African Lungfish, Protopterus annectens, Lepidosireniformes Images, Photography, Stock Pictures, Archives, Fine Art Prints

Code Number:: AAFV01P02_12
Title:: African Lungfish, Protopterus annectens, Lepidosireniformes; Size: 6.5" when fully grown
Heart: 4 chambers
Lungs: breathes air when water dries up
Burrowing: in soft mud
• Lines its chamber with mucus and then curls up into it
• breathes through the mouth
• metabolic rate slows
• food is provided from the breakdown of muscle tissue
• This fish can survive up to a maximum of 4 years but usually only few months are necessary
Eggs: laid in nest
Newborn: larvae have external gills that are reabsorbed during metamorphosis
Habitat: swamps, small rivers
Range: West and South Africa

This is an aggressive predator. The males guard the newly hatched young up to 2 months. In the wild it eats frogs and small fish
Keywords:: Class Sarcopterygii, Fish, Water, Vertebrates, Chordata, Animals, Animilia, Aquatic
Image by:: Wernher Krutein

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