FreshwaterBrackish
Spotted snakehead
Channa punctata
Channidae
Facts
Characteristics
- Length
- Up to 31 cm
- Body shape
- Elongated
Care
- Group
- Missing
- Smallest aquarium
- 715 liters
- Diet
- Missing
Know what is missing? Suggest it in the app.
Behavior
Water values
Smallest tank
Range
Native
Lives wild in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, China, India, Myanmar (Burma), Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.
More about the species
Description
Found in ponds, swamps, brackish water, ditches and beels. Adults prefer stagnant waters in muddy streams. Feed on worms, insects and small fish. Accept chopped fish and shrimp in the aquarium. Breed throughout the year. Mitochondrial hypertrophy, noted in the double cone of the retina of this species, is considered a basic process in oil droplet formation believed to be an adaptation for enhanced visual contrast detection in turbid waters. Used as live bait for angling larger snakeheads.
Other names
Other scientific names
- Channa punctatus
- Channa sp.
- Ophicephalus indicus
- Ophicephalus karruwey
- Ophicephalus punctatus
- Ophiocephalus affinis
In other languages
- Prickig Ormhuvudfisk, Prickig ormhuvudsfisk
- Plettet slangehovedfisk
- Pilkkukäärmeenpää
Articles
All articles
Fish that get along4 min read
Temperament, fin nippers, fish that eat other fish, and fish that need the same water. And what the Harmony mark in the app means.
How to set up an Asian aquarium5 min read
Two aquariums from Southeast Asia: calm forest streams and peat swamps with soft, brown water, and fast mountain streams with cool, oxygen-rich water.
How to add new fish4 min read
From the store to the tank: how to get the fish used to your water, why you should add only a few at a time, and what to watch for in the first few days.
Quarantine for new fish3 min read
Why new fish should live in a tank of their own for a few weeks before they move in, what you need, and what to look for.