As regular CFZ-watchers will know, for some time Corinna has been doing a column for Animals & Men and a regular segment on On The Track... particularly about out-of-place birds and rare vagrants. There seem to be more and more bird stories from all over the world hitting the news these days so, to make room for them all - and to give them all equal and worthy coverage - she has set up this new blog to cover all things feathery and Fortean.

Wednesday 12 December 2012

Setting the catfish amongst the pigeons: The astonishing moment a fish leaps out of the water to catch a bird


Catfish in the Tarn River in south-west France are the only ones ever to be observed exhibiting the behaviour

Researchers have no idea why they hunt the birds but speculate it could be because of declining prey

The term 'a fish out of water' describes someone taken from his natural environment to one he's not comfortable in. 

But a group catfish in one odd ecological pocket have shown themselves to be rather comfortable with leaping on to dry land.

A study published yesterday investigates the remarkable phenomenon of the catfish that hunt pigeons. 

Catfish in south-west France have been spotted leaping from a river to snap up the unsuspecting birds, before wriggling back beneath the water to swallow them.

The unusual behaviour - similar to the way some marine mammals beach themselves to snap up prey from the shore - has never been seen among catfish in their native range.

It has led researchers the University of Toulouse to dub them 'freshwater killer whales'.

Between 1m and 1.5m long, European catfish are the largest freshwater fish on the continent and third largest in the world.

Most catfish are bottom feeders, consuming aquatic plants, other fish, decaying vegetation, fish eggs and crayfish as well as snails, aquatic bugs and minnows.

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