Creature Feature – Elephantnose Fish
This week is the letter ‘E’, and today’s featured creature is the Elephantnose Fish.
Otherwise known as long-nosed elephant fish and Peter’s elephant-nose fish after the German naturalist Wilhelm Peters, this fish is a freshwater species famous for its long snout that can extend far out. This species has the highest weight ratio of brain to body among all the described vertebrates
Taxonomy
Scientific Name: Gnathonemus petersii
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Order: Osteoglossiformes
Family: Mormyridae
Genus: Gnathonemus
Elephantnose Fish Fact File
Size: Individuals can reach up to 35cm in length and weighs around 26g
Distribution: Originating from the rivers of Central and Western Africa, this species can be found inhabiting rivers that have slow flowing movement as well as bodies such as pools covered with submerged branches
Diet: Primarily scavengers, they feed on small worms and aquatic invertebrates, such as mosquito larvae
Behaviour: They use a weak electric field, which it generates with specialized cells called electrocytes, which evolved from muscle cells, to find prey, to navigate, and to find a mate
IUCN Status: Least Concern. There are no known major widespread threats to this species
