Fish
North African catfish
- Origin
- Non-native species
- Fishing
- all year
About the species North African catfish
How to recognise it
An elongated scaleless body, a broad flattened head with eight barbels and a very long dorsal fin.
Where it lives
It originates in Africa and needs warm water, so it appears in open waters here only occasionally after release from farms.
What it feeds on
Omnivore.
Closed season, minimum size and daily limit
What the Fisheries Act says about North African catfish. For guidance only; check it in the fishing regulations of the district.
Fishing all year round
§ 10 of the Decreeno closed season
Under the decree the species may be caught from 1 January to 31 December (Section 10, paragraph 2). This does not mean it may be caught in every water at any time: the closed season, the permit and the fishing rules of the district can restrict fishing.
Summary of Act no. 216/2018 Coll. and Decree no. 381/2018 Coll. (as of 6 Nov 2026). It may be out of date or contain an error, and exceptions apply on some waters. The permit and the fishing regulations of the district are binding. The fishing law, rule by rule.
Where it was recorded
Fishing districts around which a record of this species exists (GBIF).
We do not yet track where this species occurs in individual fishing districts. So far we have records from the GBIF database only for species with numerical water-temperature data.
Catches of North African catfish
Approved catches by anglers on this portal.
Nobody has logged a catch of this species yet. Be the first; once approved it will appear here and on the leaderboard.
Similar species
Photo credits
- North African catfish: Photo: Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Wels catfish: Photo: HalbsHännile, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Black bullhead: Photo: George Chernilevsky, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Minimum sizes, protection periods and permitted fishing methods are set by the fishing regulations and the conditions of the specific fishing district. Check them before you fish.