Ecological Risk Screening Summary - Malapterurus melanochir (a catfish, no common name) - Uncertain Risk

Species that are considered uncertain risk need a more in-depth assessment beyond the Risk Summary to better define the species’ risk to U.S. environments.

Malapterurus melanochir is an electric catfish native to the Congo River basin in western Africa. It is harvested for use in the aquarium trade, but is not known to be in trade in the United States. The history of invasiveness is uncertain; no records of introductions were found. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission has listed the electric catfish M. melanochir as a prohibited species. The climate match was low but there were areas of medium match along southern portions of the contiguous United States and a small area of high match in southern Florida. The certainty of assessment is low, and the overall risk assessment category is uncertain.