📸 PhotoPhoto: Jutta234 · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons Source
Elephantnose fish
Gnathonemus petersii (Elephantnose fish · エレファントノーズフィッシュ)
💡 Everyday Comparisons for Size, Mass & Speed
- 💡 Its maximum standard length of 35 cm is slightly longer than the long side of an A4 sheet of paper (29.7 cm) (Comparison).
- 💡 It is commercially traded as an aquarium fish (FishBase) and is also caught in subsistence fisheries in parts of Africa.
Reference standards: coach bus ~12 m, mid-size car ~4.9 m, compact car ~1 t, basketball hoop 3.05 m, credit card 8.56 cm.
📖 1. Overview
The Elephantnose fish is a freshwater fish from the Niger to Congo river basins in Africa, notable for its long snout stretched out like an elephant's trunk.
🦴 2. Anatomy & Morphology
It has an electric organ near its tail that produces electric signals, while electroreceptors that sense electricity are spread across its head, back, and belly. This sense is thought to help it find food.
🔍 3. Ecology & Behavior
It probes for food near the bottom with its long snout, feeding mainly at night on worms and insects. It is territorial and aggressive toward members of its own species, using electric signals in these encounters.
🇰🇷 4. Connection to Korea
No direct record connecting this species to Korea has been found.
📚 Sources & References
- • IUCN Red List LC (2020) — https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/181553/134970864
- • IUCN Red List category LC — latest assessment at iucnredlist.org
- • catalogueoflife.org — 6KNGM
- • iucnredlist.org — 134970864
- • wikidata.org — Q945393
- • commons.wikimedia.org — File:Gnathonemus petersii - Zoo Frankfurt.jpg
- • fishbase.se — Gnathonemus-petersii.html
- • Silhouette: PhyloPic — João Pedro Fernandes Moutinho · CC0 1.0
Recorded dimensions are widely cited representative estimates from public literature and may vary by study or specimen.