Sheatfish

Taxobox
name = Freshwater catfishes
fossil_range = Upper Miocene - Recent

---

image_width = 200px
image_caption = Wels catfish ("Silurus glanis")
regnum = Animalia
phylum = Chordata
classis = Actinopterygii
ordo = Siluriformes
superfamilia = Siluroidea
familia = Siluridae
familia_authority = Cuvier, 1816
subdivision_ranks = Genera
subdivision =
* "Belodontichthys"
* "Ceratoglanis"
* "Hemisilurus"
* "Hito"
* "Kryptopterus"
* "Micronema"
* "Ompok"
* "Parasilurus"
* "Pinniwallago"
* "Pterocryptis"
* "Silurichthys"
* "Silurus"
* "Wallago"

Sheatfishes or freshwater catfishes are a family (Siluridae) of catfishes (order Siluriformes). There are about 100 living species of silurids.cite journal|journal=Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society|year=1995|volume=115|pages=1–46|title=Phylogenetic relationships within the Eurasian catfish family Siluridae (Pisces: Siluriformes), with comments on generic validities and biogeography|first=Alan H.|last=Bornbusch]

Although silurids occur across much of Europe and Asia, they are most diverse in southeast Asia, beyond which their diversity decreases in temperate east Asia, the Indian subcontinent, southwest Asia, and Europe. Silurids are apparently absent from much of central Asia. The family can be divided into two groups, a temperate Eurasian clade and a more diverse subtropical/tropical south and southeast Asian clade.

These catfish do not have a spine before their dorsal fin, do not have an adipose fin, and the pelvic fins are either small or absent. The anal fin base is usually very long.FishBase family | family = Siluridae | year = 2007 | month = Mar] The largest species in this family is "Silurus glanis", the Wels Catfish.

References