I bought two of these from Raymond Chan of AmazingFish in the Summer of 2016 at ~3"-4". They reached about 14" today.
Only recently have I clearly noted that they have this red fibrous structure behind their anus. Dim lighting and carelessness. At first I got super-alarmed and thought they had intestinal worms, like callamanus worms but then I saw they defecate from a pore anterior to that, that is, the anus is closer to the pelvic fin base than that structure. You can see that in the pics below. They both have this structure of about the same size and looks.
Google images show these fish to have this "brush-like thing" too, so I calmed down. Then Silurus said "That's the dendritic organ, a structure found in marine plotosids (and very few freshwater species). It apparently functions in osmoregulation." Per PCF sister thread: http://www.planetcatfish.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=44848#p304418
They eat exceptionally well and overall look very healthy.
Another question though, how bad is their venom? Would a puncture wound really always/often result in a bad swelling and gangrene as the PCF states? Perhaps our Indian peers would know headbanger_jib ?
Only recently have I clearly noted that they have this red fibrous structure behind their anus. Dim lighting and carelessness. At first I got super-alarmed and thought they had intestinal worms, like callamanus worms but then I saw they defecate from a pore anterior to that, that is, the anus is closer to the pelvic fin base than that structure. You can see that in the pics below. They both have this structure of about the same size and looks.
Google images show these fish to have this "brush-like thing" too, so I calmed down. Then Silurus said "That's the dendritic organ, a structure found in marine plotosids (and very few freshwater species). It apparently functions in osmoregulation." Per PCF sister thread: http://www.planetcatfish.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=44848#p304418
They eat exceptionally well and overall look very healthy.
Another question though, how bad is their venom? Would a puncture wound really always/often result in a bad swelling and gangrene as the PCF states? Perhaps our Indian peers would know headbanger_jib ?