''Tor tambroides'', known as empurau in Malay, is a

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

mahseer Mahseer is the common name used for the genera ''Tor (fish), Tor'', ''Neolissochilus'', ''Naziritor'' and ''Parator zonatus, Parator'' in the family Cyprinidae (carps). The name is, however, more often restricted to members of the genus ''Tor'' ...

native to

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Mainland Au ...

Taxonomy

It has been suggested that the species represents a junior synonym of ''

Tor tambra ''Tor tambra'', the Javan mahseer, is a species of mahseer native to Southeast Asia. Taxonomy Tor tambra is a typical mahseer, with Cyprinidae features, large scales and a large head comparative to body depth. It is usually longer and slimmer bo ...

''. ''T. tambra'', ''T. tambroides'' and '' T. douronensis'' may be synonymous.

Distribution

These fish have been found throughout

ranging Length measurement, distance measurement, or range measurement (ranging) all refer to the many ways in which length, distance, or range can be measured. The most commonly used approaches are the rulers, followed by transit-time methods and the ...

from

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

in the

Chao Phraya The Chao Phraya River is the major river in Thailand, with its low alluvial plain forming the centre of the country. It flows through Bangkok and then into the Gulf of Thailand. Etymology Written evidence of the river being referred to by the ...

and

Mekong River The Mekong or Mekong River ( , ) is a transboundary river in East Asia and Southeast Asia. It is the world's List of rivers by length, twelfth-longest river and List of longest rivers of Asia, the third-longest in Asia with an estimated l ...

basins to the

Greater Sunda Islands The Greater Sunda Islands (Indonesian language, Indonesian and Malay language, Malay: ''Kepulauan Sunda Besar'') are four tropical islands situated within the Indonesian Archipelago, in the Pacific Ocean. The islands, Borneo, Java, Sulawesi and S ...

. The species has been reported in

Burma Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and ha ...

. The type locality of Tor tambroides is the Indonesian island of Sumatra.

Ecology

The species is

omnivorous An omnivore () is an animal that regularly consumes significant quantities of both plant and animal matter. Obtaining energy and nutrients from plant and animal matter, omnivores digest carbohydrates, protein, fat, and fiber, and metabolize ...

, sometimes eating toxic fruits when the streams it inhabits flood the forest; this may make them temporarily inedible. During the rainy season, juveniles migrate downstream. After 2 months, matured adults travel back upstream to spawn at the headwaters in the dry season.

Conservation

While the species is not currently assigned a conservation status by the

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the status ...

due to lack of data, overfishing is assumed to threaten the wild population. The ''empurau'', as the species is known in Malaysia, is reportedly the most expensive edible fish in the country and has been known to fetch up to RM1800 per

kilogram The kilogram (also spelled kilogramme) is the base unit of mass in the International System of Units (SI), equal to one thousand grams. It has the unit symbol kg. The word "kilogram" is formed from the combination of the metric prefix kilo- (m ...

of the fish.

Aquaculture

Empurau can be grown in captivity. The fish require moving, well-oxygenated water. They should be fed on various fruits and seeds to simulate their natural diet. Artificial hormones may be necessary to induce reproduction.

References

External links

Empurau – king of the river
* https://www.mahseertrust.org/ {{Taxonbar, from=Q3768599 tambroides Taxa named by Pieter Bleeker Fish described in 1854 Fish of Thailand Cyprinid fish of Asia