Hari basin

The horseface loach, Acantopsis dialuzona, is a cobitid loach from Sumatra, Borneo, Java and Peninsular Malaysia, and possibly Thailand. Most literature lists it as A. choirorhynchos, which Kottelat treats as a junior synonym, and few if any fish in the trade come from near the type locality, so they may represent an unidentified species. Juveniles are exported in large numbers but adults are uncommon in the hobby, and it needs soft sand to bury in.

The black lancer, Bagrichthys macracanthus, is a bagrid catfish described from Sumatra, Indonesia, and possibly endemic to that island. The name 'lancer' comes from the extended dorsal spine of several members of the genus. Fish from the Chao Phraya and Mekong once included in it were described as B. majusculus in 2002. A shy, nocturnal catfish of large, turbid rivers, it needs a dimly lit tank with plenty of hiding places and is territorial towards other bottom-dwellers.

The silver shark, Balantiocheilos melanopterus, is a large cyprinid from Borneo, Sumatra and possibly Peninsular Malaysia. Also sold as the 'Bala shark', it is among the most commonly encountered ornamental fishes, yet it reaches 300 to 350 mm SL and long-term care is beyond most hobbyists. Wild populations have dwindled or vanished, it has been listed as Endangered by the IUCN since 1996, and fish on sale are almost certainly all commercially bred. It does not occur in Indochina.

The spanner barb or 'T-barb', Barbodes lateristriga, is a cyprinid from peninsular Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia, Singapore, Sumatra and Java. Its colour pattern varies with locality, and the form most commonly seen in the trade corresponds most closely to fish from Johor. The species may prove to be a complex of closely-related taxa. Quite boisterous, it can intimidate more timid species with its size and activity, especially at feeding times.

Barbonymus gonionotus is a large cyprinid with an enormous distribution across Southeast Asia, from the Mekong to Java and Sumatra. It inhabits larger, slow-moving rivers and their floodplains, moving into flooded forest to feed and spawn, and is increasingly found in man-made canals and lakes. Plain grey caudal and dorsal fins and pale yellow pelvic and anal fins separate it from congeners. Populations in Peninsular Malaysia appear to be introduced.

The Java combtail, Belontia hasselti, is a labyrinth fish from peninsular Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia, Singapore, Sumatra, Borneo and Java. Also known as the 'Malay combtail', it mostly inhabits acidic forest peat swamps with little water movement. It differs from its only congener, B. signata, in its brownish grey body and the mosaic pattern in its unpaired fins. Growing to 200 mm SL, it will eat very small fishes and is not recommended for the average community aquarium.

The scarlet betta, Betta coccina, is a small bubble-nesting labyrinth fish from Jambi and Riau provinces in Sumatra and Johor in Peninsular Malaysia. It lends its name to the B. coccina group and is a stenotopic inhabitant of peat swamp forests and associated streams. Males carry an iridescent green lateral blotch that females lack, and populations are often labelled by locality, such as Jambi, Riau or Johor, to preserve pure bloodlines.

Betta raja is a mouthbrooding labyrinth fish endemic to Sumatra, Indonesia, found in the Batang Hari and Indragiri river basins. Before its description it was widely misidentified as Betta fusca. It lives in lowland forest swamps with both clear and black water, and mature males of this B. pugnax complex member have very long pelvic fins and black marginal bands on the anal and lower caudal fins. Populations from different localities should be labelled as such to preserve pure bloodlines.

The dwarf snakehead, Channa gachua, is a snakehead recorded across an enormous range from Iran to Taiwan and Bali. There is significant evidence that C. gachua as currently understood is a complex of similar-looking species in need of taxonomic review. A mouthbrooder bred regularly in captivity, it can share a well-chosen community with peaceful fishes too large to be prey, but populations should not be mixed as some may hybridise.

The forest snakehead, Channa lucius, is a predatory snakehead from Indochina, Peninsular Malaysia and the Greater Sunda Islands. Also referred to as the 'splendid' or 'shiny' snakehead, it occurs on Sumatra, Borneo and Java, grows to 400 mm SL and favours forest swamps and tributaries. Like others in the genus it breathes atmospheric air, and it needs a dimly-lit tank with plenty of cover and a tightly-fitting lid, since Channa spp. are notorious for their ability to escape.

