| Gilded catfish | |
|---|---|
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Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Siluriformes |
| Family: | Pimelodidae |
| Genus: | Zungaro |
| Species: | Z. zungaro
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| Binomial name | |
| Zungaro zungaro (Humboldt in Humboldt and Valenciennes, 1821)
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| Subspecies | |
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| Synonyms | |
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The gilded catfish or jau (Zungaro zungaro) is a South American catfish (order Siluriformes) of the family Pimelodidae. It is also known as manguruyu or black manguruyu.[1]
By some sources, it is the only species of the monotypic genus Zungaro.[2] However, some sources list other species as valid, such as Zungaro jahu.[3] This species may be referred to by one of its synonyms, Brachyplatystoma flavicans.[4] This species contains two subspecies, Z. z. mangurus and Z. z. zungaro.[5]
They are sexually mature upon reaching 10 kg (22 lb) weight.[4] This fish native to the Orinoco and Amazon basins; in the Amazon, this fish is found quite upstream, in the main bed of the big tributaries with muddy bottoms.[4]
This fish reaches 140 cm (55 in) in total length, and specimens measuring 130 cm (51 in) and weighing 50 kg (110 lb) are not rare.[4] These fish are mainly piscivorous, hunt at night, and sometimes go into flood-prone areas of rivers. Some migrations in pursuit of migrating Triportheus and Anodus have been reported. The nursery ground is at the mouths of rivers.[4]