Bagridae

a family of fish. The body is bare of scales. The dorsal and pectoral fins have a serrated spine. There is also an adipose fin. There are approximately 15 species.

The Bagridae are distributed in the fresh waters of Africa and South and East Asia. There are five species in the USSR in the Amur River basin: the yellow, or banded, catfish (Pseudobagrus fulvidraco) measuring up to 32 cm long, the Ussuri catfish (Liocassis ussuriensis) measuring up to 1 m long, Brazhnikov’s catfish (L. brashnikovi) measuring up to 20 cm long, Gertsenshtein’s catfish (L. herzensteini) measuring up to 18 cm long, and Mystus mica measuring up to 5 cm long. During the mating season the yellow catfish digs a burrow into which it deposits its few eggs; other species hide their eggs among the roots of plants. The male guards the eggs and the larvae. The Bagridae feed on the larvae of caddis flies and dance flies, on mollusks, and on fish fry. The slime covering the Bagtidae is poisonous, but the flesh is edible. The fish are sought commercially.