Edit Balantiocheilos melanopterus

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Name

Scientific name

Balantiocheilos melanopterus

Described by

Authority Bleeker, Year 1850, Bracketed

Family

Cyprinidae

Common names

Silver Shark

Photograph credits

All 4 credited

Summary

The silver shark, Balantiocheilos melanopterus, is a large cyprinid from Borneo, Sumatra and possibly Peninsular Malaysia. Also sold as the…

Size and aquarium

Maximum size

350mm, standard length

Aquarium size

Minimum length 240 cm, Minimum depth 60 cm, Water movement High: fast-flowing river or riffle

Water

Water conditions

Temperature 20–28°C, pH 6–8

Hardness

2–15dGH

Conductivity

Not recorded

Behaviour

Temperament

Not recorded

Community suitability

Community-safe

Where it lives

Countries, regions, rivers and lakes

Indonesia, Malaysia, Borneo, Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra, Batang Hari, Kapuas

Writing

Etymology

Balantiocheilos: from the Ancient Greek, and χείλος (cheílos), meaning 'lip', in reference to the posterior margin of the lower lip, which forms a pouch or poc…

Distribution

Type locality is 'Bandjarmasin, Borneo, Indonesia', and work by Ng and Kottelat published in 2007 (see 'Notes') confirmed that contrary to much of the publishe…

Habitat

A pelagic species primarily occuring in rivers but also natural lakes such as the Danau Sentarum system.

Aquarium size

An aquarium with base dimensions of 240 ∗ 60 cm should be the smallest considered to house a group of adults.

Maintenance

Choice of décor is not as critical as water quality and the amount of open swimming-space provided; we've seen very healthy-looking specimens being maintained …

Water conditions

Temperature: 20 – 28 °C pH: 6.0 – 8.0 but a value close to neutral is usually recommended. Hardness: 2 – 15 dGH

Diet

Like many cyprinids B. melanopterus is omnivorous with stomach analyses of wild specimens revealing it to feed on insects, crustaceans, algae and other plant m…

Behaviour and compatibility

Given its potential size this species is clearly unsuitable for the general community aquarium. Though normally quite peaceful it will also eat very small fish…

Sexual dimorphism

Sexually mature females are noticeably thicker-bodied than males but it is impossible to accurately sex young fish.

Reproduction

As far as we know it has not been bred in aquaria although it is farmed for the trade in large numbers via the use of hormones.

Notes

May also be seen on sale under the trade names 'Bala shark' or 'tricolor shark minnow' and perhaps among the most commonly-encountered ornamental fish species.…

May also be seen on sale under the trade names 'Bala shark' or 'tricolor shark minnow' and perhaps among the most commonly-encountered ornamental fish species. It is unfortunate that the vast majority of those traded are juveniles and tend to come supplied with little to no information provided regarding their potential size and requirements, a fairly ironic situation given the apparently precarious status of wild populations.

Long-term care is simply beyond the resources of most hobbyists, and despite continued popularity it is among those species most frequently returned having outgrown small aquaria, and many stores are reluctant to accept them as the resale value is very low.

Very few fully-grown individuals are being maintained long-term in private systems, and since this is undoubtedly a long-lived species, its suitability for the home aquarium is questionable at best.

The genus Balantiocheilos was considered monotypic for well over 150 years with B. melanopterus the sole represenatative. However in 2007 Ng and Kottelat described B. ambusticauda from the lower and middle Chao Phraya and Mekong drainages in Thailand, a result of the authors comparing previously collected specimens of Balantiocheilos from Thailand, Sumatra and Borneo to each other rather than discovery of the new species in nature.

The holotype of B. ambusticauda was collected from the freshwater swamp Bueng Boraphet, Nakhon Sawan province, central Thailand in 1967, for example. It is distinguished from B. melanopterus in the following characters: a shorter snout (27.5-33.9% HL vs. 33.2-39.1) that is rounded (vs. obliquely truncate) in specimens larger than ca. 80 mm3.1 in SL; posteriorly directed groove at rictus curved (vs. straight); black margins on the pelvic and anal fins less broad (on distal third of both fins or less vs. on distal half or more, with pelvic fins sometimes entirely black).

In the few colour images that exist it appears to possess golden colouration on the head and dorsal surface of the body which further separate it from the uniformly silver B. melanopterus. It is also a smaller species with a maximum length of around 200 mm8 in SL, this having been previously noted by several authors including Rainboth (1996), although this was in reference to what were then thought of as Indonesian vs. Thai/Cambodian populations of B. melanopterus.

B. ambusticauda originally occurred between Bangkok and the lower Nan river in the Chao Phraya river basin, plus the Mekong and and Tonlé Sap systems as far as the lower Nam Ngum river, Laos in the Mekong drainage. However Rainboth only found it in a handful of small rivers at the eastern end of Tonlé Sap whereas in the 1950s it had been abundant in rivers downstream of the lake.

We've been unable to find any records for Cambodia post-1996 and it's almost certainly extirpated from Thailand where the last specimen was recorded in 1986.

Ng and Kottelat (2007)[2] surmised that the species may be extinct in nature although more recent records from Vietnam require ratification. There's no evidence to confirm reports that overfishing for the aquarium trade is to blame for the species' demise and it seems more reasonable to assume that Balantiochielos species are ill-equipped to cope with large-scale environmental change such as the damming of rivers.

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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.

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References

6 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