The clown loach, Chromobotia macracanthus, is a large botiid loach native to river systems of Borneo and Sumatra in Indonesia. Widely sold, it is wholly unsuitable for smaller aquaria: a group needs a tank of at least 180 x 60 cm, and a properly kept fish can live for more than twenty years. Bornean and Sumatran populations differ slightly in pattern, and in the Batang Hari, Sumatra, drifting larvae are now collected and grown on for the trade.

The beardless barb, Cyclocheilichthys apogon, is a cyprinid ranging from Myanmar to Vietnam and south via Peninsular Malaysia to Borneo and Sumatra. Also sold as 'skinhead barb', it lacks barbels and has a black blotch at the caudal-fin base plus rows of dark spots along the scale rows. It favours slower-moving or still water and grazes the biofilm on submerged roots and branches. Rarely imported in numbers, it most often arrives as bycatch.

Cyclocheilichthys repasson is a cyprinid with an enormous range, from the Mekong region and Myanmar through Peninsular Malaysia to Borneo and Sumatra. It grows to around 280 mm SL and favours slower-moving or still water, grazing the biofilm on submerged roots and branches. It is not often seen in the hobby. Most populations have a dark caudal peduncle spot, stripes formed by dark markings on the scales, and two pairs of barbels.

Desmopuntius gemellus is a rarely-traded cyprinid from eastern Sumatra and the island of Bangka, Indonesia. Like D. johorensis and D. trifasciatus, it is vertically barred as a juvenile and changes to a pattern of thin lateral stripes, a change that begins at around 20 mm SL and is normally complete by 30 to 40 mm. It inhabits peat swamp forests and associated black water streams.

The striped barb, Desmopuntius johorensis, is a cyprinid from southern Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia, Singapore, Sumatra and Borneo. Juveniles have 4 dark vertical bars and develop 5 or 6 broad lateral stripes as they grow, a pattern change shared with D. gemellus and D. trifasciatus. Before Kottelat (1992) it was referred to as Puntius eugrammus, while the name 'Puntius johorensis' was misapplied to D. hexazona. It lives mainly in peat swamps and black water streams.

The flying fox, Epalzeorhynchos kalopterum, is a cyprinid from southern Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia and the Greater Sunda Islands. Fishes sold as 'false flying fox' or 'Siamese flying fox', such as Garra cambodgiensis and Gyrinocheilus aymonieri, are often confused with it, but it has white-edged red and black fins and two pairs of barbels. It grows increasingly territorial with age and can live for over 15 years.

The 'freshwater' moray eel, Gymnothorax tile, is a moray from coastal regions of the Indo-West Pacific, from eastern India to the Philippines. Although typically sold as a freshwater fish, this is not strictly the case, and the profile treats a marine salt mix as mandatory. It has small pale spots on a darker head and body, where the congener G. polyuranodon has much larger dark spots on a paler background. Highly piscivorous, it is best kept alone in all but the very largest aquaria.

The kissing gourami, Helostoma temminkii, is an anabantoid from southern Indochina and the Malay Archipelago, and the sole member of its family. The widely traded pinkish-white form is a leucistic variant bred for ornamental purposes, and the 'balloon' variety is intentionally disfigured and much shorter-lived. Its often belligerent behaviour, adult size and life span of over 20 years make it unsuitable for most home aquaria. The 'kissing' appears at least in part related to establishing social dominance.

Homalopterula gymnogaster is a hillstream loach from Sumatra, Indonesia, described from Lake Maninjau and recorded from Jambi province northwards. Tan and Kottelat (2009) describe it as a relatively common highland species of riffles and 'quiet waters'. That makes it unusual, since Homaloptera species are not normally associated with standing water, though it remains unclear whether the fish come from the lakes themselves or their outflowing rivers.

Kottelatia brittani is a small rasborin cyprinid described from southern Peninsular Malaysia and recorded from the Batang Hari river in Sumatra. Its distribution is unclear, since the type specimens came via a Singapore wholesaler, and there appears to be a possibility that it is endemic to Sumatra. Sold as the 'head and tail light rasbora', it has been confused with Rasbora kalbarensis but is larger, with a more pointed head and intense orange to red blotches on the caudal peduncle.

Kottelatlimia pristes is a small cobitid loach from Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra and Borneo, the most widely-distributed member of its genus. It inhabits small, slow-moving forest streams and peat swamps with tannin-stained water, often in piles of leaf litter. It turns up occasionally in the trade, sometimes as bycatch among other species and under names such as 'Sumatran mini royal loach' or Cobitis cf. sumatranus.

