Common names:
Catfish, Nile squeaker, Shield-head Catfish
None

Taxonomic tree
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii (ray-finned fish)
Order: Siluriformes (Catfish)
Family: Mochokidae (Squeakers or upside-down catfishes)
Genus: Synodontis
Species: Synodontis schall (Bloch & Schneider, 1801)
Number of Occurrancies: 65

Etymology(based on Scharpf & Lazara, 2017)

• Synodontis: an ancient name for an undetermined fish from the Nile


• schall:  Schal, Arabian vernacular for squeaker catfishes in Egypt

Synonyms: click here to view synonyms on FishBase

Type locality: Assouan, Nile River, Egypt. Neotype at Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (MNHN)

General identifcation features of family Mochokidae: Mochokidae is easily distinguished from other catfishes by the presence of branched mandibular barbels, and the absence of nasal barbels. Note that families Auchenoglanidae and Malapteruridae also lacks nasal barbles, but the mandibular barbles are not branched. Only one genus, Synodontis, occurs in Ugandan waters. Synodontis fishes have pectoral spine that is articulated by means of a complicated joint so arranged that the spine can be firmly locked into its erectile position. This spine can inflict a painful wound if not handled with care. Synodontis are refered to as talking fish because of the grunts and squeaks produced when the fish is taken out of water. The sounds are produced by the movement of the pectoral fin spine.

Distinguishing characters for the species

• Body depth contained 3-4 times in the standard length


• 23-35 mandibular teeth


• Maxillary barbels reaching to a point mid-way along the humeral process, or, to the posterior tip of this process


• Outer Mandibular barbels with slender branches, inner pair with somewhat stout branches (Differing from S. afrofischeri with slender branches)


• Depth of the humeral process contained 1.8-2 times in its length


• Dorsal fin with a spine, granulated on its anterior face, weakly serrated behind and 6 or 7 branched rays(Differeing from S. afrofischeri whose spine is smooth anteriorly and serrated on its posterior face)


• Distance between last dorsal fin ray and the origin of the adipose fin contained 2.33-4 times in the length of adipose fin


• Pectoral spine granulate on anterior face, strongly serrated on the posterior face


• Color is olivaceous above, lighter (somewhat creamy) below; irregular spots sometimes occur on the body. Young fishes lighter, marbled by yellowish, irregular sinuous bands

Distribution in Uganda: Lake Albert, Albert and Murchison Niles, Semiliki river

Occurence: Native

Habitat: Benthopelagic; in the lake lake, found in deep waters and also in shallower water near the shore

Feeding: Predominantly molluscs, but also insect larvae and even small fishes.    

Biology: Attains a length of 40 cm, but no information on the reproductive biology of Uganda population. 

Economic importance/End use: Not a target fishery, but forms an important subsistence fishery for riparian communities.

IUCN conservation status: click here to view conservation status

Threats: Fishing

Main references

• Greenwood PH. 1966. The fishes of Uganda. The Uganda Society, Kampala. 131 pages.


• Sharpf C, Lazara J.K. 2017. Fish Name Etymology Database v4. www.etyfish.org