Edit Akysis vespa
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Name
Scientific name
Akysis vespa
Described by
Authority Ng & Kottelat, Year 2004
Family
Akysidae
Common names
Orange-Banded Stream Catfish, Wasp Stream Catfish, Wespenwels
Photograph credits
All 6 credited
Summary
The orange-banded stream catfish, Akysis vespa, appears endemic to headwaters of the Salween basin on the border between Myanmar and Thaila…
Size and aquarium
Maximum size
31mm, standard length
Aquarium size
Minimum length 45 cm, Minimum depth 30 cm, Water movement High: fast-flowing river or riffle
Water
Water conditions
Temperature 16.5–23.5°C, pH 6–7.5
Hardness
2–12dGH
Conductivity
Not recorded
Behaviour
Temperament
Not recorded
Social needs
A shoal or group
Community suitability
Community-safe
Where it lives
Countries, regions, rivers and lakes
Myanmar, Thailand, Ataran, Hanthayaw, Kasat, Megathat, Salween, Suriya
Writing
Etymology
Akysis: from the Greek á- (Gr. ἀ), meaning 'not, without' and kýstis (Gr. κύστις), meaning 'bladder', in reference to genus members lacking a swim bladder. ves…
Distribution
Appears endemic to headwaters of the Salween River basin around the border between Myanmar and Thailand, specifically the Megathat Chaung (Megathat stream) in …
Habitat
Members of this genus are near-exclusive inhabitants of swiftly-flowing streams and rivers with substrates generally consisting of any combination of sand, gra…
Aquarium size
An aquarium with base dimensions of 45 ∗ 30 cm is more than sufficient, even for a group.
Maintenance
Not difficult to keep but should really be provided with a soft, sandy substrate since some of its time is spent completely buried, or with only eyes protrudin…
Water conditions
Not written yet
Diet
Akysis species are primarily nocturnal micropredators feeding on small aquatic crustaceans, worms, insect larvae and other zooplankton. They can be a little pi…
Behaviour and compatibility
Not especially competitive and should not be kept with much larger or more aggressive fishes. Miniature schooling cyprinids such as Boraras, Microdevario, Dani…
Sexual dimorphism
Unreported, but sexual dimorphism has been reported in A. alfredi (Ng and Kottelat, 1998)[9], A. fuscus (Ng, 1996)[3] and A. microps (Ng and Tan, 1999)[4]. In …
Reproduction
A short report with images was published in the description paper (Ng and Kottelat, 2004), in which a successful spawning event in that species was apparently …
Notes
This species is among the few members of the family to be exported for the aquarium hobby and we've also seen it on sale under various names such as 'orange-ba…
References
References
14 on this profile