Soms can be attributed to the oldest fish that inhabit the fresh waters of the planet. These scaleless creatures are the undisputed record holders in size and weight among their freshwater counterparts. You can often hear legends about cannibal catfish, which have been living at the bottom of rivers for more than a century.
River catfish
Catfish are freshwater predators that live primarily in rivers. This fish chooses a hole for its home at the bottom of the river, which it leaves only for food or during spawning. Catfish feed on small fish, crustaceans, and even frogs.
It is impossible to say exactly how many years som lives, but fish farmers were able to compile a table of the ratio of weight and age of fish. For example, individuals weighing 10 kg lived 5 years, 32 kg - 12 years, 128 kg - 50 years. Fishermen most often come across a fish weighing up to 30 kg, because catching catfish is not so simple. For these reasons, the question of how many catfish live remains open. Catfish have completely no scales; to protect against parasites, their body is covered with thick mucus. As you know, these fish grow up quite quickly: already in the fourth year of life, catfish can be considered an adult formed fish.
Lake catfish
Less often you can meet catfish in lakes and ponds. In these reservoirs, they are most often accidental. Externally, lake catfish practically do not differ from river ones; the only difference is the darker color of the skin. In the lake, these fish do not live as long as catfish live in rivers. This is due to the diet. Indeed, in stagnant lake water there is not much choice in food. It is because of this diet that lake catfish are not large. On average, the weight of such fish does not exceed 5 kg. The average life expectancy of catfish in such conditions is much shorter than that of river inhabitants. The average age of river fish is 80 years. This is the answer to the question of how many catfish live in favorable conditions (lakes and ponds can hardly be attributed to those). From this we can conclude that long-livers among lake catfishes cannot be found.
Aquarium Catfish
Decorative and hybrid species of catfish are very popular among aquarium fish lovers. Soma is often called an aquarium nurse because of a sedentary lifestyle and a sucker-like mouth.
In content, these fish are quite unpretentious and easily get along with other species without creating conflicts. The coloring of catfish is never bright and beautiful - this is due to the fact that the fish are masked under the bottom, on which they spend most of the time. Catfish are active at night, so it is desirable to have shelters for these fish in the aquarium. To do this, driftwood, stone castles, caves or other secluded places are suitable. How many catfish live in an aquarium? It depends on fish conditions. If the temperature and feeding conditions are observed, then catfish can live for about 8 years. But some hybrid species of such fish can live up to 10 years with good content. They should be fed in the evening, but they themselves can find food for themselves. For example, by filtering the bottom of the aquarium, catfish find food leftovers from other fish.
