4=Keith |first4=P. |last5=Carnevale |first5=G. |last6=Britto |first6=M. |last7=Meunier |first7=F. J. |last8=Khalloufi |first8=B. |last9=King |first9=A. |last10=de Amorim |first10=P. F. |last11=Costa |first11=W. J. E. M. |title=A saharan fossil and the dawn of Neotropical armoured catfishes in Gondwana |year=2024 |journal=Gondwana Research |volume=132 |pages=103–112 |doi=10.1016/j.gr.2024.04.008 |bibcode=2024GondR.132..103B |url=https://serval.unil.ch/resource/serval:BIB_E3F9F6493E66.P002/REF.pdf }}</ref></small>
| image = Siluriformes.png
| image_caption = Diversity of catfishes (left to right, top to bottom): ''[[Silurus glanis]]'' ([[Siluridae]]), ''[[Ictalurus furcatus]]'' ([[Ictaluridae]]), ''[[Synodontis eupterus]]'' ([[Mochokidae]]), ''[[Trichomycterus ytororo]]'' ([[Trichomycteridae]]), ''[[Mystus atrifasciatus]]'' ([[Bagridae]]), ''[[Aspidoras mephisto]]'' ([[Callichthyidae]]), ''[[Cetopsis coecutiens]]'' ([[Cetopsidae]]), ''[[Noturus gyrinus]]'' (Ictaluridae), ''[[Oreoglanis hponkanensis]]'' ([[Sisoridae]]), ''[[Farlowella vittata]]'' ([[Loricariidae]])
| image_upright = 1.1
| taxon = Siluriformes
| authority = [[Oliver Perry Hay|O. P. Hay]], 1929<ref name = N&T>{{cite journal |author=Thomas J. Near |author2=Christine E. Thacker |title=Phylogenetic Classification of Living and Fossil Ray-Finned Fishes (Actinopterygii) |journal=Bulletin of the Peabody Museum of Natural History |date=2024 |volume=65 |issue=1 |pages=3–302 |doi=10.3374/014.065.0101 |bibcode=2024BPMNH..65..101N }}</ref>
| subdivision_ranks = Families
| subdivision_ref = <ref>{{FishBase order | order = Siluriformes| month = December | year = 2011}}</ref>
| subdivision = See text
| type_species = ''[[Silurus glanis]]''
| type_species_authority = [[Carl Linnaeus|Linnaeus]], 1758
}}

'''Catfish''' (or '''catfishes'''; [[order (biology)|order]] '''Siluriformes''' {{IPAc-en|s|ɪ|ˈ|lj|ʊər|ᵻ|f|ɔːr|m|iː|z}} or '''Nematognathi''') are a diverse group of [[ray-finned fish]]. Catfish are [[common name|named]] for their prominent [[barbel (anatomy)|barbel]]s, which resemble a [[cat]]'s [[whisker]]s, though not all catfish have prominent barbels. All siluriformes lack scales, including both the [[Armoured catfish|armour-plated]] and naked species. This order of fish are [[Autapomorphy|defined]] by features of the skull and [[swimbladder]]. Catfish range in size and behavior from the three [[List of largest fish|largest species]] alive, the [[Mekong giant catfish]] from [[Southeast Asia]], the [[wels catfish]] of [[Eurasia]], and the [[piraíba]] of [[South America]], to [[detritivorous]] and [[scavenging]] [[bottom feeder]]s, down to the tiny [[ectoparasitic]] species known as the [[Candiru (fish)|candiru]]. 

In the Southern United States, catfish may be known by a variety of [[slang]] names, such as "mud cat", "polliwogs", or "chuckleheads".<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/publications/pwdpubs/media/pwd_br_t3200_0236.pdf| title = Texas Dept. Wildlife| access-date = 3 January 2012| archive-date = 21 February 2012| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120221021704/https://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/publications/pwdpubs/media/pwd_br_t3200_0236.pdf| url-status = live}}</ref> Such names are regional and unstandardized. For instance, "chucklehead" in one region may refer to a [[bullhead catfish]] but indicate [[blue catfish]] elsewhere.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Catfish |url=https://www.friendsofwoodlandpark.org/catfish |access-date=2023-06-14 |website=Friends of Woodland Park |language=en-US |archive-date=14 June 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230614015117/https://www.friendsofwoodlandpark.org/catfish |url-status=live }}</ref>

Catfish as a group are of considerable [[Commodity|commercial importance]]; many of the larger species are [[Aquaculture of catfish|farmed]] or [[Fishing|fished]] for food, such as the ''[[Pangasius]]'' (a [[shark catfish]]) and ''[[Clarias]]'' (like the [[walking catfish]]). Many of the smaller species, such as members of the genus ''[[Corydoras]]'', are important in the [[aquarium hobby]].

==Description==
Most catfish are [[bottom feeder]]s. In general, they are negatively [[buoyant]], which means that they usually sink rather than float due to a reduced [[gas bladder]] and a heavy, bony head.<ref name="Bruton"/> Catfish have a variety of body shapes, though most have a cylindrical body with a flattened [[ventrum]] to allow for benthic feeding.<ref name="Bruton"/> A flattened head allows for digging through the substrate, as well as perhaps serving as a [[hydrofoil]]. Some have a mouth that can expand to a large size and contains no [[incisiform]] teeth; catfish generally feed through [[suction]] or gulping rather than biting and cutting prey.<ref name="Bruton"/> Some families, though, notably the [[Loricariidae]] and [[Astroblepidae]], have a [[suckermouth]] that allows them to fasten themselves to objects in fast-moving water.<ref name="Bruton"/>

Catfish do not have [[scale (anatomy)|scale]]s; their bodies are often naked. In some species, their [[mucus]]-covered [[skin]] is used in [[cutaneous respiration]], where the fish breathes through its skin.<ref name="Bruton"/> In [[Armoured catfish|some catfish]], the skin is covered in bony plates called [[scute]]s; some form of body armor appears in various ways within the order. In [[loricarioids]] and in the Asian genus ''[[Sisor]]'', the armor is primarily made up of one or more rows of free [[dermal]] plates. Similar plates are found in large specimens of ''[[Lithodoras]]''. These plates may be supported by [[vertebra]]l [[Process (anatomy)|process]]es, as in [[scoloplacids]] and in ''Sisor'', but the processes never fuse to the plates or form any external armor. By contrast, in the subfamily Doumeinae (family [[Amphiliidae]]) and in hoplomyzontines ([[Aspredinidae]]), the armor is formed solely by expanded vertebral processes that form plates. Finally, the lateral armor of [[doradids]], ''Sisor'', and hoplomyzontines consists of hypertrophied [[lateral line]] ossicles with dorsal and ventral [[lamina (algae)|lamina]].<ref>{{cite journal|author1=Friel, J P  |author2=Lundberg, J G |year=1996|title=''Micromyzon akamai'', gen. et sp. nov., a small and eyeless banjo catfish (Siluriformes: Aspredinidae) from the river channels of the lower Amazon basin|journal=[[Copeia]]|issue=3|pages=641–648|jstor=1447528|volume=1996|doi=10.2307/1447528}}</ref>

[[Juvenile fish|Juvenile]] catfish, like other fish, have relatively large heads, eyes, and posterior median fins in comparison to larger, more mature individuals. These juveniles can be readily placed in their families, particularly those with highly derived fin or body shapes; in some cases, identification of the genus is possible. As far as known for most catfish, features that are often characteristic of species, such as mouth and fin positions, fin shapes, and barbel lengths, show little difference between juveniles and adults. For many species, pigmentation pattern is also similar in juveniles and adults. Thus, juvenile catfish generally resemble and develop smoothly into their adult form without distinct juvenile specializations. Exceptions to this are the ariid catfish, where the young retain yolk sacs late into juvenile stages, and many pimelodids, which may have elongated barbels and fin filaments or coloration patterns.<ref>{{cite journal|title=First description of small juveniles of the primitive catfish ''Diplomystes'' (Siluriformes: Diplomystidae)|first=John G.|last=Lundberg|author2=Berra, Tim M.|author3=Friel, John P.|journal=Ichthyol. Explor. Freshwaters|volume=15|issue=1|pages=71–82|year=2004|url=https://mansfield.osu.edu/assets/mansfield/tberra/pdf/Diplomystes.pdf|access-date=27 March 2023|archive-date=11 December 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211211152811/https://mansfield.osu.edu/assets/mansfield/tberra/pdf/Diplomystes.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Sensory organs===
{{Multiple image
| image1            = BARBEL (PSF).png
| image2            = Channelcat.jpg
| footer            = The [[channel catfish]] has four pairs of [[barbel (anatomy)|barbels]].
| direction         = vertical
}}
The [[Fish anatomy#Head|maxilla]] is a [[Alveolar process|tooth-bearing bone]] in vertebrates, and modified in [[Neopterygii|neopterygian]] fish to facilitate the protrusion of the mouth and enable [[suction feeding]]. Catfish, despite being a group of neopterygians, reduced the maxilla into a support for the maxillary [[barbel (anatomy)|barbels]];<ref name="BarbMobe"/> this means that they are unable to protrude their mouths as other fish such as [[carp]].<ref name="Bruton"/> Catfish barbels typically occur in pairs, and up to four pairs of barbels may be present in some species; these being the nasal, maxillary (on each side of mouth), and two pairs of "chin" barbels termed the internal and external [[Mandible|mandibular]] barbel, though the various families often have fewer pairs, some species may have [[wikt:branched|branched]] or duplicated barbel pairs, and a number of families only have extremely reduced maxillary barbels. The [[Palatine bone|palatine]]-maxillary system is responsible for moving the maxillary barbels; it is a system of ligaments and muscles centred on these two skeletal elements.<ref name="BarbMobe">{{cite book |author=Rui Diogo
|author2=M. Chardon|author3=Pierre Vandewalle|title=Catfishes|chapter=Functional Morphology of Catfishes: Movements of Barbels. |date=January 2003 |publisher=Science Publishers, Inc. |pages=203–220 |edition=1 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/259529073 |access-date=17 May 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Diogo |first1=Rui |last2=Chardon |first2=M. |title=Adaptive transformation of the palatine-maxillary system in catfish: Increased mobility of the maxillary barbel. In: Kapoor, B.G. & T.J. Hara (eds.), Sensory Biology of Jawed Fishes |journal=New Insights, Science Publishers |date=January 2001 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/264340157 |access-date=17 May 2025}}</ref> If severed, the barbels [[Regeneration (biology)|grow back]] over time, but the maxillary barbels cannot regenerate if their [[Basal (anatomy)|basal element]] (the maxilla) is lost.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Yu-Lin Zhou |author2= Jun-Jie Wu |author3=Gao-Rui Gong |author4=Min Liu |author5=Zhi Li |author6=Xin-Feng Guo |author7=Wen-Yu Wei |author8=Xiao-Juan Zhang |author9=Jie Mei |author10=Li Zhou |author11=Zhong-Wei Wang |author12=Jian-Fang Gui |title=Barbel regeneration and function divergence in red-tail catfish (Hemibagrus wyckioides) based on the chromosome-level genomes and comparative transcriptomes |journal= International Journal of Biological Macromolecules |date=31 March 2023 |volume=232 |issue= 1 |pages= 31–35 |doi=10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2023.123374 |pmid=123374 |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S014181302300260X/pdfft?md5=1bc2843ab8686306015a62c29d159fbf&pid=1-s2.0-S014181302300260X-main.pdf |access-date=17 May 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Griswold |first1=Ruth-Marie E. |title=Investigation of barbel regeneration in the catfish Ameiurus nebulosus |journal=Colby College |date=1972 |url=https://digitalcommons.colby.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1107&context=seniorscholars |access-date=17 May 2025}}</ref>

