Clown featherback
species of fish
The clown featherback (Chitala ornata), also known as the clown knifefish and spotted knifefish, is a nocturnal species of tropical fish with a long, knife-like body. This knifefish is native to freshwater habitats in Cambodia, China, Hong Kong, Laos, Macau, Thailand, and Vietnam, but it has also been introduced to regions outside its native range. It is one of the world's most invasive species.
It is often seen in aquaculture and the aquarium trade, where it is frequently confused with Chitala chitala; the latter species is very rare in the aquarium trade. The clown featherback reaches 1 m (3.3 ft) in length, outgrowing all but the largest aquaria, yet it is popular.
Taxonomy
The clown knifefish belongs to the family Notopteridae, which can be found in Africa and Asia (including India). Notopterids can be characterized by their laterally compressed bodies accompanied by an elongated anal fin. The origin of notopterids can be traced back to the Early Cretaceous when the African and Asian clades split, redistributing the genus between both regions. Within the four genera of notopterids, Chitala species are native to tropical regions of Asia, identified by their concave profiles.
Description
Chitala species have distinct physical features that set them apart from other fishes.
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This entry incorporates text from “Clown featherback” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.