Channel Catfish: a two-minute wildlife lesson

Rivers and Coasts · day 3 of 7

Five facts

1. A channel cat's nose pits can sniff several amino acids at one part per 100 million in water.
2. Its four pairs of barbels pack about 25 taste buds per square millimetre.
3. When a channel catfish swings out a front fin, ridges on the fin's spine rub its shoulder bones, making sudden clicks that startle predators.
4. Channel catfish have lived in North America for nearly 20 million years. Their oldest fossils come from South Dakota.
5. The biggest channel catfish on record weighed 26 kg. An angler caught it in South Carolina in 1964.

The quiz

1. What can a channel cat's nose pits sniff in the water?

• Electric fields
• Several amino acids (correct)
• Sound waves
• Heat

Its nose pits can sniff several amino acids at one part per 100 million.

2. About how many taste buds per square millimetre do its barbels pack?

• About 5
• About 250
• About 2,500
• About 25 (correct)

Its four pairs of barbels pack about 25 taste buds per square millimetre.

3. How does a channel catfish make clicking sounds?

• Its fin spine rubs against its shoulder bones (correct)
• It snaps its jaws
• It grinds its teeth
• It slaps its tail

Moving a front fin makes ridges on its spine rub its shoulder bones. It has no other way to make sounds.

4. How long have channel catfish been roaming North America?

• About 2 million years
• About 200,000 years
• Almost 20 million years (correct)
• About 2,000 years

They have roamed North America for almost 20 million years.

5. In which year was the record 26 kg channel catfish caught?

• 1946
• 1964 (correct)
• 1984
• 2004

The 26 kg record fish was caught in South Carolina in 1964.

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