Many larger catfish have [[chemoreceptor]]s across their entire bodies (especially the barbels), which means they "taste" anything they touch, and "smell" any chemicals in the water. "In catfish, [[gustation]] plays a primary role in the orientation and location of food".<ref>Atema, Jelle (1980) [https://books.google.com/books?id=TZbRp0z5-p0C&pg=PA57 "Chemical senses, chemical signals, and feeding behavior in fishes"] pp. 57–101. In: Bardach, JE ''Fish behavior and its use in the capture and culture of fishes'', The WorldFish Center, {{ISBN|978-971-02-0003-0}}.</ref> Because barbels and chemoreception are more important in detecting food, their eyes are generally small, and many species [[Atrophy|lost]] them entirely as they adapted to underground environments, becoming [[cavefish]]. Like other [[ostariophysan]]s, they are characterized by the presence of a [[Weberian apparatus]].<ref name="Nelson"/> Their well-developed Weberian apparatus and reduced gas bladder allow for improved [[hearing (sense)|hearing]] and sound production.<ref name="Bruton"/>

===Fin spines and toxins===
[[File:Image-Striped eel catfish2.jpg|thumb|A sting from the striped eel catfish, ''[[Plotosus lineatus]]'', may be fatal. These are juveniles]]
All catfish other than members of the [[Malapteruridae]] ([[electric catfish]]), possess a strong, hollow, bony, leading spine-like ray on their [[dorsal fin|dorsal]] and [[pectoral fin]]s. As a defense, these spines may be locked into place so that they stick outwards, enabling them to inflict severe wounds.<ref name=tol/> In numerous catfish species, these fin rays can be used to deliver a stinging [[protein]] if the fish is irritated;<ref name=fin>{{cite web| url = http://www.fcps.k12.va.us/StratfordLandingES/Ecology/mpages/channel_catfish.htm| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060603225626/http://www.fcps.k12.va.us/StratfordLandingES/Ecology/mpages/channel_catfish.htm| archive-date = 3 June 2006|title=Channel Catfish |access-date=2 December 2006|publisher=Fairfax County Public Schools}}</ref> as many as half of all catfish species may be venomous in this fashion, making the Siluriformes overwhelmingly the vertebrate order with the largest number of venomous species.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Wright |first1=Jeremy J |title=Diversity, phylogenetic distribution, and origins of venomous catfishes |journal=BMC Evolutionary Biology |date=4 December 2009 |volume=9 |issue=1 |page=282 |doi=10.1186/1471-2148-9-282 |pmid=19961571 |pmc=2791775 |bibcode=2009BMCEE...9..282W |doi-access=free }}</ref> This [[venom]] is produced by [[gland]]ular cells in the [[epidermal]] tissue covering the spines.<ref name="Nelson"/> In members of the family [[Plotosidae]] and of the genus ''[[Heteropneustes]]'', this protein is so potent it may hospitalize humans who receive a sting; in ''[[Plotosus lineatus]]'', the stings can be lethal.<ref>{{FishBase|genus=Plotosus|species=lineatus|month=November|year=2014}}</ref><ref name="Nelson"/> The dorsal- and pectoral-fin spines are two of the most conspicuous features of siluriforms, and differ from those in other fish groups.<ref name='Ballen'>{{cite journal|author1=Ballen, Gustavo A.|author2=De Pinna, Mario C. C.|title=A standardized terminology of spines in the order Siluriformes (Actinopterygii: Ostariophysi)|year=2022|journal=Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society|volume=194|issue=2|pages=601–625|doi=10.1093/zoolinnean/zlab008}}</ref> Despite the widespread use of the spines for taxonomic and phylogenetic studies the fields have struggled to effectively use the information due to a lack of consistency in the nomenclature, with a general standard for the descriptive anatomy of catfish spines proposed in 2022 to try and resolve this problem.<ref name='Ballen'/>

===Internal anatomy===
{{Multiple image
| image1            = Blue catfish skeleton.jpg
| direction         = vertical
| caption1          = Blue catfish (''[[Blue catfish|Ictalurus furcatus]])'' skeleton, [[Museum of Osteology]]
| image2            = Kryptopterus 2.jpg
| caption2          = The internal organs of [[glass catfish (disambiguation)|glass catfish]] (such as ''[[Kryptopterus vitreolus]]'') are visible through their transparent bodies
| align             = left
}}

In many catfish, the "humeral process" is a bony process extending backward from the [[pectoral girdle]] immediately above the base of the pectoral fin. It lies beneath the skin, where its outline may be determined by dissecting the skin or probing with a needle.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://filaman.ifm-geomar.de/Glossary/Glossary.cfm?TermEnglish=humeral%20process|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071217212539/http://filaman.ifm-geomar.de/Glossary/Glossary.cfm?TermEnglish=humeral%20process|archive-date=17 December 2007|title=Term: humeral process|publisher=[[FishBase]]|year=2007}}</ref>

The [[retina]]e of catfish are composed of single [[cone cell|cone]]s and large [[rod cell|rod]]s. Many catfish have a [[tapetum lucidum]], which may help enhance [[photon]] capture and increase low-light sensitivity. [[Double cone (biology)|Double cone]]s, though present in most [[teleost]]s, are absent from catfish.<ref name="Douglas">{{cite journal|last=Douglas|first=Ron H.|author2=Collin, Shaun P.|author3=Corrigan, Julie|date=15 November 2002|url=http://jeb.biologists.org/cgi/reprint/205/22/3425|title=The eyes of suckermouth armoured catfish (Loricariidae, subfamily Hypostomus): pupil response, lenticular longitudinal spherical aberration and retinal topography|publisher=The Journal of Experimental Biology|volume=205|issue=22|pages=3425–3433|journal=Journal of Experimental Biology|doi=10.1242/jeb.205.22.3425|pmid=12364396|bibcode=2002JExpB.205.3425D |access-date=9 June 2007|archive-date=30 September 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070930044830/http://jeb.biologists.org/cgi/reprint/205/22/3425|url-status=live|url-access=subscription}}</ref>

====Sexual characters====
[[Sexual dimorphism]] is reported in about half of all families of catfish.<ref>{{cite journal|url=http://www.mapress.com/zootaxa/2006f/zt01125p056.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061031234339/http://www.mapress.com/zootaxa/2006f/zt01125p056.pdf |archive-date=2006-10-31 |url-status=live|title=''Synodontis acanthoperca'', a new species from the Ogôoué River system, Gabon with comments on spiny ornamentation and sexual dimorphism in mochokid catfishes (Siluriformes: Mochokidae)|first=John P.|last=Friel|author2=Vigliotta, Thomas R.|journal=[[Zootaxa]]|volume=1125|pages=45–56|year=2006|access-date=22 June 2009|doi=10.11646/zootaxa.1125.1.3}}</ref> The modification of the [[anal fin]] into an [[penis|intromittent organ]] (in internal fertilizers) as well as accessory structures of the reproductive apparatus (in both internal and external fertilizers) have been described in species belonging to 11 different families.<ref name="Mazzoldi">{{cite journal|title=Variation of male reproductive apparatus in relation to fertilization modalities in the catfish families Auchenipteridae and Callichthyidae (Teleostei: Siluriformes)|first=C.|last=Mazzoldi|author2=Lorenzi, V. |author3=Rasotto, M. B. |journal=Journal of Fish Biology|year=2007|volume=70|issue=1 |pages=243–256|doi=10.1111/j.1095-8649.2006.01300.x|bibcode=2007JFBio..70..243M }}</ref>

The anatomical organization of the [[testicle|testis]] in catfish is variable among the families of catfish, but the majority of them present fringed testis: Ictaluridae, Claridae, Auchenipteridae, Doradidae, Pimelodidae, and Pseudopimelodidae.<ref name="Barros"/> In the testes of some species of Siluriformes, organs and structures such as a spermatogenic cranial region and a secretory caudal region are observed, in addition to the presence of seminal vesicles in the caudal region.<ref name="Brito"/> The total number of fringes and their length are different in the [[Caudal (anatomical term)|caudal]] and [[cranial]] portions between species.<ref name="Barros">{{cite journal|title=Reproductive apparatus and gametogenesis of ''Lophiosilurus alexandri'' Steindachner (Pisces, Teleostei, Siluriformes)|first=Marcelo D. M.|last=Barros|author2=Guimarães-Cruz, Rodrigo J. |author3=Veloso-Júnior, Vanderlei C. |author4= Santos, José E. dos |journal=Revista Brasileira de Zoologia|volume=24|issue=1|pages=213–221|year=2007|doi=10.1590/S0101-81752007000100028|doi-access=free}}</ref> Fringes of the caudal region may present tubules, in which the lumen is filled by secretion and [[Spermatozoon|spermatozoa]].<ref name="Barros"/> Spermatocysts are formed from cytoplasmic extensions of [[Sertoli cell]]s; the release of spermatozoa is allowed by breaking of the cyst walls.<ref name="Barros"/>

