Animal Activities #08

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Hello friends welcome to my blog

Today's animal story will be of a Catfish, an animal that belongs to the order of Siluriformes.

Catfish is a freshwater fish that can be rear and found in ponds, lakes and rivers. They are omnivorous animals that feed on both plants and animals such as other smaller fishes or insects; they are also of various species ranging from different sizes and appearance.

Catfish have a high sense of smell, which helps them scavenge and locate food even in dark and murky waters. They are known to play a vital role in their ecosystem, serving as prey to larger animals and a predator to smaller animals, and this helps to strike a balance. Catfish play an important role in the economy and ecosystem.

They are also of different breeds and over 30,000 species with their special characteristics:

• Some breeds have egg layers and lay thousands of egg
• Some do not care about their younger ones; once they lay their eggs, that ends the relationship, while some split care for and guard their eggs.
• Some pieces grow longer than others

For their characteristics

• Their skin is smooth and scaleless covered in a layer
• they have both dorsal and pectoral which they use in defence.
• They have flattened heads and generally elongated

Catfish are a high source of protein and low in fat. It's the best option for me in cooking; I can use it for pepper soup, stew, soup and jello rice, and it gives a delicious taste to food.

Catfish Preservation
To preserve Catfish, first, wash the fish thoroughly to remove slime from the body and remove the unwanted parts. Then, cut into desired sizes, brine the fish in salty water and marinate to give that spice taste.

After that, you can choose your method of drying. It can be Air dried. All you need to do in this method of preservation is wash the fish and allow it to dry naturally with low humidity. The Sundry method is the same as air drying, but this time, it requires direct sunlight to dry, or the Dehydrating method, where an oven is used to remove moisture, and you have control over the drying process. With this method of preservation, your catfish will still taste nice and fresh.

Lately, there has been an increasing demand for catfish in many markets, and this is boasting aquaculture as catfish farming will also create Job opportunities for the many hands needed for fish farming; Catfish farming can be incorporated into rice farming to help in weeds and paste control.

Nutrients are recycled in Catfish farming as organic waste like the faeces of fish is broken down by bacteria and microorganisms and is used by plants and other organisms, limiting the use of chemical fertilisers.

In summary, Catfish farming is of great advantage to sustainable agricultural practices, the economy, and human consumption.

I invite @bela90, @esthyfahsion and @rossnenye to participate in this contest.

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