Blotched Snakehead

About

The blotched snakehead (Channa maculata) is a sizeable predator native to southern China, Japan, Vietnam, Taiwan, and the Philippines, where it prowls the silty, vegetation-choked bottoms of rivers, ponds, and lakes. Like all members of the family Channidae, it gets its "snakehead" name from the large, plate-like scales on the head that bear a real resemblance to a snake's skull. What sets this family apart from most other fish is their ability to breathe atmospheric air directly, thanks to paired suprabranchial chambers above the gills. In the aquarium you will regularly see them surface for a gulp of air. This is completely normal and essential for their wellbeing. Their diet in the wild covers crustaceans, large insects, frogs, and fish, so tankmates need to be chosen with serious caution. Keepers often confuse this species with the northern snakehead (C. argus), but the blotched snakehead can be identified by the distinctive rounded blotches on its caudal peduncle and a lower fin-ray count in both dorsal and anal fins. Breeding behavior is genuinely interesting. Pairs embrace much like anabantoids during spawning, then both parents guard the floating eggs and subsequent fry together without building any nest. This is an intermediate-level fish that rewards patient, experienced keepers willing to meet its considerable space requirements.