The occurrence of [[seminal vesicle]]s, in spite of their interspecific variability in size, gross morphology, and function, has not been related to the mode of fertilization. They are typically paired, multichambered, and connected with the [[sperm duct]], and have been reported to play glandular and storage functions. Seminal vesicle secretion may include [[steroid]]s and steroid [[glucuronide]]s, with [[Hormone|hormonal]] and [[Pheromone|pheromonal]] functions, but it appears to be primarily constituted of [[mucoprotein]]s, acid [[mucopolysaccharide]]s, and [[phospholipid]]s.<ref name="Mazzoldi"/>

Fish [[Ovary|ovaries]] may be of two types - gymnovarian or cystovarian. In the first type, the [[oocyte]]s are released directly into the [[coelom]]ic cavity and then eliminated (released outside the body). In the second type, the oocytes are conveyed to the exterior through the [[oviduct]].<ref name="Brito"/> Many catfish are cystovarian in type, including ''[[Pseudoplatystoma corruscans]]'', ''[[Pseudoplatystoma fasciatum|P. fasciatum]]'', ''[[Lophiosilurus alexandri]]'', and ''[[Loricaria lentiginosa]]''.<ref name="Barros"/><ref name="Brito">{{cite journal|title=Reproduction of the surubim catfish (Pisces, Pimelodidae) in the São Francisco River, Pirapora Region, Minas Gerais, Brazil|last=Brito|first=M.F.G.|author2=Bazzoli, N.|journal=Arquivo Brasileiro de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia|volume=55|issue=5|year=2003|doi=10.1590/S0102-09352003000500018|page=624|doi-access=free}}</ref>

===Size===
[[File:Bagarius yarrelli India.png|thumb|Giant ''[[Bagarius yarrelli]]'' (goonch) caught in India. Some goonch in the Kali River grow large enough to supposedly attack humans and [[water buffalo]]]]
Catfish have one of the largest ranges in size within a single order of [[Actinopterygii|bony fish]].<ref name="Bruton"/> Many catfish have a maximum length of under {{convert|12|cm|in|abbr=on}}.<ref name="Nelson" /> Some of the smallest species of the [[Aspredinidae]] and [[Trichomycteridae]] reach sexual maturity at only {{convert|1|cm|in|abbr=on}}.<ref name=tol/>

The [[wels catfish]], ''Silurus glanis'', and the much smaller related [[Aristotle's catfish]], are the only catfish indigenous to [[Europe]]; the former ranges throughout Europe, and the latter is restricted to [[Greece]]. [[Mythology]] and literature record wels catfish of astounding proportions that have not been scientifically verified. The typical size of the species is about {{convert|1.2–1.6|m|ft|abbr=on}}, and fish more than {{convert|2|m|ft|abbr=on}} are rare. However, they are known to exceed {{convert|2.5|m|ft|abbr=on}} in length and {{convert|100|kg|lb|abbr=on}} in weight. In July 2009, a catfish weighing {{convert|88|kg|lb}} was caught in the [[River Ebro]], Spain, by an 11-year-old British schoolgirl.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/5834754/Schoolgirl-nets-9ft-monster-fish.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220111/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/5834754/Schoolgirl-nets-9ft-monster-fish.html |archive-date=11 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live | work=[[The Daily Telegraph]] | location=London | title=Schoolgirl nets 9ft monster fish | date=15 July 2009 | access-date=28 April 2010}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

In North America, the largest ''[[Ictalurus furcatus]]'' (blue catfish) caught in the [[Missouri River]] on 20 July 2010, weighed {{convert|59|kg|lb|abbr=on}}. The largest [[flathead catfish]], ''Pylodictis olivaris'', ever caught was in [[Independence, Kansas]], weighing {{convert|56|kg|lb|abbr=on}}. The biggest flathead catfish caught was by Ken Paulie in the [[Elk City Reservoir]] in Kansas, US on 19 May 1998 weighing {{convert|55.79|kg|lboz|abbr=on}}, which was certified by the International Game Fish Association [[IGFA]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://wrec.igfa.org/ |title=IGFA World Records |publisher=International Game Fish Association |access-date=1 November 2015 |archive-date=1 November 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151101064327/http://wrec.igfa.org/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

A [[Mekong giant catfish]] caught in northern [[Thailand]] on 1 May 2005, and reported to the press almost 2 months later weighed {{convert|293|kg|lb}}. This is the largest giant Mekong catfish caught since Thai officials started keeping records in 1981.<ref name=Mekong>{{cite web|url=http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/06/0629_050629_giantcatfish.html|title=Grizzly Bear-Size Catfish Caught in Thailand|date=29 June 2005|access-date=14 July 2006|publisher=National Geographic News|archive-date=30 June 2005|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050630233848/http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/06/0629_050629_giantcatfish.html}}</ref> Also in Asia, [[Jeremy Wade]] caught a {{convert|75.5|kg|lb|1|adj=on}} [[Bagarius yarrelli|goonch]] following [[Kali River goonch attacks|three fatal attacks on humans]] in the [[Sharda River|Kali River]] on the [[India]]-[[Nepal]] border. Wade was of the opinion that the offending fish must have been significantly larger than this to have taken an 18-year-old boy, as well as a [[water buffalo]].{{citation needed|reason=This claim needs a reliable source.|date=March 2020}}

Piraíba ''([[Brachyplatystoma filamentosum]])'', a [[goliath catfish]], can grow exceptionally large and are native to the Amazon Basin. They can occasionally grow to {{convert|200|kg|lb|abbr=on}}, as evidenced by numerous catches. Deaths from being swallowed by these fish have been reported in the region.

==Classification==
[[Genetic testing|Molecular evidence]] suggests that in spite of the great morphological diversity in the order, all catfish form a [[monophyletic]] group, originating from a [[common ancestor]].<ref name="Sullivan">{{cite journal |last=Sullivan |first=JP |author2=Lundberg JG |author3=Hardman M |year=2006 |title=A phylogenetic analysis of the major groups of catfish (Teleostei: Siluriformes) using rag1 and rag2 nuclear gene sequences |journal=Mol Phylogenet Evol |volume=41 |issue=3 |pages=636–62 |doi=10.1016/j.ympev.2006.05.044 |pmid=16876440|bibcode=2006MolPE..41..636S }}</ref> Catfish belong to a superorder called the [[Ostariophysi]], which also includes the [[Cypriniformes]] (carps and minnows), [[Characiformes]] (characins and tetras), [[Gonorynchiformes]] (milkfish and beaked salmons) and [[Gymnotiformes]] (South American knifefish), a superorder characterized by the [[Weberian apparatus]]. Some place Gymnotiformes as a sub-order of Siluriformes; however, this is not as widely accepted. Currently, the Siluriformes are said to be the [[sister group]] to the Gymnotiformes, though this has been debated due to more recent molecular evidence.<ref name="Nelson">{{cite book |last=Nelson |first=Joseph S. |title=Fishes of the World |title-link=Fishes of the World |publisher=[[John Wiley & Sons]], Inc |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-471-25031-9}}</ref> {{As of|2007}} there were about thirty-six [[extant taxon|extant]] catfish families, and about 3,093 extant species have been described.<ref name="ferraris">{{cite journal |last1=Ferraris |first1=Carl J. Jr. |last2=Miya |first2=M |last3=Azuma |first3=Y |last4=Nishida |first4=M |year=2007 |title=Checklist of catfish, recent and fossil (Osteichthyes: Siluriformes), and catalogue of siluriform primary types |url=http://mapress.com/zootaxa/2007f/zt01418p300.pdf |url-status=live |journal=[[Zootaxa]] |volume=1418 |pages=1–628 |citeseerx=10.1.1.232.798 |doi=10.11646/zootaxa.1418.1.1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080414082401/http://mapress.com/zootaxa/2007f/zt01418p300.pdf |archive-date=2008-04-14 |access-date=22 June 2009}}</ref> This makes the catfish order the second or third most diverse [[vertebrate]] order; in fact, one out of every twenty vertebrate species is a catfish.<ref name="tol">{{cite web |last=Lundberg |first=John G. |author2=Friel, John P. |date=20 January 2003 |title=Siluriformes |url=http://tolweb.org/tree?group=Siluriformes&contgroup=Ostariophysi |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070128012752/http://tolweb.org/tree?group=Siluriformes&contgroup=Ostariophysi |archive-date=28 January 2007 |access-date=18 April 2007 |publisher=[[Tree of Life Web Project]]}}</ref> 

The taxonomy of catfish is quickly changing. In a 2007 and 2008 paper, ''[[Horabagrus]]'', ''[[Phreatobius]]'', and ''[[Conorhynchos]]'' were not classified under any current catfish families.<ref name="ferraris" /> There is disagreement on the family status of certain groups; for example, Nelson (2006) lists Auchenoglanididae and Heteropneustidae as separate families, while the All Catfish Species Inventory (ACSI) includes them under other families. [[FishBase]] and the [[Integrated Taxonomic Information System]] lists Parakysidae as a separate family, while this group is included under [[Akysidae]] by both Nelson (2006) and ACSI.<ref name="Nelson" /><ref>{{cite web |title=Catfish Families |url=http://silurus.acnatsci.org/ACSI/taxa/Families.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070502195241/http://silurus.acnatsci.org/ACSI/taxa/Families.html |archive-date=2 May 2007 |access-date=28 April 2007 |publisher=All Catfish Species Inventory}}</ref><ref>{{FishBase family|family=Parakysidae|year=2007|month=April}}</ref><ref>{{ITIS|id=553185|taxon=Parakysidae|access-date=10 September 2016}}</ref> Many sources do not list the recently revised family [[Anchariidae]].<ref name="Anchariidae">{{cite journal |last=Ng |first=Heok Hee |author2=Sparks, John S. |year=2005 |title=Revision of the endemic Malagasy catfish family Anchariidae (Teleostei: Siluriformes), with descriptions of a new genus and three new species |url=http://www.pfeil-verlag.de/04biol/pdf/ief16_4_02.pdf |url-status=live |journal=Ichthyol. Explor. Freshwaters |volume=16 |issue=4 |pages=303–323 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071215172203/http://www.pfeil-verlag.de/04biol/pdf/ief16_4_02.pdf |archive-date=2007-12-15}}</ref> The family [[Horabagridae]], including ''Horabagrus'', ''[[Pseudeutropius]]'', and ''[[Platytropius]]'', is not shown by some authors but presented by others as a true group.<ref name="Sullivan" /> Thus, the actual number of families differs between authors. The species count is in constant flux due to [[Taxonomy (biology)|taxonomic]] work as well as description of new species.<ref name="Nelson" /> Between 2003 and 2005, over one hundred species were named, a rate three times faster than that of the past century.<ref name="neotropdiversity">{{cite journal |last=Ferraris |first=Carl J. Jr. |author2=Reis, Roberto E. |author-link2=Roberto Esser dos Reis |year=2005 |title=Neotropical catfish diversity: an historical perspective |journal=Neotropical Ichthyology |volume=3 |issue=4 |pages=453–454 |doi=10.1590/S1679-62252005000400001 |doi-access=free}}</ref> In June 2005, researchers named the newest family of catfish, [[Lacantuniidae]], only the third new family of fish distinguished in the last seventy years, the others being the [[coelacanth]] in 1938 and the [[megamouth shark]] in 1983. The new species in [[Lacantuniidae]], ''[[Lacantunia enigmatica]]'', was found in the [[Lacantun river]] in the Mexican state of [[Chiapas]].<ref name="rodiles">{{cite journal |last=Rodiles-Hernández |first=Rocío |author2=Hendrickson, Dean A. |author3=Lundberg, John G. |author4=Humphries, Julian M. |year=2005 |title=''Lacantunia enigmatica'' (Teleostei: Siluriformes) a new and phylogenetically puzzling freshwater fish from Mesoamerica |url=http://biostor.org/reference/15994 |url-status=live |journal=[[Zootaxa]] |volume=1000 |pages=1–24 |doi=10.11646/zootaxa.1000.1.1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121025015806/http://biostor.org/reference/15994 |archive-date=25 October 2012 |access-date=22 June 2009 |doi-access=free}}</ref>

