Black Seacatfish

This species is distinguished with the following characters: short head, nearly as broad as long; blunt snout, well-rounded in lateral profile and dorsally; palatal tooth patches posterior to premaxillary tooth band meet at midline; rounded caudal-fin lobes, of near equal length, fin not deeply forked; short and thick caudal peduncle; underside of body (both head and belly) covered with fine brown specks; anterior gill-rakers on first arch 10-13 (5 + 5); pectoral fin rays 9-12; fatty growth along pectoral fin spines of breeding females not present outside spawning season. Dimorphism present with posterior (humeral) process of cleithrum obvious externally, fan-shaped in females, triangular in males; smooth and shallow dorsomedian cranial depression on exposed skull not reaching supraoccipital process (Ref. 85159).

A paternal mouth brooder.

Anal spines: 0; Analsoft rays: 19 - 22

Observed in the intertidal zone (Ref.49162).

Carnivorous on benthic invertebrates, primarily annelids (Ref. 4332).

fisheries: minor commercial; price category: medium; price reliability: very questionable: based on ex-vessel price for species in this family

Galeichthys ater, the black sea catfish, is a species of sea catfish found in South Africa and Namibia. It grows to a length of about 45.0 cm (17.7 in) TL and feeds on benthic organisms with annelid worms making up a significant portion of their diet. They are a minor component of the fishery industry.