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Extension Office: Walking Catfish Out For A Stroll

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Contributed by: Ken Gioeli on 8/2/2007

On Wednesday, August 1, 2007, I was witness to an unusual event. It was a rainy day and there was quite a lot of standing water. Dozens of walking catfish were squirming around in the wet parking lot and courtyard at the University of Florida / St Lucie County Cooperative Extension in Ft Pierce. I've only seen them once before - right after the heavy rains in the 2004 Hurricane Season. Needless to say, this was a sight to behold.

So what are walking catfish? Here's what the University of Florida's Florida Museum of Natural History has on them:

Walking catfish belong to the family Clariidae and are collectively known as "air-breathing" catfishes although they are not the only catfish family capable of breathing atmospheric air. The walking catfish is a widely distributed species, known from Pakistan, eastern India, Sri Lanka (Ceylon), Bangladesh, Myanmar (Burma), Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, and the Philippines. In the United States, the history of the non-native population established in southern Florida during the early 1960's is well documented. The spread of the walking catfish from one or perhaps two points of introduction encompassed 20 counties in approximately 10 years; effectively the entire southern peninsula of Florida.

Walking catfish have achieved extraordinary levels of abundance in certain areas of South Florida. Analysis by one researcher noted levels of abundance as great as 3,000 pounds of walking catfish per acre.

Since the explosive initial spread of this species in Florida, its dispersal northward has slowed. Studies have shown that the lower lethal temperature for walking catfish is 9.4 - 12.8° C, depending upon the "thermal history" of individual fish. Although such a lower limit would seem to eliminate further northward colonization, concern remains that the species could find refugia in the form of the many warm springs of north central Florida and survive short cold spells through its habit of burrowing into the mud during periods of low temperature.

If you'd like additional information about walking catfish, please call your local Extension office. St Lucie County - (772) 462-1660 Indian River County - (772) 770-5030 Martin County - (772)288-5654 Okeechobee County - (863)763-6469

Information courtesy of the Florida Museum of Natural History.

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