The higher-level phylogeny of Siluriformes has gone through several recent changes, mainly due to [[molecular phylogenetic]] studies. While most studies, both morphological and molecular, agree that catfishes are arranged into three main [[Lineage (evolution)|lineages]], the relationship among these lineages has been a contentious point in which these studies, performed for example by [[Rui Diogo]], differ.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last1=Arcila |first1=Dahiana |last2=Ortí |first2=Guillermo |last3=Vari |first3=Richard |last4=Armbruster |first4=Jonathan W. |last5=Stiassny |first5=Melanie L. J. |last6=Ko |first6=Kyung D. |last7=Sabaj |first7=Mark H. |last8=Lundberg |first8=John |last9=Revell |first9=Liam J. |date=2017-01-13 |title=Genome-wide interrogation advances resolution of recalcitrant groups in the tree of life |journal=Nature Ecology & Evolution |volume=1 |issue=2 |page=0020 |bibcode=2017NatEE...1...20A |doi=10.1038/s41559-016-0020 |pmid=28812610 |s2cid=16535732}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite journal |last1=Chen |first1=Wei-Jen |last2=Lavoué |first2=Sébastien |last3=Mayden |first3=Richard L. |date=2013-04-09 |title=Evolutionary Origin and Early Biogeography of Otophysan Fishes (Ostariophysi: Teleostei) |journal=Evolution |volume=67 |issue=8 |pages=2218–2239 |doi=10.1111/evo.12104 |pmid=23888847 |s2cid=40056087 |doi-access=free}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite journal |last1=Rivera-Rivera |first1=Carlos J. |last2=Montoya-Burgos |first2=Juan I. |date=October 2018 |title=Back to the roots: Reducing evolutionary rate heterogeneity among sequences gives support for the early morphological hypothesis of the root of Siluriformes (Teleostei: Ostariophysi) |journal=Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution |volume=127 |pages=272–279 |doi=10.1016/j.ympev.2018.06.004 |pmid=29885935 |s2cid=47014511 |doi-access=free|bibcode=2018MolPE.127..272R }}</ref><ref name=":3">{{Cite journal |last=Diogo |first=Rui |date=2004-11-01 |title=Phylogeny, origin and biogeography of catfishes: support for a Pangean origin of 'modern teleosts' and reexamination of some Mesozoic Pangean connections between the Gondwanan and Laurasian supercontinents |journal=Animal Biology |volume=54 |issue=4 |pages=331–351 |doi=10.1163/1570756042729546}}</ref><ref name=":4">{{Cite book |last=Rui. |first=Diogo |title=The origin of higher clades: osteology, myology, phylogeny and evolution of bony fishes and the rise of tetrapods |date=2007 |publisher=Science Publishers |isbn=978-1-57808-559-0 |location=Enfield, NH |oclc=680560456}}</ref> The three main lineages in Siluriformes are the family [[Diplomystidae]], the denticulate catfish suborder [[Loricarioidea|Loricarioidei]] (containing the Neotropical "suckermouth" catfishes), and the suborder Siluroidei, which contains the remaining families of the order. According to [[morphology (biology)|morphological]] data, [[Diplomystidae]] is usually considered to be the earliest branching catfish lineage and the [[sister group]] to the other two lineages, Loricarioidei and Siluroidei.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":4" /><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Yang |first=Lei |date=April 2011 |title=GONORYNCHIFORMES AND OSTARIOPHYSAN RELATIONSHIPS: A COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW - Edited by T. Grande, F. J. Poyato-Ariza and R. Diogo |journal=Journal of Fish Biology |volume=78 |issue=4 |pages=1277–1278 |bibcode=2011JFBio..78.1277Y |doi=10.1111/j.1095-8649.2011.02907.x}}</ref> Molecular evidence usually contrasts with this hypothesis, and shows the suborder Loricarioidei as the earliest branching catfish lineage, and sister to a [[clade]] that includes the Diplomystidae and Siluroidei; this phylogeny has been obtained in numerous studies based on genetic data.<ref name="Sullivan" /><ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Nakatani |first1=Masanori |last2=Miya |first2=Masaki |last3=Mabuchi |first3=Kohji |last4=Saitoh |first4=Kenji |last5=Nishida |first5=Mutsumi |date=2011-06-22 |title=Evolutionary history of Otophysi (Teleostei), a major clade of the modern freshwater fishes: Pangaean origin and Mesozoic radiation |journal=BMC Evolutionary Biology |volume=11 |issue=1 |page=177 |bibcode=2011BMCEE..11..177N |doi=10.1186/1471-2148-11-177 |pmc=3141434 |pmid=21693066 |doi-access=free}}</ref> However, it has been suggested that these molecular results are errors as a result of [[long branch attraction]], incorrectly placing Loricarioidei as the earliest-branching catfish lineage.<ref name=":2" /> When a data filtering method<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Rivera-Rivera |first1=Carlos J. |last2=Montoya-Burgos |first2=Juan I. |date=2019-08-13 |title=LSX: automated reduction of gene-specific lineage evolutionary rate heterogeneity for multi-gene phylogeny inference |journal=BMC Bioinformatics |publisher=Springer Science and Business Media LLC |volume=20 |issue=1 |page=420 |biorxiv=10.1101/220053 |doi=10.1186/s12859-019-3020-1 |pmc=6693147 |pmid=31409290 |doi-access=free}}</ref> was used to reduce lineage rate heterogeneity (the potential source of bias) on their dataset, a final phylogeny was recovered which showed the [[Diplomystidae]] are the earliest-branching catfish, followed by [[Loricarioidei]] and Siluroidei as sister lineages, providing both morphological and molecular support for [[Diplomystidae]] being the earliest branching catfish.<ref name=":2"/>


The following classification is based on ''[[Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes]]'':<ref name=":13">{{Cite web |last1=Fricke |first1=R. |last2=Eschmeyer |first2=W. N. |last3=Van der Laan |first3=R. |date=2025 |title=ESCHMEYER'S CATALOG OF FISHES: CLASSIFICATION |url=https://www.calacademy.org/eschmeyers-catalog-of-fishes-classification |access-date=2025-02-10 |website=California Academy of Sciences |language=en}}</ref>

