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Amazon Fish

By Rhett Butler [citation]

The Amazon basin contains the largest number of freshwater fish species in the world -- more than 3,000 species.
  • The Amazon has some 1,100 tributaries, 17 of which are over 1000 miles long.
  • The Piramutaba catfish, a giant Amazononian catfish, is thought to migrate a distance of about 2,050 miles (3,300 km) from its nursery grounds near the mouth of the Amazon to its spawning grounds in the upper Amazon.
  • Many fish in the Amazon -- like the Tambaqui -- are important dispersers of tree seeds
  • The Pirarucu or Arapaima is one of the world's largest freshwater fish attaining a length of up to 16 feet (5 meters).
  • Several traditionally saltwater creatures have adapted to freshwater conditions of the Amazon including stingrays, dolphins, and sponges.
Pictures of Amazonian fish:

Discus fish



Altum angels in an Amazon biotope aquarium



South American tetra tank



Pair of Arapaima


Chafalote (Rhaphiodon vulpinus)
Chafalote (Rhaphiodon vulpinus)



Paiche (Arapaima gigas)



Pair of giant adult silver arowana



Giant shovelnose catfish



Altum Angel (Pterophyllum altum)



Fisherman with a catfish from the Rio Carrao


Serrasalmus piranha species
Serrasalmus piranha species



Arapaima and a giant shovelnose catfish




Recent news articles on the Amazon River