Barbel

A barbel on a fish is a slender, whiskerlike tactile organ near the mouth. Fish that have barbels include the catfish, the carp and the goatfish. They house the taste buds of such fish and are used to search for food in murky water.

Barbels are often erroneously referred to as 'barbs'.

Barbel is also the name of approxamtely 50 species of fresh-water fish in Europe. The English species, Barbus Barbus, is revered by sport fisherman. It is a large, powerful fish that requires clean, fast-flowing water.