* Order '''Siluriformes'''
** Suborder [[Diplomystoidei]]
*** Family [[Diplomystidae]] <small>[[Carl H. Eigenmann|Eigenmann]]</small><small>, 1890</small> (diplomystid catfishes)
** Suborder [[Cetopsoidei]]
*** Family [[Cetopsidae]] <small>[[Pieter Bleeker|Bleeker]]</small><small>, 1858</small> (cetopsid catfishes)
** Suborder [[Loricarioidea|Loricarioidei]]
*** Family [[Nematogenyidae]] <small>Bleeker</small><small>, 1862</small> (mountain catfishes)
*** Family [[Trichomycteridae]] <small>Bleeker</small><small>, 1858</small> (pencil catfishes)
*** Family [[Callichthyidae]] <small>[[Charles Lucien Bonaparte|Bonaparte]]</small><small>, 1835</small> (callichthyid armored catfishes)
*** Family [[Loricariidae]] <small>[[Constantine Samuel Rafinesque|Rafinesque]]</small><small>, 1815</small> (suckermouth armored catfishes)
*** Family [[Scoloplacidae]] <small>[[Reeve Maclaren Bailey|Bailey]] & Baskin</small><small>, 1976</small> (spiny dwarf catfishes)
*** Family [[Astroblepidae]] <small>Bleeker</small><small>, 1862</small> (climbing catfishes)
** Suborder [[Siluroidei]]
*** Genus ''[[Conorhynchos]]'' <small>Bleeker, 1858</small> (''[[incertae sedis]]'')
*** Family [[Chacidae]] <small>Bleeker</small><small>, 1858</small> (squarehead or angler catfishes)
*** Family [[Plotosidae]] <small>Bleeker</small><small>, 1858</small> (eeltail catfishes)
*** Family [[Ritidae]] <small>Bleeker</small><small>, 1862</small> (velvet catfishes)
*** Family [[Ailiidae]] <small>Bleeker</small><small>, 1858</small> (Asian schilbeids)<ref name="Wang2016">{{cite journal |last1=Wang |first1=Jing |last2=Lu |first2=Bin |last3=Zan |first3=Ruiguang |last4=Chai |first4=Jing |last5=Ma |first5=Wei |last6=Jin |first6=Wei |last7=Duan |first7=Rongyao |last8=Luo |first8=Jing |last9=Murphy |first9=Robert W. |last10=Xiao |first10=Heng |last11=Chen |first11=Ziming |year=2016 |title=Phylogenetic Relationships of Five Asian Schilbid Genera Including ''Clupisoma'' (Siluriformes: Schilbeidae) |journal=PLOS ONE |volume=11 |issue=1 |article-number=e0145675 |bibcode=2016PLoSO..1145675W |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0145675 |pmc=4713424 |pmid=26751688 |doi-access=free}}</ref>
*** Family [[Horabagridae]] <small>Jayaram</small><small>, 2006</small> (imperial catfishes)
*** Family [[Bagridae]] <small>Bleeker</small><small>, 1858</small> (bagrid catfishes)
*** Family [[Akysidae]] <small>[[Theodore Gill|Gill]]</small><small>, 1861</small> (stream catfishes)
*** Family [[Amblycipitidae]] <small>[[Francis Day|Day]]</small><small>, 1873</small> (torrent catfishes)
*** Family [[Sisoridae]] <small>Bleeker</small><small>, 1858</small> (sisorid catfishes)
*** Family [[Pangasiidae]] <small>Bleeker</small><small>, 1858</small> (pangasid catfishes)
*** Family [[Siluridae]] <small>Rafinesque</small><small>, 1815</small> (sheatfishes)
*** Family [[Kryptoglanidae]] <small>Britz, Kakkassery & Raghavan</small><small>, 2014</small> (Indian cave catfishes)
*** Family [[Aspredinidae]] <small>[[Arthur Adams (zoologist)|Adams]]</small><small>, 1854</small> (banjo catfishes)
*** Family [[Auchenipteridae]] <small>Bleeker</small><small>, 1862</small> (intromittant catfishes)
*** Family [[Doradidae]] <small>Bleeker</small><small>, 1858</small> (thorny catfishes)
*** Family [[Heptapteridae]] <small>Gill</small><small>, 1861</small> (seven-finned catfishes)
*** Family [[Phreatobiidae]] <small>Reichel</small><small>, 1927</small> (cistern catfishes)
*** Family [[Pimelodidae]] <small>Bonaparte</small><small>, 1835</small> (long-whiskered catfishes)
*** Family [[Pseudopimelodidae]] <small>Fernández-Yépez & Antón</small><small>, 1966</small> (bumblebee catfishes)
*** Family [[Airbreathing catfish|Clariidae]] <small>Bonaparte</small><small>, 1845</small> (airbreathing or labyrinth catfishes)
*** Family [[Heteropneustidae]] <small>[[Sunder Lal Hora|Hora]]</small><small>, 1936</small> (airsac catfishes)
*** Family [[Ariidae]] <small>Bleeker</small><small>, 1858</small> (sea catfishes)
*** Family [[Anchariidae]] <small>[[Frank Glaw|Glaw]] & Vences</small><small>, 1994</small> (Malagasy catfishes)
*** Family [[Austroglanididae]] <small>Mo</small><small>, 1991</small> (rock catlets)
*** Family [[Cranoglanididae]] <small>[[George S. Myers|Myers]]</small><small>, 1931</small> (armorhead catfishes)
*** Family [[Ictaluridae]] <small>Gill</small><small>, 1861</small> (North American freshwater catfishes)
*** Family [[Lacantuniidae]] <small>Rodiles-Hernández, Hendrickson & Lundberg</small><small>, 2005</small> (Chiapas catfishes)
*** Family [[Amphiliidae]] <small>[[Charles Tate Regan|Regan]]</small><small>, 1911</small> (loach catfishes)
*** Family [[Malapteruridae]] <small>Bleeker</small><small>, 1858</small> (electric catfishes)
*** Family [[Mochokidae]] <small>Regan</small><small>, 1912</small> (squeakers and upside-down catfishes)
*** Family [[Auchenoglanididae]] <small>Jayaram</small><small>, 1966</small> (flatnose catfishes)
*** Family [[Claroteidae]] <small>Bleeker</small><small>, 1862</small> (grunter catfishes)
*** Family [[Schilbeidae]] <small>Bleeker</small><small>, 1858</small> (schilbeid catfishes)

=== Phylogeny ===
Phylogeny of living Siluriformes based on 2017<ref>{{cite journal |last=Betancur-Rodriguez |first=Ricardo |author2=Edward O. Wiley |author3=Gloria Arratia |author4=Arturo Acero |author5=Nicolas Bailly |author6=Masaki Miya |author7=Guillaume Lecointre |author8=Guillermo Ortí |year=2017 |title=Phylogenetic classification of bony fishes |journal=BMC Evolutionary Biology |edition=4 |volume=17 |issue=162 |page=162 |bibcode=2017BMCEE..17..162B |doi=10.1186/s12862-017-0958-3 |pmc=5501477 |pmid=28683774 |doi-access=free}}</ref> and extinct families based on Nelson, Grande & Wilson 2016.<ref>{{cite book |last=Nelson |first=Joseph S. |title=Fishes of the World |author2=Terry C. Grande |author3=Mark V. H. Wilson |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |year=2016 |isbn=978-1-118-34233-6 |edition=5}}</ref>
{{clade| style=font-size:100%;line-height:80%
|label1='''Siluriformes'''
|1={{clade
  |1=†[[Andinichthyidae]]
  |2={{clade
    |label1=Loricaroidei
    |1={{clade
      |1={{clade
        |1=[[Nematogenyidae]] [[File:Contributions to the fauna of Chile (Nematogenys inermis).jpg|70 px]]
        |2=[[Trichomycteridae]] <span style="{{MirrorH}}">[[File:Trichomycterus punctatissimus.jpg|70 px]]</span>
         }}
      |2={{clade
        |1=[[Callichthyidae]] [[File:Hoplosternum littorale Orbigny.jpg|70 px]]
        |2={{clade
          |1=[[Astroblepidae]] [[File:Astroblepus sabalo.jpg|70 px]]
          |2=[[Loricariidae]] [[File:Loricariichthys anus Orbigny.jpg|70 px]]
           }}
         }}
       }}
    |2={{clade
      |label1=Diplomystoidei
      |1={{clade
        |1=[[Diplomystidae]]
        |2=†[[Bachmanniidae]]
         }}
      |label2=Siluroidei
      |2={{clade
        |label1=Hypsidoroidea
        |1=†[[Hypsidoridae]]
        |2={{clade
          |label1=Cetopsoidea
          |1=[[Cetopsidae]] [[File:Cetopsis plumbea.jpg|70 px]]
          |2={{clade
            |label1=Siluroidea
            |1=[[Siluridae]] [[File:Silurus glanis1.jpg|70 px]]
            |2={{clade
              |1={{clade
                |1={{clade
                  |label1=Arioidea
                  |1=[[Pangasiidae]]
                  |label2=Big African catfishes
                  |2={{clade
                    |1=[[Mochokidae]] <span style="{{MirrorH}}">[[File:Synodontis multipunctatus J. Green.jpg|70 px]]</span>
                    |2=[[Claroteidae]]
                     }}
                   }}
                |2={{clade
                  |label1=Ictaluroidea
                  |1={{clade
                    |1=[[Plotosidae]]
                    |2=[[Ictaluridae]] [[File:Black bullhead fish (white background).jpg|70 px]]                      }}
                  |2={{clade
                    |label1=Clarioidea
                    |1=[[Clariidae]] [[File:Clarias gariepinus.jpg|70 px]]
                    |label2=Sisoroidea
                    |2={{clade
                      |1=[[Ailiidae]]
                      |2={{clade
                        |1=[[Sisoridae]] [[File:Bagrus yarrelli Sykes.jpg|70 px]]
                        |2=[[Bagridae]] <span style="{{MirrorH}}">[[File:Rita sacerdotum.jpg|70 px]]</span>
                         }}
                       }}
                     }}
                   }}
                 }}
              |2={{clade
                |label1=Doradoidea
                |1={{clade
                  |1=[[Aspredinidae]]
                  |2={{clade
                    |1=[[Doradidae]] <span style="{{MirrorH}}">[[File:Silurus costatus now in Platydoras sketch of Gronow 1754.jpg|70 px]]</span>
                    |2=[[Auchenipteridae]] [[File:Ageneiosus militaris Orbigny.jpg|70 px]]
                     }}
                   }}
                |label2=Pimelodoidea
                |2={{clade
                  |1=[[Heptapteridae]] <span style="{{MirrorH}}">[[File:Pimelodella gracilis.jpg|70 px]]</span>
                  |2={{clade
                    |1=[[Pseudopimelodidae]] [[File:Pseudopimelodus mangurus.jpg|70 px]]
                    |2=[[Pimelodidae]] [[File:Pseudoplatystoma fasciatum3.jpg|70 px]]
                     }}
                   }}
                 }}
               }}
             }}
           }}
         }}
       }}
     }}
   }}
 }}