Kryptopterus bicirrhis is a silurid catfish from much of Southeast Asia, including the Mekong and Chao Phraya and the Greater Sunda Islands. Uncommon in the aquarium trade, its name was widely misapplied to K. vitreolus in older literature, but the two are easily told apart because K. bicirrhis does not have a transparent body in life. It tends to form schools, so four or more should be kept.

The blue sheatfish, Kryptopterus cryptopterus, is a silurid catfish from the Malay Peninsula, Singapore, Sumatra, Borneo and Java. It inhabits flowing rivers and larger streams with turbid water, and is sometimes traded as 'smokey glass catfish'. Populations from Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam once considered conspecific are now referred to K. geminus, its closest relative, from which it differs in having a wider head and a shorter snout and anal fin.

Kryptopterus limpok is a silurid catfish widely distributed through Southeast Asia, including the Mekong and the Greater Sunda Islands. It can be told from its congeners by an extremely long mental barbel extending beyond the tip of the pectoral fin. It inhabits flowing rivers and larger streams with turbid water, grows to 260 mm and is almost unheard of in the ornamental trade.

The striped glass catfish, Kryptopterus macrocephalus, is a silurid catfish from Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore and the Greater Sunda Islands. A stenotypic inhabitant of peat swamp forests and associated blackwater streams, it is also known as the false, mottled or tawny glass catfish. Striped and mottled colour forms exist that may or may not be conspecific, and the similar K. piperatus has a pale brown body with scattered dark spots.

Kryptopterus palembangensis is a silurid catfish known only from central and southern Sumatra, in the provinces of Jambi and South Sumatra. It is closely related to K. bicirrhis but is told apart by a prominent, dark lateral stripe on each flank. Almost unheard of in the aquarium trade, it may occasionally be exported among shipments of wild fishes from Sumatra.

Labiobarbus ocellatus is a cyprinid from Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra and Borneo, with a black spot on the shoulder and one on the caudal peduncle. It is occasionally available in the ornamental trade, typically under a name such as 'Bornean eye-spot silver shark' or the invalid scientific name Cirrhinus chinensis. A pelagic species of rivers and some lakes, it moves into seasonally inundated floodplains and forest during the wet season, and grows to 180 mm SL.

Mystacoleucus obtusirostris is a riverine cyprinid found from Myanmar and southwestern China to Vietnam, Borneo, Sumatra and Java. Referred to as M. marginatus for decades, it is the most widely distributed member of the genus, and populations vary somewhat in colour pattern. It is occasionally marketed as 'Burmese rainbow barb'. A group of six or more is the smallest to consider, and like all Mystacoleucus it has a forward-pointing predorsal spine that can snag in a net.

Traded as 'eel loach', Pangio anguillaris is a cobitid loach from Borneo, Sumatra, Peninsular Malaysia and the Chao Phraya and Mekong basins. It has an extremely elongated, worm-like body with 69-71 vertebrae and no nasal barbels, and is most commonly available as bycatch among shipments of other fishes. The species as currently recognised appears to represent a complex of closely-related taxa.

Pangio cuneovirgata is a small kuhli loach from southern Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra and western Java, found in forest streams and swamps. It has 7-13 dark saddles on the upper half of the body and looks most like P. malayana, but has nasal barbels and a truncate caudal-fin. It is infrequently encountered in the trade, most often as bycatch among shipments of similar-looking congeners.

Pangio malayana is a barred kuhli loach from Peninsular Malaysia, the Batang Hari drainage in Sumatra and the Kapuas system in Indonesian Borneo. It has 10-16 dark saddles on the upper half of the body and a black bar at the base of the caudal-fin, and looks most similar to P. cuneovirgata, which has a truncate caudal-fin. It is most often encountered as bycatch among shipments of similar-looking congeners.

Usually sold as the 'kuhli' loach, Pangio semicincta is a cobitid loach from Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra and Borneo. It lives in shallow forest streams and swamps, often in black water, and is typically abundant in leaf litter. P. kuhlii itself is currently considered endemic to Java and has possibly never been seen in aquaria, so the common aquarium 'kuhli' is more likely to be this species or an unidentified relative.

