Giant snakehead

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New Horizons fish
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Giant snakehead
Image gallery
Real-world info
Name: Channa argus (Northern snakehead) Family: Channidae (snakeheads)
Main appearances
DnM DnM+ AC DnMe+ iQue WW CF NL NH
Other appearances
Film HHD aF PC
Names in other languages  ライギョ  黑鱼  鱧魚  가물치  Tête-de-serpent  Tête-de-serpent  Pez cabeza de serpiente  Pez cabeza de serpiente  Pesce serpente  Змееголов  Schlangenkopf  Rode slangenkopvis

The giant snakehead is a fish in the Animal Crossing series introduced in Doubutsu no Mori. In games prior to Animal Crossing: New Horizons, it appears in rivers; in New Horizons, it instead appears in ponds. It appears as a large shadow from 9 AM to 4 PM exclusively during summer.

Catch details

In the first-generation games

#16

"I caught a giant snakehead! Yup! A giant snakehead. Who names these things?"

DnM / iQue

DnM+

AC

DnMe+

Time of year	Jun – Aug
Time of day	9 AM – 4 PM
Location	Lake
Shadow size	Very large
Selling price	6,500 Bells
Feng shui	None
Furniture size

In Wild World

#17

"I caught a giant snakehead! ACK! It's got a huge head!"

Description	Their name comes from their snakelike look. Their teeth are strong, so watch your fingers.
Time of year	June - August
Time of day	9 AM – 4 PM
Peak times	July - August
Location	River pool
Shadow size	Large
Fish size	80 cm
Selling price	5,500 Bells
Furniture size

In City Folk

#17

"I caught a giant snakehead! No puny snakeheads for me!"

Description	These are named for how they look. Watch your digits near those sharp teeth!
Time of year	Jun – Aug
Time of day	9 AM – 4 PM
Peak times	N/A
Location	River pool
Shadow size	Huge
Fish size	About 34 in.
Selling price	5,500 Bells
Furniture size

In New Leaf

#19

"I caught a giant snakehead! But where's the rest of the snake?"

Time of year	Jun – Aug
Time of day	9 AM – 4 PM
Peak times	N/A
Location	River Pool
Shadow size	Very large
Fish size	85 cm
Selling price	5,500 Bells
Furniture size

In Pocket Camp

#118

Event availability	None
Location	Lost Lure Creek
Shadow size	Large
Fish size
Rarity	★★★
Catch rate	3.5907%
Selling price	4,000 Bells
Request reward	1,500 Bells, 3 Friendship Points Fortune Cookie (20%), Bronze Treats (30%)

In New Horizons

#19

"I caught a giant snakehead! Um...but I asked for a medium?"

Time of year	North: Jun – Aug South: Dec – Feb
Time of day	9 AM – 4 PM
Location	Pond
Shadow size	Large
Rarity	Rare
Spawn requirement	Catch 50 total fish
Selling prices	Nook's Cranny:  5,500 Bells  C.J.:  8,250 Bells
Furniture size

Donating to the museum

Upon the players' donating the snakehead to the museum, Blathers says the following:

In Animal Crossing

"What a stupendous beast! It must have taken great effort to land this fearsome creature, eh wot? I've heard that giant snakehead carry parasites. Be sure to throughly cook them before eating. Blech! Parasites! Of course, we'll accept this one. Have no worries, we'll take special care of it."

In Wild World

"I firmly believe the best way to prepare a fish is the way the locals do it... Based on that philosophy chili-pepper flakes are a must with giant snakehead! And if you notice one shaking chili flakes on YOU, might I suggest fleeing?"

In City Folk

"...What a giant snakehead! These fish are notorious for their tremendous appetites, eh wot? Much like a snake, once one of these grabs its prey, naught can convince it to let go... I should think a few well-placed owl kicks might convince it, should one ever take a liking to me! In any case, this fish doesn't hunt all year 'round. It hates the cold and hibernates through winter. I've come up with a smashing nickname for it... "The Scourge of Summer!" Marvelous, eh wot?"

After its donation, the giant snakehead can be found in the big, left-hand fish tank with other river fish.

In New Leaf

"Giant snakeheads get their name from the fact that their heads look like those of snakes. Their scales and patterns also look like snakes', really bringing the resemblance to a high degree. They have sharp teeth, so don't poke your finger anywhere near their mouths! Both males and females are well known for protecting their eggs and offspring. They will scare off any other fish that approach by frantically waving their tails."

In New Horizons

When donating to Blathers or selecting "Tell me about this!" in New Horizons, he will provide the following information about the fish:

"The giant snakehead is quite a sight to behold, wot! One glance conjures up visions of its namesake. This resilient creature can even find a home in the mud, where it is able to breathe. As a matter of fact, it dislikes cold weather, so during wintertime the mud serves as its temporary home. I hear that they eat anything that swims past their head. While odd, I feel a sense of owlship with them."

After its donation, the giant snakehead can be found in the recessed tank in the freshwater room in the aquarium.

Fishing Tourney

During a Fishing Tourney, when given a giant snakehead, Chip will say the following dialogue.

In City Folk

"Hey, listen, I recommend giant snakehead fried in peanut oil... ...But do NOT eat it raw unless you think food poisoning sounds fun. Nyuuuk nyuk nyuk nyuk!"

In New Leaf

"Hey, listen. I recommend frying giant snakehead in peanut oil. Delish! You can't beat that idea! OK, well, me, I'm just gonna scarf it down raw, of course! You still get the picture, though. YUM!"

Gallery

For more images, view this subject's gallery.

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  Animal Crossing

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  Animal Crossing: Wild World

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  Animal Crossing: City Folk

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  Animal Crossing: New Leaf

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  Animal Crossing: New Horizons

Trivia

The player catching a spotted snakehead in Animal Crossing, as seen in a prerelease trailer.

• A prerelease trailer for Animal Crossing shows that the giant snakehead was originally called the spotted snakehead. Its catch quote is also different, being "Yup! First I spotted it, then I caughted it!" rather than "Yup! A giant snakehead. Who names these things?"

Real-world information

A real giant snakehead (Channa micropeltes)

The giant snakehead is the largest in the family Channidae, capable of growing to over one meter in length (three feet) and a weight of over 20 kilograms (40 pounds). They are voracious generalist predators, and will eat any small animal they can overpower, including other fish, crustaceans, insects, amphibians, molluscs and occasionally small terrestrial vertebrates. Snakeheads practice brood care and both parents will swim alongside and guard their young for weeks after hatching. Despite being labeled as such, the in-game giant snakehead is modeled after the northern snakehead (Channa argus) rather than the true giant snakehead (Channa micropeltes). The northern snakehead is also a very large fish albeit slightly smaller than the giant, growing up to a metre in length.

Names in other languages

	ライギョ raigyo	"Thunder fish"
	가물치 gamulchi	(Northern) snakehead
	黑鱼 Hēiyú	"Black fish"
	鱧魚 lai5jyu2	Snakehead
	Змееголов Zmeyegolov	(Northern) snakehead
	Rode slangekopvis	Red snakehead
	Schlangenkopf	Snakehead
	Cabeza serpiente Pez cabeza de serpiente	Lit. "snake head" "Snake-headed fish"
	Gobie géant Tête-de-serpent NH	Giant goby Lit. "snake head"
	Pesce serpente	"Snake fish"

Notes

Pocket Camp fish

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