Taxonomy & naming
Pangasius hoeksi was described by J.G. Hardenberg in 1948 and is placed in the family Pangasiidae, the shark catfishes of Southeast Asia, within the large genus Pangasius. The genus has been reshuffled repeatedly as ichthyologists have worked through the Mekong and Chao Phraya basin's diverse catfish fauna, and the Catalog of Fishes remains the reference for which combinations are currently valid; hoeksi is retained in Pangasius.
The species is exceptionally obscure relative to its relatives: it has no dedicated FishBase account and does not appear in the aquarium hobby literature, unlike well-documented congeners such as P. hypophthalmus, P. sanitwongsei or P. krempfi. This kind of gap is common among river-endemic Pangasius described decades ago from a small number of specimens and never revisited by subsequent collecting or trade.
Morphology
Specific measurements for Pangasius hoeksi are not documented in available sources, but the genus is consistent in its general build: a streamlined, laterally compressed, shark-like body with a deeply forked tail, a tall triangular dorsal fin bearing a stiff locking spine, and long barbels used to feel out food along the riverbed. Like other Pangasiidae, P. hoeksi is scaleless, with naked, smooth skin rather than the bony plating seen in some other catfish families.
Most Pangasius species reach a large adult size — commonly well over 15.5 in, and several of the genus's better-known members exceed a metre — so a small juvenile in the trade gives almost no indication of the fish it will become. Exact maximum length for hoeksi is not established in the sources available; treat any juvenile as likely to grow into a large adult typical of the genus.
Habitat
Pangasius as a genus is centred on the major river systems of mainland Southeast Asia, above all the Mekong and Chao Phraya basins, with individual species often restricted to particular river stretches or tributaries. P. hoeksi's precise native range is not detailed in the sources consulted here, but its genus placement points to a Southeast Asian river origin consistent with the rest of Pangasiidae.
River Pangasius generally inhabit warm, well-oxygenated, flowing water over sand, gravel or mud substrates, often moving seasonally between main channels and flooded or tributary habitats. Without species-specific water chemistry data for hoeksi, the genus's general preference for warm tropical river conditions is the best available guide; specific pH and hardness figures for this species are not documented and should not be assumed precisely.
Feeding
Pangasius species are typically opportunistic predators and scavengers, taking fish, invertebrates and other animal matter as they grow, alongside plant material in some species. A catfish of this size and genus should be assumed to be a capable piscivore that will eat any tankmate small enough to swallow.
In captivity, large Pangasius accept meaty foods readily — whole fish, prawn, and large sinking pellets — and grow quickly on a generous diet. Because of the size trap this genus represents (see "In the aquarium"), feeding a juvenile heavily in an undersized tank only accelerates the mismatch between the fish and its housing.
Mating
No species-specific spawning behaviour has been documented for Pangasius hoeksi. Across the genus, wild Pangasius undertake migratory spawning runs timed to seasonal river flooding, releasing large numbers of pelagic eggs into open water rather than pairing off or guarding a nest site. There is no evidence of the elaborate courtship or brood care seen in some other catfish families.
Breeding
Large commercial Pangasius, including the well-known iridescent shark and giant Mekong catfish relatives, are propagated at industrial scale in Southeast Asian aquaculture using hormone-induced spawning, not through natural pairing in captivity. There is no record of Pangasius hoeksi being bred in the home aquarium, and given both its extreme rarity in the trade and the genus's requirement for induced spawning and enormous adult size, it should be considered essentially unbreedable outside a hatchery setting. Anyone encountering the species should not expect to reproduce it at home.
In the aquarium
Pangasius hoeksi should not be purchased for a typical home aquarium. Like other shark catfishes in this genus, it is sold as an attractive small juvenile but is a large-river fish built to grow into a pond- or public-aquarium-sized animal; most home tanks simply cannot accommodate an adult Pangasius, and this species should be assumed to follow that pattern unless firm evidence says otherwise. Only genuinely large systems — the kind found in public aquaria or outdoor ponds in suitable climates — are appropriate.
As a scaleless catfish, P. hoeksi is likely to be more sensitive than scaled fish to copper-based medications and should be treated conservatively if disease treatment is needed. It also carries a stiff, locking dorsal spine typical of the family; large Pangasiidae are best moved in a container rather than netted, both to protect the fish and to avoid injury to the keeper. Given its piscivorous habits, any tankmates must be too large to be swallowed. Because so little is documented about this particular species, prospective keepers should treat any specimen offered in the trade with caution and verify its identity and likely adult size before committing to it.
Conservation
Pangasius hoeksi has not been evaluated by the IUCN Red List, so its conservation status is Not Evaluated. This is not unusual for obscure, poorly collected river catfish described from a small number of specimens decades ago and rarely revisited by subsequent research or fisheries surveys.
More broadly, Southeast Asian river systems that support the genus Pangasius — particularly the Mekong — face substantial pressure from damming, sediment disruption, overfishing and habitat degradation, which affect migratory catfish species generally. Without a species-specific assessment, the population trend and threats facing P. hoeksi specifically remain unknown.