Channa punctata
No common name
Collection Details
Specimens
Photos
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Records
Taxonomic Hierarchy
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned Fishes)
Perciformes (Perciformes, Also Called the Acanthopteri)
Channidae (Snakeheads)
Channa
Channa punctata
Description
This species account was compiled from
FishBase (Froese, R. and D. Pauly. Editors. 2025. FishBase. World Wide Web electronic publication. www.fishbase.org, version 04/2025.)
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Characters
Body shape: elongated.
Distribution
Asia: Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar and Yunnan in China.
Habitat Associations
Freshwater, brackish. benthopelagic. Found in: mangroves.
Biology
Found in ponds, swamps, brackish water (Ref. 6028), ditches and beels (Ref. 1479). Adults prefer stagnant waters in muddy streams (Ref. 4833). Feed on worms, insects and small fish (Ref. 6028). Accept chopped fish and shrimp in the aquarium. Breed throughout the year. Mitochondrial hypertrophy, noted in the double cone of the retina of this species, is considered a basic process in oil droplet formation (Ref. 10557) believed to be an adaptation for enhanced visual contrast detection in turbid waters (Ref. 10407). Used as live bait for angling larger snakeheads.
Max length: 31.0 cm TL; common length: 15.0 cm TL.
Reproductive mode: dioecism; fertilization: external; guarders (nesters). Spawning usually takes place at night in shallow water with a silty substrate. Eggs are laid in nests through elaborate tunnels in vegetated areas which look like vertical columns of water with the eggs floating in the center (Ref. 205). The male and female move towards the center of the nest during spawning where the male entwines his body to the female moving upward while releasing the eggs to be fertilised (Ref. 45309). Eggs are guarded by one or both parents. Hatching takes place in a day (Ref. 6028).
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC), assessed 2019-08-11. Resilience: Medium (K=0.2; Fec=2,300).
Commercial or Environmental Importance
Fisheries: commercial; aquaculture: commercial; aquarium: commercial.
References
Breder, C.M. and D.E. Rosen (1966) Modes of reproduction in fishes. T.F.H. Publications, Neptune City, New Jersey. 941 p.
Talwar, P.K. and A.G. Jhingran (1991) Inland fishes of India and adjacent countries. Volume 2. A.A. Balkema, Rotterdam, i-xxii + 543-1158, 1 pl.
Pethiyagoda, R. (1991) Freshwater fishes of Sri Lanka. The Wildlife Heritage Trust of Sri Lanka, Colombo. 362 p.
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