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

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…

Members of this genus are near-exclusive inhabitants of swiftly-flowing streams and rivers with substrates generally consisting of any combination of sand, gravel and rocks.

The water is normally transparent to slightly turbid, though overall volume, flow, and thus the amount of suspended material tend to increase significantly during rainy periods.

Aquatic plants are not normally present though there may be patches of leaf litter or underwater structures such as fallen branches or roots protruding from banks.

In the Hanthayaw aquatic plants include Pogostemon helferi and a Cryptocoryne species while sympatric fishes comprise Acanthocobitis pictilis, Botia kubotai, Syncrossus berdmorei, Pangio fusca, Crossocheilus burmanicus, Chanda pulcinella, Systomus orphoides, Pethia stoliczkana, Microdevario kubotai, Hampala salweenensis, Poropuntius scapanognathus, Glyptothorax dorsalis, Batasio dayi, B. feruminatus, Amblyceps caecutiens and Tetraodon cutcutia.

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Where does this come from?

My own experienceFor example, I've kept twelve in a planted 60 cm tank since March 2024.A website I sawFor example, an IUCN Red List assessment, a museum catalogue or a FishBase page.A paperFor example, Marshall et al. (2011), Water temperature differences in interfluvial palm swamp habitats of Paracheirodon axelrodi and P. simulans.A book, or something not onlineFor example, Tappin (2010), Rainbowfishes: their care and keeping in captivity.Something already on the pageFor example, the Behaviour and compatibility section already says this.

Web address

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DOI

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Title

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Authors

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Year

Journal or publisher

Pages

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Anything worth adding

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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

14 on this profile

Name

Scientific name

Described by

Family

Common names

Photograph credits

Summary

Size and aquarium

Maximum size

Aquarium size

Water

Water conditions

Hardness

Conductivity

Behaviour

Temperament

Social needs

Community suitability

Where it lives

Countries, regions, rivers and lakes

Writing

Etymology

Distribution

Habitat

Aquarium size

Maintenance

Water conditions

Diet

Behaviour and compatibility

Sexual dimorphism

Reproduction

Notes

References

References