channel catfish

Ictalurus punctatus

One Hundred Thirty Two Centimeters Catfish from the Atlantic Ocean

Tropical
Northern Hemisphere
Regional distribution
Freshwater fish
Atlantic Ocean
North America
Fusiform
Large
Tropical fish

The channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus), known informally as the "channel cat", is a species of catfish native to North America. They are North America's most abundant catfish species, and the official state fish of Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska and Tennessee. The channel catfish is the most fished species of catfish in the United States, with around 8 million anglers angling them per year.

Class: Teleosts
Order: Catfishes
Family: Ictaluridae
Genus: Ictalurus
Maximum length: 132 cm
Water: Freshwater
Body shape: fusiform
Distribution: North America: St. Lawrence-Great Lakes, Hudson Bay (Red River drainage), and Missouri-Mississippi river basins from southern Quebec to southern Manitoba and Montana south to Gulf. Possibly native on Atlantic and Gulf slopes from Susquehanna River to Neuse River, and from Savannah River to Lake Okeechobee, Florida, and west to northern Mexico and eastern New Mexico. Introduced throughout most of US.
Conservation status: LCLeast Concern

Report a correction