===Evolution===
Catfish are believed to have a [[Gondwana]]n origin primarily centered around South America, as the most [[Basal (phylogenetics)|basal]] living catfish groups are known from there. The earliest known definitive members lived in the [[Americas]] from the [[Campanian]] to [[Maastrichtian]] stages of the [[Late Cretaceous]], including the [[Andinichthyidae]], ''[[Vorhisia vulpes]]'' and possibly ''[[Arius (fish)|Arius]]''.<ref name=NT24/><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Stringer |first1=Gary |last2=Schwarzhans |first2=Werner |date=2021-09-01 |title=Upper Cretaceous teleostean otoliths from the Severn Formation (Maastrichtian) of Maryland, USA, with an unusual occurrence of Siluriformes and Beryciformes and the oldest Atlantic coast Gadiformes |journal=Cretaceous Research |volume=125 |article-number=104867 |doi=10.1016/j.cretres.2021.104867 |issn=0195-6671|doi-access=free |bibcode=2021CrRes.12504867S }}</ref><ref name=Cavin2017/> A potential fossil record is known from the earlier [[Coniacian]]-[[Santonian]] stages in [[Niger]] of [[West Africa]],<ref name=Patterson1993>{{cite book|author=Patterson, C.|year=1993|chapter=Osteichthyes: Teleostei|editor=Benton, M.J.|title=The Fossil Record 2|pages=621–656|publisher=[[Chapman & Hall]]|location=London}}</ref> though this has been considered unreliable,<ref name=Cavin2017>{{Citation |last=Cavin |first=Lionel |title=Evolutionary Histories of Freshwater Fishes |date=2017 |work=Freshwater Fishes: 250 Million Years of Evolutionary History |pages=53–125 |publisher=Elsevier |doi=10.1016/b978-1-78548-138-3.50004-2 |isbn=978-1-78548-138-3}}</ref> and the putative earliest [[Loricariidae|armored catfish]] known from the fossil record, ''[[Afrocascudo]]'', lived during the [[Cenomanian]] age of the [[Late Cretaceous]] in [[Morocco]] of [[North Africa]] ([[Kem Kem Group]]).<ref name="Afrocascudo" /> The describers of ''Afrocascudo'' claimed that the presence of a derived loricariid so early on would indicate the extensive diversification of catfish, or at least loricarioids, prior to the beginning of the Late Cretaceous. As extant loricariids are only known from South America, much of this diversification must have occurred on the supercontinent of [[Gondwana|West Gondwana]] prior to its fragmentation into South America and Africa.<ref name="Afrocascudo" /> Britz and colleagues suggested that ''Afrocascudo'' instead represents a juvenile [[Obaichthyidae|obaichthyid]] [[Lepisosteiformes|lepisosteiform]], possibly a junior synonym of ''[[Obaichthys]]''.<ref>{{cite journal|author1=Britz, R.|author2=Pinion, Amanda K.|author3=Kubicek, Kole M.|author4=Conway, Kevin W.|year=2024|title=Comment on "A Saharan fossil and the dawn of Neotropical armoured catfishes in Gondwana" by Brito et al|journal=Gondwana Research|volume=133 |pages=267–269 |doi=10.1016/j.gr.2024.06.014|bibcode=2024GondR.133..267B }}</ref> The authors of the original study still stood by their original conclusion based on the absence of important [[Holostei|holostean]] characters, and noted that it could not be a juvenile, since the bones were completely ossified.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Brito |first1=Paulo M. |last2=Dutheil |first2=Didier B. |last3=Keith |first3=Philippe |last4=Carnevale |first4=Giorgio |last5=Meunier |first5=François J. |last6=Khalloufi |first6=Bouziane |last7=Gueriau |first7=Pierre |year=2024|title=A reply to a comment on Brito et al., 2024, A Saharan fossil and the dawn of the Neotropical armoured catfishes in Gondwana by Britz, Pinion, Kubicek and Conway|journal=Gondwana Research|doi=10.1016/j.gr.2024.06.013|url=https://serval.unil.ch/notice/serval:BIB_52080E04AC82 }}</ref>

==== Fossil taxa ====
* Order '''Siluriformes'''
** Family †[[Andinichthyidae]] (Late Cretaceous to Paleogene of South America)<ref>{{Cite journal |author1=Sergio Bogan |author2=Federico L. Agnolin |author3=Agustín Scanferla |year=2018 |title=A new Andinichthyidae catfish (Ostariophysi, Siluriformes) from the Paleogene of northwestern Argentina |journal=Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology |volume=38 |issue=3 |article-number=e1449117 |bibcode=2018JVPal..38E9117B |doi=10.1080/02724634.2018.1449117 |s2cid=89841371 |hdl-access=free |hdl=11336/91672}}</ref>
** Suborder [[Diplomystoidei]]
*** Family †[[Bachmanniidae]] (Eocene of Argentina)<ref name=":02">{{Cite journal |last1=Azpelicueta |first1=María De Las Mercedes |last2=Cione |first2=Alberto Luis |date=2011-03-17 |title=Redescription of the Eocene catfish Bachmannia chubutensis (Teleostei: Bachmanniidae) of southern South America |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/02724634.2011.550351 |journal=Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology |language=en |volume=31 |issue=2 |pages=258–269 |bibcode=2011JVPal..31..258A |doi=10.1080/02724634.2011.550351 |issn=0272-4634|url-access=subscription }}</ref>
** Suborder [[Siluroidei]]
*** Family †[[Astephidae]] (Paleocene to Oligocene of North America)<ref name=":03">{{Cite journal |last1=Grande |first1=Lance |last2=and Lundberg |first2=John G. |date=1988-06-22 |title=Revision and redescription of the genus Astephus (Siluriformes: Ictaluridae) with a discussion of its phylogenetic relationships |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/02724634.1988.10011694 |journal=Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology |volume=8 |issue=2 |pages=139–171 |doi=10.1080/02724634.1988.10011694 |bibcode=1988JVPal...8..139G |issn=0272-4634|url-access=subscription }}</ref>
*** Family †[[Hypsidoridae]] (Eocene of North America)<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Lundberg |first1=John G. |last2=Case |first2=Gerard R. |date=1970 |title=A New Catfish from the Eocene Green River Formation, Wyoming |journal=Journal of Paleontology |volume=44 |issue=3 |page=452 |issn=0022-3360 |jstor=1302580}}</ref>

==Distribution and habitat==
Catfish live inland or in coastal waters of every continent except [[Antarctica]]. Catfish have inhabited all continents at one time or another.<ref name="Nelson"/> They are most diverse in [[tropical]] South America, Asia, and Africa, with one family native to North America and one family in Europe.<ref name=tol/> More than half of all catfish species live in the Americas. They are the only [[ostariophysan]]s that have entered [[freshwater]] habitats in [[Madagascar]], Australia, and [[New Guinea]].<ref name="Bruton">{{cite journal|title=Alternative life-history strategies of catfishes|last=Bruton|first=Michael N.|journal= Aquatic Living Resources|year=1996|volume=9|pages=35–41|doi=10.1051/alr:1996040|s2cid=85428351 |doi-access=free}}</ref>

They are found in fresh water/[[brackish water]] environments, with most inhabiting shallow, running water.<ref name="Bruton"/> Representatives of at least eight families are [[hypogean]] (live underground) with three families that are also [[troglobite|troglobitic]] (inhabiting caves).<ref>{{cite journal|title=Morphological Adaptations of the Texas Blind Catfishes ''Trogloglanis pattersoni'' and ''Satan eurystomus'' (Siluriformes: Ictaluridae) to Their Underground Environment|first=Thomas G.|last=Langecker|author2=Longley, Glenn|journal=[[Copeia]]|year=1993|pages=976–986|doi=10.2307/1447075|volume=1993|issue=4|jstor=1447075}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|title=Mexican blindcats genus ''Prietella'' (Siluriformes: Ictaluridae): an overview of recent explorations|first=Dean A.|last=Hendrickson|author2=Krejca, Jean K. |author3=Martinez, Juan Manuel Rodríguez |journal=Environmental Biology of Fishes|volume=62|pages=315–337|year=2001|issue=1–3|doi=10.1023/A:1011808805094|bibcode=2001EnvBF..62..315H |s2cid=19962442}}</ref> One such species is ''[[Phreatobius cisternarum]]'', known to live underground in [[phreatic]] habitats.<ref name=pcisternarum>{{FishBase|genus=Phreatobius|species=cisternarum|year=2007|month=Apr}}</ref> Numerous species from the families [[Ariidae]] and [[Plotosidae]], and a few from [[Aspredinidae]] and [[Bagridae]], are found in salt water.<ref>Monks N. (editor): ''Brackish Water Fishes'', TFH 2006, {{ISBN|0-7938-0564-3}}</ref><ref>Schäfer F: ''Brackish Water Fishes'', Aqualog 2005, {{ISBN|3-936027-82-X}}</ref>

==Behavior==
Many catfish are [[nocturnal]],<ref name="aworld">[http://animal-world.com/encyclo/fresh/catfish/catfish.htm Catfish Varieties] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120417234946/http://animal-world.com/encyclo/fresh/catfish/catfish.htm |date=17 April 2012 }}. animal-world.com</ref><ref name="samer">Wong, Kate (6 June 2001) [http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=how-nocturnal-catfish-sta "How Nocturnal Catfish Stalk Their Prey"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110320110006/https://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=how-nocturnal-catfish-sta |date=20 March 2011 }}. ''Scientific American''.</ref> but others (many [[Auchenipteridae]]) are [[crepuscular]] or [[Diurnality|diurnal]] (most [[Loricariidae]] or [[Callichthyidae]], for example).

=== Communication ===
{{Main|Animal communication}}
Catfish can produce different types of sounds and also have well-developed auditory reception used to discriminate between sounds with different pitches and velocities. They are also able to determine the distance of the sound's origin and from what direction it originated.<ref name="General Sounds Kasumayan">{{cite journal|last=Kasumayan|first=A. O.|title=Sounds and Sound Production in Fishes|journal=Journal of Ichthyology|year=2008|volume=48|issue=11|pages=981–1030|doi=10.1134/S0032945208110039|bibcode=2008JIch...48..981K |s2cid=23223714}}</ref> This is a very important fish communication mechanism, especially during [[agonistic behavior|agonistic]] and distress behaviors. Catfish are able to produce a variety of sounds for communication that can be classified into two groups: drumming sounds and [[stridulation]] sounds. The variability in catfish sound signals differs due to a few factors: the mechanism by which the sound is produced, the function of the resulting sound, and physiological differences such as size, sex, and age.<ref name="Stridulatory">{{cite journal|last=Vance|first=Theresa L.|title=Variation in Stridulatory Sound Production in the Channel Catfish, ''Ictalurus punctatus''|jstor=4608557|journal=BIOS|year=2000|volume=71|issue=3|pages=79–84}}</ref> 

To create a drumming sound, catfish use an indirect vibration mechanism using the [[swimbladder]] as a [[Resonating chamber (anatomy)|resonating chamber]]. In these fishes, special sound-producing muscles (sonic muscles) insert on the ramus Mulleri, also known as the elastic spring. The sonic muscles pull the elastic spring forward and extend the swimbladder. When the muscles relax, the tension in the spring quickly returns the swimbladder to its original position, which produces the sound.<ref name="Sound Generating Mechs">{{cite journal|last=Ladich|first=Friedrich|author2=Michael L. Fine|title=Sound-Generating Mechanisms in Fishes: A Unique Diversity in Vertebrates|journal=Communication in Fishes|year=2006|volume=1|pages=3–43}}</ref>

In stridulators, the sound-generating mechanism is found in their [[pectoral fins]]; the first pectoral fin ray or spine can be moved by large [[Abduction (kinesiology)|abductor]] and [[Adduction|adductor]] muscles. The base of the catfishes' spines has a sequence of ridges, and the spine normally slides within a groove on the fish's pelvic girdle during routine movement; but, pressing the ridges on the spine against the pelvic girdle groove creates a series of short pulses.<ref name="General Sounds Kasumayan" /><ref name="Sound Generating Mechs" /> The movement is analogous to a finger moving down the teeth of a comb, and consequently a series of sharp taps is produced.<ref name="Stridulatory" />