Pangio shelfordii is a variably patterned kuhli loach from Peninsular Malaysia, Singapore, Sumatra and Borneo. Its patterning varies within and between populations, and as currently understood the species represents an assemblage containing a number of unidentified taxa. Some Sumatran and Bornean populations resemble P. piperata, which often occurs alongside it. It is exported occasionally, often as bycatch among shipments of congeners.

The tiger barb, Puntigrus tetrazona, is a small cyprinid probably endemic to central and southern Sumatra, Indonesia. Among the most ubiquitous species in the aquarium trade, it is seen mostly as commercially-produced fish and ornamental strains, and wild examples are rarely traded. The identity of the 'aquarium' tiger barb is the subject of ongoing confusion, and many farmed fish are weak or deformed through inbreeding.

The lined barb, 'Puntius' lineatus, is a laterally-striped cyprinid from Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra and Borneo, found mostly in peat swamps. It is most often confused with 'P.' johorensis, the two being the most common of the striped species in the trade, but it has no more than one pair of barbels, lacks vertical bars as a juvenile and grows smaller. Its habitats include black water streams stained brown with humic acids, with pH as low as 3.0 or 4.0.

The chocolate gourami, Sphaerichthys osphromenoides, is a small gourami from Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra and Borneo. By far the best known member of the genus, it mostly inhabits peat swamps and black water streams where the pH can drop to 3.0 or 4.0. A maternal mouthbrooder, it is slow-moving and easily outcompeted for food by more boisterous tankmates.

The glowlight rasbora, Trigonopoma pauciperforatum, is a small cyprinid from Peninsular Malaysia, Singapore, Borneo and Sumatra. Also sold as the 'redline' rasbora, its lateral stripe varies from deep orange to golden with locality, diet, condition and mood. It inhabits blackwater streams associated with peat swamps, where the pH can drop as low as 3.0 or 4.0, and the name R. agilis is a junior synonym of it.

Trigonostigma hengeli is a small rasbora from the Greater Sunda Islands, collected in Jambi province, Sumatra and apparently West Kalimantan, Borneo. It is sometimes sold as the 'glowlight rasbora', a name also applied to Trigonopoma pauciperforatum. Slightly smaller than T. espei and T. heteromorpha, it has a greyish body with bright orange along the upper and anterior edges of the 'lambchop' marking.

The fork-tailed loach, Vaillantella maassi, is a loach from Sumatra, Borneo, Peninsular Malaysia and southern Thailand. Traded as 'chocolate scissor-tailed loach' and 'dragon loach' among other names, it has a bluish-brown body with an orange to yellow dorsal stripe. Rarely traded in numbers, it is among the more reclusive loaches and can be aggressive with its own kind and other fishes.

Xenentodon canciloides is a freshwater needlefish from Borneo, Sumatra, Peninsular Malaysia and Thailand, and is considered to occur in the Mekong. Rarely seen in the ornamental trade, it is far less common there than its congener X. cancila, from which it differs in its slender, delicate jaws and smaller size, not exceeding 30 cm TL. A near-exclusive inhabitant of the upper water column, it is surprisingly peaceful with anything too large to swallow and is best kept in numbers of four or more.

The goonch, Bagarius yarrelli, is a very large sisorid catfish recorded from the Indus in Pakistan east through Indochina to Sumatra and Borneo. Also known as the 'giant devil catfish' and 'sand shark', it reaches 1300 to 2000 mm and is fished for food across much of its range. That wide distribution appears doubtful, and Indian and Southeast Asian populations may prove not to be conspecific. It lives among boulders in the fast, turbulent rapids of large rivers.

The emperor snakehead, Channa marulioides, is a large snakehead from southern Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia, including Borneo and Sumatra. Colour pattern varies with locality, and it is often confused with C. marulius and C. melanoptera, all three presenting taxonomic problems. Growing to 650 mm SL, it is pelagic, turns aggressive towards its own kind at sexual maturity and is suitable only for public installations or the very largest private aquaria.

Crossocheilus cobitis is a cyprinid ranging from the Mekong drainage in Laos, Vietnam and Thailand south to Sumatra, Borneo and Java. Primarily a lowland species, it lives in the turbid lower reaches of rivers over mud, close to submerged logs and similar objects. Given its wide range it has probably reached the trade as the invalid 'Crossocheilus siamensis', and it is likely to represent a group of similar-looking, closely related species.

