Catla

For other fishes known as Indian and Bangladeshi carp, see Indian carp.

Catla
Young catla
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Cypriniformes
Family: Cyprinidae
Subfamily: Labeoninae
Genus: Labeo
Species:
L. catla
Binomial name
Labeo catla
(F. Hamilton, 1822)
Synonyms
  • Cyprinus catla Hamilton, 1822
  • Catla catla (Hamilton, 1822)
  • Leuciscus catla (Hamilton, 1822)
  • Cyprinus abramioides Sykes, 1839
  • Hypselobarbus abramioides (Sykes, 1839)
  • Catla buchanani Valenciennes, 1844
  • Gibelion catla (Hamilton 1822)

Catla (Labeo catla), (Bengali: কাতলা, romanized: kātlā) also known as the major South Asian carp, is an economically important South Asian freshwater fish in the carp family Cyprinidae. It is native to rivers and lakes in northern India, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Nepal, and Pakistan, but has also been introduced elsewhere in South Asia and is commonly farmed.[1][2]

In Nepal and neighbouring regions of India, up to Odisha, it is called Bhakura.

Catla is a fish with large and broad head, a large protruding lower jaw, and upturned mouth. It has large, greyish scales on its dorsal side with a whitish belly. It reaches up to 182 cm (6.0 ft) in length and 38.6 kg (85 lb) in weight.[2]

Catla is a surface and midwater feeder. Adults feed on zooplankton using large gill rakers, while young ones feed on both zooplankton and phytoplankton. Catla attains sexual maturity at an average age of two years and an average weight of 2 kg (4.4 lb).

  1. ^ a b Tenzin, K. (2010). "Gibelion catla". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2010: e.T166425A6206451. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2010-4.RLTS.T166425A6206451.en. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
  2. ^ a b Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.). "Gibelion catla". FishBase. September 2017 version.