Difference Between a Nile Perch ( L.Niloticus ) and Barramundi ( L.Calcarifer)

[blt70]

IMO niloticus and calcarifer look nothing alike, I dont how people confuse the two. Dont listen to those guys they think they have some knowledge of Lates sp. but they do not.

 

[M|L]

I also think that's a barramundi.

I've had both species.

Here's mine at the same size:

 

[Vince]

On what characters do you assert that this fish is not a Nile Perch? Please back up your statements. I have not keyed out the fish, but I bought it from a trusted source as a Nile Perch, and I can tell you that the coloration as a juvenile was different than the colors of the barrimundi pictured recently in Tropical Fish Hobbyist. I can also tell you that the former Belle Isle Aquarium in Detroit had adults of both barrimundi and Nile perch and that they seemed to be indistinguishable. I believe that the fish is a Nile perch, but if there is enough skepticism out there then I will look into the scientific literature and make a definite identification.

I would listen to ultimatejay because he has both of them...I don't know why he is not posting any pictures. At first glance, I thought it was also a baramundi, but I couldn't find any pictures I could really distinguish the difference. My baramundi appears the same as the fish you have posted. But my nile perch is still in it's marble'ing state. I am still searching for a better picture of a swimming adult nile perch since I already know what a baramundi looks like. And that fish looks very much like a baramundi. Still a nice fish, is it because of the price, is why we are trying ti fugre out if it is a Nile perch or Barra? Would it make a difference? would he change his pricing if it is in fact a barra?

 

[blt70]

Even at that angle with barra you can see the stripe, on this one there is no stripe. Best way to resolve this would be a frontal shot. I also keep both lates niloticus and calcarifer.

 

[redtailfool]

I cannot tell for certain ... i tried to find pictures and references for adult Niloticus
and all ive seen are 4 foot monsters. Just keep everything clean guys and help seadragon
with his sale.

 

[ultimatejay]

Alright here are some pics of mine side by side. In the first pic the barramundi is on the bottom and the Nile is on top. In the second pic the Nile is on the left and the barramundi is on the right. I can tell the most difference in the body shape. The Nile perch has a more pointed snout and the barramundi is more rounded. Also the jaw line is different and the barramundi has a noticeable arch from the snout up to his dorsal fin. Also the barramundi has much larger scales than the Nile and the Nile has larger eyes. I wish Wes could post pics of his larger ones he has. I don't know how people confuse the two, they look totally different to me.

 

[blt70]

Alright here are some pics of mine side by side. In the first pic the barramundi is on the bottom and the Nile is on top. In the second pic the Nile is on the left and the barramundi is on the right. I can tell the most difference in the body shape. The Nile perch has a more pointed snout and the barramundi is more rounded. Also the jaw line is different and the barramundi has a noticeable arch from the snout up to his dorsal fin. Also the barramundi has much larger scales than the Nile and the Nile has larger eyes. I wish Wes could post pics of his larger ones he has. I don't know how people confuse the two, they look totally different to me.

What are those about 5-6"? At that size it is impossible to mis-identify them. When they get larger that is when people have a problem correctly identifying them. If I could see a front shot then I could be 100%.

 

[MANGCH1]

Can someone tell me where I can get a nile perch thanks

wes gets them in time to time. thats where i got mine. just got him on frozen shrimp.

 

[ultimatejay]

What are those about 5-6"? At that size it is impossible to mis-identify them. When they get larger that is when people have a problem correctly identifying them. If I could see a front shot then I could be 100%.

When they get larger the only difference is that the color changes a little, but the body still remains totally different. I still don't see how people get them confused. I think because most people only see barramundi and think they are Niles and never get to see a true Nile. One way that I forgot to mention that easily identifies the two is that on barramundi the jaw line extends well past they eye. On Nile's the jaw line stops just at the back of the eye. If you look in the sellers post of his barramundi, you can see the jaw line extends well past the eye.

 

[SeaDragon]

WOW! I am very impressed with the interest that this thread has stimulated. There are a lot of people that are behaving in a very mature manner in an attempt to answer an interesting question! I am new to this website and expected that it would be similar to other fish websites with a lot of squabbling and uninformed statements.

Regarding the identity of the fish, I have not had the fortune of keeping both species, but I do know people that are currently keeping barrimundi. I haven't had the chance to see many alive except the two at the Belle Isle Aquarium that I mentioned earlier.

I have tried to look at the pix that people have posted in this thread but I am unable to view them.

I am an ichthyologist at the University of Michigan Museum of Zoology and since this issue came up I have been toying with the idea of examing preserved specimens of the two species to come up with some definite distinguishing characters. We have many specimens of both species in the collection. I spent this morning looking through the literature and have not found any good characters. The most recent systematic work on Lates is a 53 page paper published in 2004 by Otero. Most of the characters in this work are osteological and therefore not helpful in ID'ing live fish. Other literature focuses on geographic regions and therefore does not provide comparative information for distinguishing between two species from different continents.

Ron