Teleostei (teleosts) >
Characiformes (Characins) >
Alestidae (African tetras)
Etymology: Hydrocynus: Greek, hydr = water + Greek, kyon = dog (Ref. 45335).
Eponymy: Goliath of Gath (about 1,030 BC) was a Philistine warrior of giant size who was killed with a slingshot by David, later King of the Jews (see 1 Samuel XVII. [...] (Ref. 128868), visit book page.
More on author: Boulenger.
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Freshwater; pelagic; pH range: 6.5 - 7.5; dH range: ? - 25. Tropical; 23°C - 26°C (Ref. 2060)
Africa: Congo River basin, from the marine lower Congo (Ref. 51114) up to the upper Lualaba (Ref. 2970), in Democratic Republic of the Congo and Republic of Congo. Also reported from Lake Tanganyika (Ref. 4967).
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm
Max length : 133 cm FL male/unsexed; (Ref. 40637); max. published weight: 50.0 kg (Ref. 4537)
Inhabits lakes and large rivers (Ref. 4967).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Robins, C.R., R.M. Bailey, C.E. Bond, J.R. Brooker, E.A. Lachner, R.N. Lea and W.B. Scott, 1991. World fishes important to North Americans. Exclusive of species from the continental waters of the United States and Canada. Am. Fish. Soc. Spec. Publ. (21):243 p. (Ref. 4537)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-2)
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
Fisheries: commercial; gamefish: yes
Tools
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Estimates based on models
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref.
82804): PD
50 = 0.5312 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.01122 (0.00514 - 0.02450), b=3.04 (2.87 - 3.21), in cm total length, based on all LWR estimates for this body shape (Ref.
93245).
Trophic level (Ref.
69278): 3.8 ±0.6 se; based on size and trophs of closest relatives
Resilience (Ref.
120179): Low, minimum population doubling time 4.5 - 14 years (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref.
59153): Very high vulnerability (89 of 100).
Nutrients (Ref.
124155): Calcium = 45 [19, 111] mg/100g; Iron = 1.41 [0.72, 3.77] mg/100g; Protein = 19.6 [17.4, 21.9] %; Omega3 = 0.448 [0.165, 1.278] g/100g; Selenium = 59.7 [23.4, 133.7] μg/100g; VitaminA = 40.6 [11.6, 141.4] μg/100g; Zinc = 1 [1, 2] mg/100g (wet weight);