Asian adhesive catfishes (Sisoridae)
General data
- Main name: Asian adhesive catfishes
Classification
- Order: Siluriformes - Catfishes
- Class: Teleostei - Ray-finned fishes
- Superclass: Osteichthyes - Bony fishes
Description
Sisoridae is a family of catfishes. These Asian catfishes live in fast-moving waters and often have adaptations that allow them to adhere to objects in their habitats. The family includes about 235 species. Most of these fish have four pairs of barbels and a large adipose fin. The maximum size is 2 metres. In all fish except those of the subfamily Sisorinae, some sort of adhesive apparatus, either in the form of a thoracic adhesive apparatus or in plaited paired fins, allow the fish to adhere to objects. Sisorids inhabit freshwater and originate from southern Asia, from Turkey and Syria to South China and Borneo, primarily in the Oriental region. Glyptosterninae is distributed from the Caucasus to China. Most glyptosternine genera are found in China, with the exception of Myersglanis. Glyptosternoid catfish species have restricted distributions, and many apparently wide-ranging species have been shown to consist of more than one species, each with restricted distributions. Sisorids are mostly small forms inhabit mountain streams.