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Fish profile · Siluridae

Wallago catfish

Wallagonia leerii

FoodFreshwaterNative to MalaysiaLeast Concern (IUCN)

Also called Wallago, Wallago leerii, and Wallago leeri

The wallago catfish is a large native Southeast Asian catfish. Its accepted scientific name is Wallagonia leerii; the older forms Wallago leerii and Wallago leeri still occur in fisheries literature.

Last reviewed 26 October 2026 · 6 sources

Photo of Wallago catfish
(c) Ong Jyh Seng, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA) · CC BY-SA
IUCN
LC
Least Concern
In Malaysia
Native
Family
Siluridae
order Siluriformes

Category from the IUCN Red List, via GBIF (CC BY 4.0); it may lag the latest Red List assessment.

Where in Malaysia

8 open-licence records · GBIF

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  • Recorded (open records)

Recorded in Sarawak, Pahang, and Selangor. Based on 8 open-licence records on GBIF. Few records can mean few surveys, not few fish.

Habitat

Lowland riversReservoirs

Freshwater river systems; historical records include Kenyir, although recent confirmation of its population there is needed.

Diet
Mostly small fish, swallowed whole.
Native range
The Malay Peninsula, Sumatra and Borneo, with mainland Southeast Asian records.

More photos

Wallago catfish, photo 2
(c) Zakqary Roy, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY
Wallago catfish, photo 3
(c) Abu Hamas, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA) · CC BY-SA

Sources

Last reviewed 26 October 2026

  1. doi.org
  2. researcharchive.calacademy.org
  3. repository.si.eduPDF
  4. en.wikipedia.org
  5. gbif.org
  6. wikidata.org