Superregnum: Eukaryota
Cladus: Unikonta
Cladus: Opisthokonta
Cladus: Holozoa
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Superphylum: Deuterostomia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Infraphylum: Gnathostomata
Megaclassis: Osteichthyes
Superclassis/Classis: Actinopterygii
Classis/Subclassis: Actinopteri
Subclassis/Infraclassis: Neopterygii
Infraclassis: Teleostei
Megacohors: Osteoglossocephalai
Supercohors: Clupeocephala
Cohors: Otomorpha
Subcohors: Ostariophysi
Sectio: Otophysa
Ordo: Siluriformes
Familia: Pangasiidae
Genus: Pangasianodon
Species: Pangasianodon gigas - Pangasianodon hypophthalmus
Name
Pangasianodon Chevey, 1930
Pangasianodon is a genus of large to very large shark catfishes native to the Mekong and Chao Phraya Rivers in Southeast Asia and adjacent China.
Species
Two species in this genus are recognized:[1]
Pangasianodon gigas Chevey, 1931 (Mekong giant catfish)
Pangasianodon hypophthalmus (Sauvage, 1878) (iridescent shark)
Despite local protection and quite widespread awareness of the giant catfish and its critically endangered status, the species is gravely threatened by the build-out of hydroelectric dams on the Mekong River and its tributaries, and by fishing. Though the species is being propagated in Thailand, Thai stock is reported to be contaminated by hybridization with P. hypophthalmus, with hybrids having been carelessly released into the wild. Cambodia currently offers the best opportunities for conservation intervention through dovetailed efforts in captive propagation, reintroduction, and habitat protection.
The striped catfish P. hypophthalmus - well known to home aquarists as the "iridescent shark"- is endangered in the wild, yet is mass-produced in aquaculture and readily available both as an aquarium fish and as fillets through most of the developed world. While still considerably more common in the wild than its immense sister species, like it, P. hypophthalmus merits a field-based conservation program in Cambodia.
Recent field work has begun to reveal some of the secrets of pangasiid catfishes, including these two species. However omnipresent as commodities in the wealthier nations, the two Pangasianodon species remain astonishingly little known as important components of the Mekong basin's rich but greatly threatened living heritage.[citation needed]
References
Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.). "Species in genus Pangasianodon". FishBase. February 2012 version.
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/"
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License
