Lungfish

ID points

• Pectoral and pelvic fins reduced to four thin filaments
• Has true lungs and breathes air directly
• Burrows into mud in the dry season and sleeps in a cocoon for months

Basics

Family

Protopteridae

Length

60–150 cm

Depth

0-5 m

Regions

Estuary & freshwater

Distribution

Freshwater rivers and muddy swamps of Africa

Diet

Fish, molluscs, worms

Easily confused with

Frilled SharkSlender eel-like body with a shark's gill slitsGiant MorayThe largest moray, can exceed 2 metresMoray EelSnake-like body with no pectoral or pelvic fins

Fun fact

The Lungfish breathes air directly using a swim bladder that works like a lung. In the dry season it burrows down into the mud and secretes a mucus cocoon, entering a dormant state it can survive in for years.