Wallago attu: Where It Lives, Map & Facts

Where the wallago attu lives – recorded in 1 country, with quick facts from Wikidata and an introduction from Wikipedia.

Scientific name	Wallago attu
Group	Bony fish
Status	Vulnerable (Wikidata, IUCN category label)
Found in	1 country
Continents	Asia
Class	Ray-finned fish
Order	Siluriformes
Family	Siluridae

Where does the wallago attu live?

Open-licence (CC0 / CC BY) wild records published on GBIF place the wallago attu in 1 country or territory across Asia.

India

Countries with at least a handful of records (a minimum share of the species’ records, to leave out vagrants and escapes). Records with coordinates only; captive and fossil records excluded.

Is the wallago attu endangered?

The wallago attu’s conservation status recorded in Wikidata is “Vulnerable” (an IUCN Red List category label). Source: Wikidata.

What kind of animal is the wallago attu?

The wallago attu (Wallago attu) is a ray-finned fish in the order Siluriformes and the family Siluridae, genus Wallago. (Taxonomy from Wikidata.)

About the wallago attu

Wallago attu, boal, or helicopter catfish, is a species of freshwater catfish of the family Siluridae, native to South and Southeast Asia. W. attu is found in large rivers and lakes in two geographically disconnected regions (disjunct distribution), with one population living over much of the Indian subcontinent and the other in parts of Southeast Asia. This species can reach a length up to 1.1 m (3 ft 7 in).

It shares parts of its native range with the externally similar, but much larger Wallagonia leerii, and is subsequently often confused for it. It can, however, be differentiated by its relatively long and narrower head, as well as its dorsal fin, which is high and sharp, opposed to that of W. leerii, which is lower and rounded. Additionally, the eyes of W. attu lie above the mouth of the fish, whilst they lie on the same level as the mouth in W. leerii.

Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Wallago attu (revision 1365309118), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: lead section excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Quick facts, taxonomy and status: Wikidata Q1340556 (CC0). Countries and pin: GBIF.org occurrence records (CC0 / CC BY 4.0).