Cyclocheilos enoplos is a large cyprinid from the Mekong region and Thailand south through Peninsular Malaysia to Borneo, Sumatra and Java. Growing to around 750 mm SL, it is clearly unsuitable for aquaria and scarce to non-existent in the ornamental trade. In the Mekong it makes long seasonal migrations, and adults move upstream above Khone Falls in what appear to be spawning migrations.

The Indonesian tiger perch, Datnioides microlepis, is a large tiger perch from Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra and Indonesian Borneo. It has 6 to 7 wide dark bars and small body scales, lives only in large, deep lowland rivers, and grows to 500 mm SL. Juveniles may form groups, but adults are not gregarious and respond aggressively to conspecifics and similarly-shaped fishes.

The hampala barb, Hampala macrolepidota, is a cyprinid ranging from Myanmar through Thailand to the Mekong, and south to Borneo, Sumatra and Java. Also known as 'jungle perch' or 'sidebar barb', it can grow to over 2 feet and 5 kg and is a powerful, pelagic predator and not an aquarium subject in all but the most extreme circumstances. Prized as a food and sport fish, it has been introduced to numerous water bodies.

The crystal-eyed catfish, Hemibagrus wyckii, is a bagrid with an enormous distribution across central Indochina and western Indonesia. Juveniles are sometimes available in the aquarium trade, but buying them is strongly discouraged: it reaches 710 mm SL, is aggressively territorial and can live for several decades. Despite the common name, the blue eye is not given as a distinguishing character in any diagnosis we've seen.

The black shark, Labeo chrysophekadion, is a large cyprinid from Southeast Asia, including the Mekong, Chao Phraya and the Greater Sunda Islands. Also known as the black sharkminnow, it reaches 600 mm and is aggressively territorial towards conspecifics and similarly-shaped fishes. It continues to be sold despite its patent unsuitability for the home aquarium, and an albino form has been selectively bred for the trade.

The mad barb, Leptobarbus hoevenii, is a large pelagic cyprinid apparently native to Peninsular Malaysia, Borneo, Sumatra and Java. A popular sport fish growing to 800 to 1000 mm, it is wholly unsuitable for private aquaria but is readily available at 100 to 150 mm. The congener L. rubripinna was referred to as L. hoevenii for decades and both are traded under the same name. L. hoevenii lacks the broad dark midlateral stripe and has dark grey pelvic and anal fins.

The giant sword minnow, Macrochirichthys macrochirus, is a large pelagic cyprinid widespread in Southeast Asia, from the Mekong to Borneo and Sumatra. Growing to 600 to 800 mm and becoming increasingly piscivorous as it grows, it is unsuitable for the majority of private aquaria, although juveniles are traded on occasion. It is thought to have been extirpated from the Chao Phraya, Mae Klong, Lake Songkhla and Java, and the Mekong populations have been drastically reduced.

The bronze featherback, Notopterus notopterus, is an air-breathing notopterid from the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. Also called 'Asian knifefish' or 'ghost knifefish' in the trade, it grows to 600 mm and arguably has no place in the ornamental hobby given its adult size and specialised requirements. The single species in Notopterus is likely to represent a complex of closely-related species.

Phalacronotus apogon is a large silurid catfish from much of Southeast Asia, including Thailand, the Mekong basin and the Greater Sunda Islands. It reaches 700 mm and arguably should not be considered a home aquarium subject at all, but juveniles are sometimes sold as 'blue neon sheatfish' or 'metallic cheatfish' without adequate information on long-term care. It is an important food fish across much of its native range.

Labiobarbus fasciatus is a labeonin cyprinid from the Pahang River system in Peninsular Malaysia and the islands of Sumatra and Borneo. It has a red caudal fin with a thin dark stripe along each lobe, and longitudinal stripes formed by spots on the scales. Like other Labiobarbus it has two pairs of well-developed barbels and an extremely long dorsal fin, and the genus was known as Dangila for over 100 years.

Luciosoma spilopleura is a small cyprinid known only from Sumatra and the Indonesian part of Borneo, where it prefers fast-flowing headwater streams. The species is poorly known and is not present in the ornamental trade, although its name has been widely misapplied to other Luciosoma species for decades. The largest known specimen measured 81.9 mm, so it appears to grow much smaller than its congeners.