African arowana

Heterotis niloticus

Male guards nest in swamps

African arowana is known from Africa as a freshwater fish. It occurs in freshwater habitats.

Class: Teleosts
Order: Bonytongues
Family: Arapaimidae
Genus: Heterotis
Maximum length: 100 cm
Water: Freshwater
Body shape: fusiform
Distribution: Africa: native in all basins of the Sahelo-Sudanese region, the Senegal, Gambia, Corubal, Volta, Ouémé, Niger, Bénoue, Chad and Nile basins and Lake Turkana (Ref. 2920 , 3012 , 3514 ). Successful introductions in the storage reservoirs of Côte d'Ivoire, Cross, Sanaga, Nyong and Ogowe rivers and the lower and middle Congo basin, including Ubangui and Kasaï (Ref. 2920 ); rapidly enlarged its distribution in the Lualaba, upper Congo basin, after extraordinary inundations in 1979 (Ref. 51906 ). Also introduced in Madagascar (Ref. 3514 , 13333 ). Several countries report adverse ecological impact after introduction.
Conservation status: LCLeast Concern

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