The Couma sea catfish (''Sciades couma''), also known as the Pemecou sea catfish, is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

catfish Catfish (or catfishes; order Siluriformes or Nematognathi) are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Named for their prominent barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, catfish range in size and behavior from the three largest species alive, ...

in the family Ariidae. It was described by

Achille Valenciennes Achille Valenciennes (9 August 1794 – 13 April 1865) was a French zoologist. Valenciennes was born in Paris, and studied under Georges Cuvier. His study of parasitic worms in humans made an important contribution to the study of parasitology. ...

in 1840, originally under the genus ''

Bagrus ''Bagrus'' is a genus of bagrid catfishes. These are relatively large catfish found in freshwater habitats in Africa, except for the virtually unknown ''B. tucumanus'' from South America, which likely is a Synonym (biology), synonym of ''Luciop ...

''. It inhabits estuaries and rivers in

Guyana Guyana ( or ), officially the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern mainland of South America. Guyana is an indigenous word which means "Land of Many Waters". The capital city is Georgetown. Guyana is bordered by the ...

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, and

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

.''Sciades couma''
at the IUCN redlist. It reaches a maximum

total length Fish measurement is the measuring of individual fish and various parts of their anatomies. These data are used in many areas of ichthyology, including taxonomy and fisheries biology. Overall length * Standard length (SL) is the length of a fish ...

of , more commonly reaching a TL of . It reaches a maximum weight of . Its maximum known life expectancy is 5 years. The couma sea catfish has an extensive diet, consisting predominantly of crabs including ''

Aratus pisonii ''Aratus pisonii'', commonly known as the mangrove tree crab, is a species of crab which lives in mangrove trees in tropical and subtropical parts of the Americas, from Florida to Brazil on the Atlantic coast, and from Nicaragua to Peru on the Pa ...

'', ''

Pachygrapsus gracilis ''Pachygrapsus'' is a genus of small shore crabs. Recent genetic data suggest this genus to be possibly polyphyletic. It comprises the following species: *'' Pachygrapsus corrugatus'' ( von Martens, 1872) *''Pachygrapsus crassipes'' Randall, ...

'', '' Uca rapax'', ''

Uca maracoani The fiddler crab or calling crab may be any of more than one hundred species of semiterrestrial marine crabs in the family Ocypodidae, well known for their sexually dimorphic claws; the males' major claw is much larger than the minor claw, whil ...

'', and ''

Ucides cordatus ''Ucides cordatus'', the swamp ghost crab (or ''caranguejo-uçá'' in Portuguese), is one of two species of crabs in the genus ''Ucides''. This species of crab is native to many coasts off of the western Atlantic Ocean. It has been found to be na ...

'', as well as other crustaceans such as

shrimp Shrimp are crustaceans (a form of shellfish) with elongated bodies and a primarily swimming mode of locomotion – most commonly Caridea and Dendrobranchiata of the decapod order, although some crustaceans outside of this order are refer ...

in the genera '' Alpheus'' and ''

Macrobrachium ''Macrobrachium'' is a genus of freshwater prawns or shrimps characterised by the extreme enlargement of the second pair of pereiopods, at least in the male. Species It contains these species: *'' Macrobrachium acanthochirus'' F. Villalobo ...

''. It also feeds on

bony fish Osteichthyes (), popularly referred to as the bony fish, is a diverse superclass of fish that have skeletons primarily composed of bone tissue. They can be contrasted with the Chondrichthyes, which have skeletons primarily composed of cartilag ...

in the family Ophichthidae and the genus ''

Hypostomus ''Hypostomus'' is a genus of catfish in the family Loricariidae. They are native to tropical and subtropical South America. '' H. plecostomus'' is the popular freshwater aquarium fish formerly known as ''Plecostomus plecostomus''. The taxonomic s ...

'', as well as ariid

larvae A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle. The ...

, gastropods, insects, and debris such as skin from mammals, and leaves and twigs from terrestrial plants. Food and Feeding Habits Summary for ''Sciades couma''
at www.fishbase.org. The couma sea catfish is of high value to commercial fisheries, with the delicate texture of its flesh being its main source of appeal. Its meat is marketed both fresh and salted. It is currently ranked as Least Concern by the IUCN redlist, with the ranking based on the species' apparent ability to cope with commercial fishing practices. It also notes that the population could possibly be threatened by pollution in its habitat, though at present the effects this may be having on the species are unknown.

References

Ariidae Taxa named by Achille Valenciennes Fish described in 1840 {{Ariidae-stub