''Bagarius yarrelli'', also known as the giant devil catfish or goonch, is a very large species of

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 genus ''

Bagarius ''Bagarius'' ( th, ปลาแค้) is an Asian genus of catfishes (order Siluriformes) of the family Sisoridae. It includes five to six extant species and potentially one extinct fossil species, '' B. gigas''. Species There are currently fi ...

'' found in rivers in the

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a physiographical region in Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian Ocean from the Himalayas. Geopolitically, it includes the countries of Bangladesh, Bhutan, In ...

. The species reaches up to in length. It may be synonymous with '' B. bagarius''.

Etymology

The species is known by many names throughout its range in the Indian subcontinent. It is known as the ''goonch'' in

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
'' Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been ...

and

Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a British Th ...

, ''baghar'' or ''baghair'' in

Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...

and Bihari (these names being the origin of the genus name ''Bagarius''), ''gauns'' in Rajasthani, ''gorua'' (গৰুৱা) and ''baghmas'' (বাঘমাছ) in Assamese and ''bodh'' in

Chhattisgarhi Chhattisgarhi ( / ) is an Indo-Aryan language, spoken by approximately 16 million people from Chhattisgarh & other states. It is mostly spoken in the Indian states of Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh & Maharashtra. It is closely related ...

Taxonomy

The species is frequently taxonomically confused with '' B. bagarius''. ''B. bagarius'' has – perhaps in error – been reported as reaching the same size as ''B. yarrelli'', while others consider ''B. bagarius'' to be a dwarf species that only reaches about . A study published in 2021 found ''B. yarrelli'' to be a

junior synonym The Botanical and Zoological Codes of nomenclature treat the concept of synonymy differently. * In botanical nomenclature, a synonym is a scientific name that applies to a taxon that (now) goes by a different scientific name. For example, Linn ...

of ''B. bagarius'', likely necessitating a merge of ''B. yarrelli'' into ''B. bagarius''.

Distribution and habitat

It is found in large rivers in the

South Asia South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The region consists of the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.;;;;; ...

, including rivers with fast current, particularly in deeper pools near faster current, but never in small streams. It is found in the

Indus The Indus ( ) is a transboundary river of Asia and a trans-Himalayan river of South and Central Asia. The river rises in mountain springs northeast of Mount Kailash in Western Tibet, flows northwest through the disputed region of Kashmir, ...

and

Ganges The Ganges ( ) (in India: Ganga ( ); in Bangladesh: Padma ( )). "The Ganges Basin, known in India as the Ganga and in Bangladesh as the Padma, is an international river to which India, Bangladesh, Nepal and China are the riparian states." is ...

basins as well as most of

southern India South India, also known as Dakshina Bharata or Peninsular India, consists of the peninsular southern part of India. It encompasses the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana, as well as the union territ ...

east of the Western Ghats. Two other populations were also formerly thought to exist in Southeast Asia (one population in the

Mekong The Mekong or Mekong River is a trans-boundary river in East Asia and Southeast Asia. It is the world's twelfth longest river and the third longest in Asia. Its estimated length is , and it drains an area of , discharging of water annual ...

Chao Phraya The Chao Phraya ( or ; th, แม่น้ำเจ้าพระยา, , or ) is the major river in Thailand, with its low alluvial plain forming the centre of the country. It flows through Bangkok and then into the Gulf of Thailand. E ...

basin and the other from the Xe Bang Fai of

Laos Laos (, ''Lāo'' )), officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic ( Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ, French: République démocratique populaire lao), is a socialist s ...

south to

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Gui ...

), but a 2021 study found the former to represent a new species '' B. vegrandis'', and the latter to represent the distinct species '' B. lica'', previously synonymized with ''B. yarrelli''.

Threats

While still abundant, the species is considered vulnerable on the

IUCN Red List The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biolo ...

due to excessive, unsustainable overharvesting of the species.

Hydroelectric Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined an ...

projects such as those on the

Indravati River Indravati River is a tributary of the Godavari River, in central India. The Indravati River is a stream of the river Godavari. Its starting point, found to be the Ghats of Dandakaranya, range from a hilltop village Mardiguda of Thuamula R ...

may affect the habitat of the species and adversely impact it.

Cultural significance

The Order of the Fish was the highest honour of the

Mughal Empire The Mughal Empire was an early-modern empire that controlled much of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries. Quote: "Although the first two Timurid emperors and many of their noblemen were recent migrants to the subcontinent, the d ...

and named after this fish. In

Chhattisgarh Chhattisgarh (, ) is a landlocked state in Central India. It is the ninth largest state by area, and with a population of roughly 30 million, the seventeenth most populous. It borders seven states – Uttar Pradesh to the north, Madhya Prad ...

, the species is worshipped by tribal communities such as the Murias and

Gonds The Gondi (Gōndi) or Gond or Koitur are a Dravidian ethno-linguistic group. They are one of the largest tribal groups in India. They are spread over the states of Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh, Telangana, Andhra Prad ...

, and is popularly referred to as the "shark of the Bastar". There have been efforts to name it the official state fish of Chhattisgarh.

References

External links

The Daily Star (Bangladesh): "Giant Baghair caught in Jamuna" (2009)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bagarius Yarrelli Sisoridae Catfish of Asia Fish of South Asia Freshwater fish of India Fish described in 1839 Vulnerable fish Vulnerable biota of Asia Apex predators