striped eel catfish

Plotosus lineatus

Venomous spines used when threatened

Tropical
Transcontinental
Indian Ocean
Pacific Ocean
Africa
East Asia
Oceania
Fusiform
Medium
Tropical fish

Plotosus lineatus, commonly known as the striped eel catfish, is a species of catfish belonging to the eeltail family Plotosidae. Like most other members of the genus, this species possesses highly venomous spines that can be used to sting when threatened; the venom can cause mild to severe symptoms in humans. This species is native to the Indo-Pacific but is now present in the Mediterranean via Lessepsian migration through the Suez Canal.

Class: Teleosts
Order: Catfishes
Family: Plotosidae
Genus: Plotosus
Maximum length: 35.2 cm
Body shape: fusiform
Distribution: Indo-Pacific: Red Sea and East Africa to Samoa, north to southern Japan, southern Korea, and the Ogasawara Islands, south to Australia and Lord Howe Island. Palau and Yap in Micronesia (Ref. 1602 ). Sometimes enters freshwaters of East Africa (Lake Malawi) and Madagascar (Ref. 3879 ). First record in the Mediterranean (Ref. 123740 ),

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