Small catfish from rivers of the Amazon and Peru, with plates on the thorax and barbels around the mouth. It reaches 14 cm and has commercial use and use in public aquariums.
The bagre-couraçado is of the family Auchenipteridae and reaches 14 cm, weighing up to 62 g. It occurs in the Amazon basin and in rivers of Peru, in fresh water, from the bottom to midwater. It is an elongated, scaleless catfish with the thorax reinforced by a bony armor, as the scientific name thoracatus suggests. It has commercial use and is sold for public aquariums. It rarely shows up on the line of rod anglers.
Essential profile. Identification, where it occurs and rules, with data from FishBase and the cited regulations. Season, time of day, technique and bait are added once we have a good source for the midnight catfish; in the meantime, see the similar species.
how to recognize it
identification
Small catfish with an elongated, scaleless body, a bony armor on the chest and barbels around the mouth, which gives the Ecuadorian name barbudo. It reaches 14 cm. It looks like other small catfish of the family Auchenipteridae, such as Tatia aulopygia and Trachelyopterus coriaceus; small size and region help, but telling them apart in the field takes a trained eye.
how midnight catfish fishing looks
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Each card shows the day's index (0 to 100) and, below it, a strip with the index for each hour, from 0h to 23h. from poor to excellent.
Essential profile: the index uses a general fish model (weather, sun, moon and tide), without a season or time of day specific to this species.
Habitat: Freshwater rivers, from the bottom to midwater, in the Amazon basin.
native to the basins
Amazon
what the law says
rules for the midnight catfish
Summary of the regulations we found, with the source for each. Rules change; before keeping or transporting fish, check with the state environmental agency. Conservation: Not on the Brazilian national list (Ministerial Ordinance GM/MMA No. 1.667/2026).
We found no species-specific rule beyond the region's general rules.
piracema closures in the basins where the species lives
Spawning closure (piracema) in Mato Grosso (all basins)
01/10 to 31/01MT
Allowed: All fishing modalities are prohibited in rivers, including catch and release (Law 9.096/2009, art. 19-A). Exceptions: subsistence fishing from shore (3 kg or 1 fish, no transport or sale) and scientific fishing. Law 13.159/2025 now allows licensed sport fishing in UHE/PCH hydropower reservoirs, natural lakes and border rivers, subject to a scientific study and a license from the environmental agency. We have not confirmed whether these licenses are already being issued.
Allowed: Recreational anglers with handline or rod, line and hook are outside the Annex II prohibitions, with a bag limit of 5 kg + 1 fish, unless a stricter state rule applies.
catch and release Releasing the fish alive, quickly and with a wet hand. During a closed season it isn't always allowed: what the regulation says applies.
Small fish with plates on the chest: handle it carefully and release it in the water.
calculator
how much it weighs without taking it out of the water
Length-weight relationship W = a·Lb (a = 0.01445, b = 3.09; FishBase (relação peso-comprimento bayesiana, estimativa da própria espécie)). It's an average: a fat or lean fish can vary by 10% to 20%.
estimated weight
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sources and references
Essential profile: size, length-weight, depth, countries and conservation come from FishBase and the cited regulations, and the texts were written from those sources. Season, time of day, sensitivities, technique and baits and lures are not included yet, because we did not find a good source for this species.
