Biology and ecology of sea catfish (Ariidae) of estuarine, lagoon and coastal ecosystems in West Africa.

The family Ariidae, sea catfish of the order Siluriformes, is widely distributed throughout the world, particularly in tropical and subtropical areas. The three species of Ariidae found on the coasts and estuaries of West Africa are the smoothmouth catfish Carlarius heudelotii (Valenciennes 1840), the rough-head catfish Carlarius latiscutatus (Günther 1864) and the Guinean sea catfish Carlarius parkii (Günther 1864). They have been increasingly exploited by artisanal and industrial coastal fisheries in recent decades, but there is still little information available on their ecology and biology.

The PPEAO experimental fishing dataset: Fish from West African estuaries, lagoons and reservoirs.

Background: This paper describes a dataset of fish, crustacean and mollusc occurrences extracted from the "Experimental Fishing" section of the IRD's PPEAO information system. PPEAO stands for "Fish communities and artisanal fisheries of West African estuarine, lagoon and freshwater ecosystems". This database contains information collected using two different methods: experimental fishing and surveys of the artisanal fisheries that exploit these ecosystems.