Taxonomy & naming
Günther described the species in 1864 from the Pacific coast of Central America, and the authority is in parentheses because it has been moved between genera. The Catalog of Fishes treats Ariopsis seemanni as valid within Ariidae, the sea catfishes. Trade lists use Sciades seemanni, an earlier genus placement, for the same fish.
Morphology
FishBase gives a maximum of 17.5 in TL. It is a typical sea catfish, with barbels around the mouth and strong spines in the dorsal and pectoral fins. The epithet honours Berthold Seemann, a German botanist who collected on the voyage of HMS Herald.
Habitat
FishBase describes a marine, freshwater and brackish bottom fish, common in coastal marine and brackish water and in medium and large rivers to at least 82 ft elevation. Its range runs from El Salvador to Panama. FishBase gives 72–79 °F, pH 6.8 to 8.0 and hardness 8 to 30 dH.
Feeding
No diet is cached. Sea catfishes of this kind take small fishes and invertebrates from the bottom.
Mating
FishBase records that males are mouthbrooders.
Breeding
The male carries the eggs in his mouth, per FishBase. No aquarium breeding record is known to the atlas.
In the aquarium
FishBase says it is not suitable for a home aquarium: adults need seawater and a tank over 59 in. The juveniles sold in freshwater need a move to brackish and then marine conditions as they grow, and a pond-sized system is the honest end point.
Conservation
The IUCN Red List carries Ariopsis seemanni as Least Concern, assessed in May 2007. FishBase notes it is marketed fresh or salted in its home range.