Sound-generating mechanisms are often different between the sexes. In some catfish, pectoral fins are longer in males than in females of similar size, and differences in the characteristic of the sounds produced were also observed.<ref name="Sound Generating Mechs" /> Comparison between families of the same order of catfish demonstrated family and species-specific patterns of vocalization, according to a study by Maria Clara Amorim. During courtship behavior in three species of ''Corydoras'' catfish, all males actively produced stridulation sounds before egg fertilization, and the species' songs were different in pulse number and sound duration.<ref name="Amorim article">{{cite journal|last=Amorim|first=Maria Clara P.|title=Diversity of Sound Production in Fish|journal=Communication in Fish|year=2006|volume=1|pages=71–105}}</ref>

Sound production in catfish may also be correlated with [[Agonistic behaviour|fighting]] and [[alarm call]]s. According to a study by Kaatz, sounds for disturbance (e.g. alarm) and agonistic behavior were not significantly different, which suggests distress sounds can be used to sample variation in agonistic sound production.<ref name="Amorim article" /> However, in a comparison of a few different species of tropical catfish, some fish put under distress conditions produced a higher intensity of stridulatory sounds than drumming sounds.<ref name="Agonistic behavior"/> Differences in the proportion of drumming versus stridulation sounds depend on [[morphology (biology)|morphological]] constraints, such as different sizes of drumming muscles and pectoral spines. Due to these constraints, some fish may not even be able to produce a specific sound. In several different species of catfish, aggressive sound production occurs during cover site defense or during threats from other fish. More specifically, in long-whiskered catfish, drumming sounds are used as a threatening signal and stridulations are used as a defense signal. Kaatz investigated 83 species from 14 families of catfish, and determined that catfish produce more stridulatory sounds in disturbance situations and more swimbladder sounds in intraspecific conflicts.<ref name="Agonistic behavior">{{cite journal|last=Ladich|first=Friedrich|author2=Myrberg, Arthur A Jr.|title=Agonistic Behavior and Acoustic Communication|journal=Communication in Fishes|year=2006|volume=1|pages=121–148}}</ref>

==Relation to humans==
===Food===
[[File:Loading2 U.S. Farm-Raised Catfish.jpg|thumb|Loading U.S. farm-raised catfish.]]
{{More references|section|date=May 2025}}
{{Main|Aquaculture of catfish}}

Catfish are easy to farm in warm climates and are often sold cheaply by local grocers. About 60% of U.S. farm-raised catfish are grown within a 65-mile (100-km) radius of [[Belzoni, Mississippi]].<ref>{{Cite web | author= Morris, J.E. |title= Pond Culture of Channel Catfish in the North Central Region | publisher= North Central Regional Aquaculture Center| date= October 1993| url= http://www.extension.iastate.edu/Publications/NCR444.pdf| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20070206022434/http://www.extension.iastate.edu/Publications/NCR444.pdf| archive-date= 6 February 2007| access-date= 28 June 2006}}</ref> [[Channel catfish]] (''Ictalurus punctatus'') support a $450 million/yr aquaculture industry.<ref name=tol/> The largest producers are located in the [[Southern United States]], including [[Mississippi]], [[Alabama]], and [[Arkansas]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://usda.mannlib.cornell.edu/usda/current/CatfProd/CatfProd-07-21-2017.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170915113343/http://usda.mannlib.cornell.edu/usda/current/CatfProd/CatfProd-07-21-2017.pdf |archive-date=2017-09-15 |url-status=live|title=Catfish Production|date=21 July 2017|website=www.nass.usda.gov|access-date=14 September 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1= Hegde |first1= Shraddha |last2= Kumar |first2= Ganesh |last3= Engle |first3= Carole |last4= Hanson |first4= Terry |last5= Roy |first5= Luke A. |last6= Van Senten |first6= Jonathan |last7= Johnson |first7= Jeff |last8= Avery |first8= Jimmy |last9= Aarattuthodi |first9= Suja |last10= Dahl |first10= Sunni |last11= Dorman |first11= Larry |last12= Peterman |first12= Mark |author1-mask= Hegde, S. |author2-mask= et al. | title= Economic contribution of the U.S. catfish industry | journal= Aquaculture Economics & Management | date= 26 November 2021 | volume= 22 | issue= 4 | pages= 384–413 |doi= 10.1080/13657305.2021.2008050 | url= https://doi.org/10.1080/13657305.2021.2008050 |url-access= subscription }}</ref>

Catfish raised in inland tanks or channels are usually considered safe for the environment, since their waste and disease should be contained and not spread to the wild.<ref>{{cite journal | first = Paul | last = Rogers | title = Economy of Scales | journal = Stanford Magazine | publisher = [[Stanford University|Stanford Alumni Association]] | issue = March / April 2006 | url = http://www.stanfordalumni.org/news/magazine/2006/marapr/features/fishfarming.html | access-date = 14 February 2008 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080611123839/http://www.stanfordalumni.org/news/magazine/2006/marapr/features/fishfarming.html | archive-date = 11 June 2008 }}</ref>

In Asia, many catfish species are important as food. Several [[airbreathing catfish]] (Clariidae) and [[shark catfish]] (Pangasiidae) species are heavily cultured in Africa and Asia. Exports of one particular shark catfish species from [[Vietnam]], ''[[Pangasius bocourti]]'', have met with pressures from the U.S. catfish industry. In 2003, the [[United States Congress]] passed a law preventing the imported fish from being labeled as catfish, this being the conclusion of the so-called [[Catfish Dispute]].<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-catfish28nov28,0,6595048.story?coll=la-home-business| title = "'Catfish' bred in Asia move up on U.S. food chain"$, Associated Press via L.A. Times, 28 November 2006| website = [[Los Angeles Times]]| date = 28 November 2006| access-date = 5 December 2006| archive-date = 23 September 2023| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230923095543/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2006-nov-28-fi-catfish28-story.html| url-status = live}}</ref> As a result, the Vietnamese exporters of this fish now label their products sold in the U.S. as "basa fish". Trader Joe's has labeled frozen fillets of Vietnamese ''[[Pangasius hypophthalmus]]'' as "striper."<ref>Cole, Nancy (27 January 2006) [https://web.archive.org/web/20070731074338/http://growfish.com.au/content.asp?contentid=5816 Catfish imports not slowing]. Northwest Arkansas News</ref>

{{Cookbook|Catfish}}[[File:Fried catfish new orleans.JPG|thumb|Fried catfish from the [[cuisine of New Orleans]]]]
Catfish have widely been caught and farmed for food for thousands of years in Africa, Asia, Europe, and North America. Opinions of their quality and flavor vary, with some food critics considering catfish excellent and others dismissing them as watery and lacking in flavor.<ref name=Baker>Jenny Baker (1988), ''Simply Fish'' p 36–37. Faver & Faber, London.</ref> Catfish is high in [[vitamin D]].<ref name = FactD>{{cite web|url=http://www.health.state.ny.us/diseases/conditions/osteoporosis/vitd.htm|title=Vitamin D and Healthy Bones|publisher=New York State Department of Health|access-date=13 July 2007|archive-date=18 August 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100818173653/http://www.health.state.ny.us/diseases/conditions/osteoporosis/vitd.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> Farm-raised catfish contains low levels of [[omega-3 fatty acid]]s and a much higher proportion of [[omega-6 fatty acid]]s.<ref>[http://www.fitfunctional.com/index.php/articles/nutrition/60-fatty-fish-not-equal-in-qgoodq-fats-study Fatty Fish Not Equal in Good Fats] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120321233925/http://www.fitfunctional.com/index.php/articles/nutrition/60-fatty-fish-not-equal-in-qgoodq-fats-study |date=21 March 2012 }}. Reuters. Source: Journal of the American Dietetic Association, July 2008</ref>

In [[Central Europe]], catfish were often viewed as a [[delicacy]] to be enjoyed on [[feast day]]s and holidays. Migrants from Europe and Africa to the United States brought along this tradition, and in the [[Southern United States]], catfish is extremely popular.

The most commonly eaten species in the United States are the [[channel catfish]] and the [[blue catfish]], both common in the wild and increasingly widely farmed. Farm-raised catfish became such a staple of the U.S. diet that President [[Ronald Reagan]] proclaimed National Catfish Day on June 25, 1987, to recognize "the value of farm-raised catfish."<ref>{{Cite web |date=2011-09-07 |title=The Rehab Archipelago {{!}} Forced Labor and Other Abuses in Drug Detention Centers in Southern Vietnam |url=https://www.hrw.org/report/2011/09/07/rehab-archipelago/forced-labor-and-other-abuses-drug-detention-centers-southern |access-date=2019-06-25 |website=Human Rights Watch |language=en}}</ref>

Catfish is prepared in a variety of ways. In Europe, it is often cooked in similar ways to [[carp]], but in the United States it is popularly crumbed with [[cornmeal]] and fried.<ref name=Baker/>

[[File:Pecel Lele 1.JPG|thumb|right|[[Pecel lele]] served with ''[[sambal]]'', [[tempeh]] and ''[[lalab]]'' vegetables in a tent ''[[warung]]'' in Jakarta, Indonesia]]

In [[Indonesia]], catfish is usually served fried or grilled in street stalls called ''[[warung]]'' and eaten with vegetables, [[sambal]] (a spicy [[relish]] or sauce), and usually ''[[nasi uduk]]'' (traditional [[coconut rice]]). The dish is called {{lang|id|pecel lele}} or {{lang|id|pecak lele}}. {{lang|id|Lele}} is the [[Indonesian language|Indonesian]] word for catfish. The same dish can also be called as {{lang|id|lele penyet}} (squashed catfish) if the fish is lightly squashed along with sambal with a stone [[Mortar and pestle|mortar-and-pestle]]. The {{lang|id|pecel}} or {{lang|id|pecak}} version presents the fish in a separate plate while the mortar is solely for sambal.

In [[Malaysia]], catfish is called ''ikan keli'' and is fried with spices or grilled and eaten with [[tamarind]] and [[Bird's eye chili|Thai chili]] gravy and is also often eaten with [[steamed rice]].

In [[Bangladesh]] and the [[India]]n states of [[Odisha]], [[West Bengal]] and [[Assam]], catfish (locally known as ''[[magur]]'') is eaten as a favored delicacy during the [[monsoon]]s. In the Indian state of [[Kerala]], the local catfish, known as ''thedu''',  ''etta'' or "mushi"  in [[Malayalam]], is also popular.

In [[Hungary]], catfish is often cooked in [[paprika]] sauce (Harcsapaprikás) typical of [[Hungarian cuisine]]. It is traditionally served with [[pasta]] smothered with [[curd cheese]] ([[túrós csusza]]).

