TheAnabantidaeare afamilyofray-finned fishwithin theorderAnabantiformescommonly called theclimbing gouramiesorclimbing perches.[2]The family includes about 34 species. Aslabyrinth fishes,they possess alabyrinth organ,a structure in the fish's head which allows it to breathe atmosphericoxygen.Fish of this family are commonly seen gulping at air at the surface of the water. The air is held in a structure called the suprabranchial chamber, where oxygen diffuses into the bloodstream via the respiratory epithelium covering the labyrinth organ. This therefore allows the fish to move small distances across land.
| Climbing gourami Temporal range:Late Oligocene to Recent
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|---|---|
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| Anabas testudineus | |
Scientific classification
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Anabantiformes |
| Family: | Anabantidae Bonaparte,1831[1] |
| Genera | |
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see text | |
Genera
editThere are four extant genera within the family Anabantidae:[2]
There is also at least one extinct genus known:[3]
- †EoanabasWu, Chang, Miaoet al,2016
Of the four genera,Anabasare the only climbing gouramies found inSouth Asia.They are widely distributed and are found in countries includingPakistan,India,Bangladesh,Sri Lanka,andChina.Climbing gouramies have distinct names in numerous South Asian languages. InTamil,they are பனையேறி கெண்டை (panaieri kendai); inMalayalam,chemballi;inOdia,they are କଉ ମାଛ (kau); inAssamesethey are কাৱৈ মাছ (kawoi maas); inBengali,they are কই মাছ (koi mach).
The remaining three genera are endemic to Africa:CtenopomaandMicroctenopomaare primarily found in theCongo Basin,whereasSandeliaare endemic to theEasternandWestern Capesof South Africa. Anabantidae are primarilyfreshwater fishand only very rarely are found inbrackishwater. Parental care is varied;AnabasandCtenopomado not tend theireggs,Microctenopomaspecies producebubble nestslike many otherlabyrinth fish,andSandelialays their eggs on the substrate.
Climbing gouramis are so named due to their ability to "climb" out of water and "walk" short distances. Even though it has not been reliably observed, some authors have mentioned about them having a tree climbing ability.[citation needed]Their method of terrestrial locomotion uses the gill plates as supports, and the fish pushes itself using its fins and tail.
References
edit- ^Richard van der Laan; William N. Eschmeyer & Ronald Fricke (2014)."Family-group names of Recent fishes".Zootaxa.3882(2): 001–230.doi:10.11646/zootaxa.3882.1.1.PMID25543675.
- ^abFroese, Rainer;Pauly, Daniel (eds.)."Family Anabantidae".FishBase.August 2019 version.
- ^Feixiang Wu; Desui Miao; Mee-mann Chang; Gongle Shi & Ning Wang (2017)."Fossil climbing perch and associated plant megafossils indicate a warm and wet central Tibet during the late Oligocene".Scientific Reports.7(878): 878.doi:10.1038/s41598-017-00928-9.PMC5429824.PMID28408764.
- "Anabantidae".Integrated Taxonomic Information System.RetrievedApril 28,2004.