In [[Myanmar]] (formerly Burma), catfish is usually used in ''[[mohinga]]'', a traditional noodle [[fish soup]] cooked with [[lemon grass]], [[ginger]], [[garlic]], pepper, banana stem, onions, and other local ingredients.

[[File:Catfishjf.JPG|thumb|[[Filipino cuisine|Filipino]] fried ''hito'' (catfish) with vinegar and ''[[kalamansi]]'' dip sauce]]
Vietnamese catfish, of the genus ''[[Pangasius]]'', cannot be [[Catfish Dispute|legally marketed as catfish]] in the United States, and so is referred to as ''[[swai]]'' or ''[[Basa (fish)|basa]]''.<ref name = FactSwai>{{cite web|url=http://www.unionfishco.com/swai/details.htm|title=Union Fish Company – Basa/Swai Details|access-date=11 November 2007 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071109150512/http://www.unionfishco.com/swai/details.htm |archive-date = 9 November 2007}}</ref> Only fish of the family ''[[Ictaluridae]]'' may be marketed as catfish in the United States.<ref name = PL107171>Public Law 107-171, §&nbsp;10806, 116 [[United States Statutes at Large|Stat.]] 526-527, codified in {{cite web|url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/21/321d|title=United States Code, Title 21, section 321d. Market names for catfish and ginseng|mode=cs2|access-date=28 October 2020|archive-date=17 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210417123630/https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/21/321d|url-status=live}} and {{cite web|url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/21/343-|title=United States Code, Title 21, section&nbsp;343&nbsp;(t). Misbranded food|access-date=9 May 2017|archive-date=23 September 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230923095542/https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/21/343|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>''See'' ''[https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=14897106900736461981&q=ictaluridae Piazza's Seafood World, LLC v. Odom] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230923095542/https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=14897106900736461981&q=ictaluridae |date=23 September 2023 }}'', 448 F. 3d 744 (5th Cir. 2006), ''citing'' Kerrilee E. Kobbeman, "Legislative Note, Hook, Line and Sinker: How Congress Swallowed the Domestic Catfish Industry's Narrow Definition of this Ubiquitous Bottomfeeder," 57 ARK. L.REV. 407, 411-18 (2004).</ref> In the UK, Vietnamese catfish is sometimes sold as "Vietnamese river cobbler", although more commonly as basa.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2006/506/pdfs/uksi_20060506_en.pdf| publisher = [[Committee on Toxicity|COT]]| title = Fish Labelling (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2006| date = 26 May 2007| access-date = 23 May 2013| archive-date = 31 January 2012| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120131042544/http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2006/506/pdfs/uksi_20060506_en.pdf| url-status = live}}</ref>

In [[Nigeria]], catfish is often cooked in a variety of [[stew]]s. It is particularly cooked in a delicacy popularly known as "catfish pepper soup" which is enjoyed throughout the nation.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.pulse.ng/lifestyle/food-travel-arts-culture/how-to-cook-the-irresistible-catfish-pepper-soup-id8377325.html|title=How to cook the irresistible catfish pepper soup|last=Oreva|first=Duke|date=2018-05-14|access-date=16 May 2018|archive-date=16 May 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180516175134/http://www.pulse.ng/lifestyle/food-travel-arts-culture/how-to-cook-the-irresistible-catfish-pepper-soup-id8377325.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

In Jewish dietary law, known as [[kashrut]], fish must have fins and scales to be [[kashrut|kosher]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Kosher Spirit: Fins and Scales |url=https://www.ok.org/article/fins-scales/ |access-date=2022-11-29 |website=OK Kosher Certification |archive-date=29 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221129062913/https://www.ok.org/article/fins-scales/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Since catfish lack scales, they are not kosher.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://fisheries.tamu.edu/pond-management/species/channel-catfish/|title=Channel Catfish|website=fisheries.tamu.edu|access-date=2019-11-14|archive-date=1 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190501061619/https://fisheries.tamu.edu/pond-management/species/channel-catfish/|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Mythology===
In the mythology of the Japanese [[Shinto religion]] natural phenomenon are caused by ''[[kami]]''. [[Earthquakes]] are caused by a giant catfish called [[Namazu]]. There are other ''kami'' associated with earthquakes. In [[Kyoto]] it's usually an eel, but after the [[1855 Edo earthquake]] {{Nihongo|'''''Namazu-e'''''|鯰絵||"catfish prints"}} were printed giving more popularity to the catfish ''kami'' that has been known since the 16th century [[Otsu-e]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Rosen |first1=Brenda |title=The Mythical Creatures Bible |publisher=Sterling |date=2009 |page=370}}</ref> In one catfish print the divine white horse of [[Amaterasu]] is depicted knocking down the earthquake-causing catfish.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Smits |first1=Gregory |title=Seismic Japan: The Long History and Continuing Legacy of the Ansei Edo Earthquake |date=2013 |publisher=University of Hawaii Press |page=158|bibcode=2013sjlh.book.....S }}</ref>

===In aquaria===
There is a large and growing ornamental fish trade, with hundreds of species of catfish, such as ''[[Corydoras]]'' and [[Loricariidae|armored suckermouth catfish]] (often called plecos), being a popular component of many [[aquarium|aquaria]]. Other catfish commonly found in the aquarium trade are [[Aspredinidae|banjo catfish]], [[Doradidae|talking catfish]], and [[Pimelodidae|long-whiskered catfish]].

===As invasive species===
Representatives of the [[genus]] ''[[Ictalurus]]'' have been [[introduced species|introduced]] into European waters in the hope of obtaining a sporting and food resource, but the European stock of American catfishes has not achieved the dimensions of these fish in their native waters and have only increased the ecological pressure on native European [[fauna]]. [[Walking catfish]] have also been introduced in the freshwater areas of Florida, with the voracious catfish becoming a major alien pest there. [[Flathead catfish]], ''Pylodictis olivaris'', is also a North American pest on Atlantic slope drainages.<ref name=tol/> ''[[Pterygoplichthys]]'' species, released by aquarium fishkeepers, have also established [[feral]] populations in many warm waters around the world.<ref>{{cite journal|title=The South American Suckermouth Armored Catfish, ''Pterygoplichthys anisitsi'' (Pisces: Loricaridae), in Texas, with Comments on Foreign Fish Introductions in the American Southwest|first=Leo G.|last=Nico|author2=Martin, R. Trent|journal=The Southwestern Naturalist|volume=46|issue=1|year=2001|pages=98–104|doi=10.2307/3672381|jstor=3672381|bibcode=2001SWNat..46...98N }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|title=Amazon Sailfin Catfish, ''Pterygoplichthys pardalis'' (Castelnau, 1855) (Loricariidae), Another Exotic Species Established in Southeastern Mexico|first=Armando T.|last=Wakida-Kusunokia|author2=Ruiz-Carusb, Ramon |author3=Amador-del-Angelc, Enrique |journal=The Southwestern Naturalist|pages=141–144|volume=52|issue=1|doi=10.1894/0038-4909(2007)52[141:ASCPPC]2.0.CO;2|year=2007|s2cid=86847378 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|url=http://www.mapress.com/zootaxa/2006f/zt01109p068.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061031235535/http://www.mapress.com/zootaxa/2006f/zt01109p068.pdf |archive-date=2006-10-31 |url-status=live|title=New Philippine record of South American sailfin catfishes (Pisces: Loricariidae)|first=Joel M.|last=Chavez|author2=de la Paz, Reynaldo M.|author3= Manohar, Surya Krishna|author4= Pagulayan, Roberto C.|author5= Carandang Vi, Jose R.|journal=[[Zootaxa]]|volume=1109|pages=57–68|year=2006|access-date=22 June 2009|doi=10.11646/zootaxa.1109.1.6}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|url=http://academic.uprm.edu/publications/cjs/VOL30/P090-094.PDF|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090304213101/http://academic.uprm.edu/publications/cjs/VOL30/P090-094.PDF|archive-date=4 March 2009|title=The South American Sailfin Armored Catfish, ''Liposarcus multiradiatus'' (Hancock), a New Exotic Established in Puerto Rican Fresh Waters|first=Lucy|last=Bunkley-Williams|author2=Williams, Ernest H. Jr.|author3= Lilystrom, Craig G.|author4= Corujo-Flores, Iris|author5= Zerbi, Alfonso J.|author6= Aliaume, Catherine|author7= Churchill, Timothy N.|journal=Caribbean Journal of Science|volume=30|issue=1–2|pages=90–94|year=1994|access-date=22 June 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|url=http://zoolstud.sinica.edu.tw/Journals/44.2/252.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060506010509/http://zoolstud.sinica.edu.tw/Journals/44.2/252.pdf |archive-date=2006-05-06 |url-status=live|journal=Zoological Studies|volume=44|issue=2|pages=252–259|year=2005|title=Size Structure, Reproductive Phenology, and Sex Ratio of an Exotic Armored Catfish (''Liposarcus multiradiatus'') in the Kaoping River of Southern Taiwan|first=Shih-Hsiung|last=Liang|author2=Wu, Hsiao-Ping |author3=Shieh, Bao-Sen |access-date=22 June 2009}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Lotidae]]
==References==
{{clear}}
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Siluriformes}}
{{Wikispecies|Siluriformes}}
{{EB1911 poster|Cat-fish}}

* [http://silurus.acnatsci.org/ All catfish species inventory]
* [http://archive.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=87845 "Giant Baghair caught in Jamuna"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141129032305/http://archive.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=87845 |date=29 November 2014 }} in ''The Daily Star'' (Bangladesh), 12 May 2009
* Skelton, Paul H. and Teugels, Guy G. 1992. [http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1019675 Ichthyological Bulletin; No. 56: Neotype description for the African catfish Clarias Gariepinus (Burchell, 1822) (Pisces: Siluroidei: Clariidae)]. J.L.B. Smith Institute of Ichthyology, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa

{{Actinopterygii}}
{{Commercial fish topics}}
{{Seafood}}
{{Meat}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q59576}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Siluriformes|.]]
[[Category:Edible fish]]
[[Category:Commercial fish]]
[[Category:Ostariophysi]]
[[Category:Late Cretaceous fish]]
[[Category:Extant Late Cretaceous first appearances]]
[[Category:Taxa named by Georges Cuvier]]
[[Category:Soul food]]
[[Category:Native American cuisine]]