Barbs & relatives

B. aurotaeniatus is uncommon in the aquarium trade. Following Kottelat (1998) it has a single pair of maxillary barbels, a complete lateral line and colour pattern usually comprising four small, vertically-orientated black markings on the flanks (located above anterior lateral line origin, below dorsal-fin origin, below posterior end of dorsal-fin base and on caudal peduncle, respectively) and one on the dorsal surface, below dorsal-fin origin.

This species is not often seen in the aquarium hobby but occasionally exported as bycatch among shipments of other fishes. It was described as a subspecies of the closely-related 'P.' binotatus but is currently considered distinct on a tentative basis as per Ng and Tan (1999) who stated it is 'likely' that the two represent extreme colour forms of a single, variably-patterned species.

This species is so ubiquitous across its natural range that it's often referred to simply as 'common barb'. Basic adult colour pattern consists of a small, dark spot at the base of the dorsal-fin origin and another on the caudal peduncle but overall appearance varies somewhat depending on origin, with the anterior dark spot enlarged ventrally forming a bar or posterior spot extending into the caudal-fin, for example. The spots may also appear darker or lighter in some individuals.

Although sometimes referred to by the vernacular name 'big spot barb' this species is better known in the aquarium hobby as 'clown barb'. It has been widely misidentified as the congener B. everetti, a distinct and uncommonly-traded species from Borneo and thus appears under that name in the majority of available literature. The two are quite easy to tell apart, with B. everetti an overall les...

This species is rarely-exported for the aquarium hobby but is available on occasion. The name 'P.' kuchingensis is frequently misapplied, however, with subadult forms of 'P.' everetti and some populations of the geographically-variable 'P.' lateristriga regularly traded as such, for example. Though closely-affiliated with and superficially very similar to...

This species is also known by the alternative names 'green' or 'Chinese' barb. The natural 'green' form is an infrequent find in the aquarium trade whereas the selectively-bred 'golden' variant is farmed in huge numbers and is among the most popular of freshwater aquarium fish. The latter was first produced in the 1960s and is now so ubiquitous that many hobbyists are initially unaware that it is not the natural form.

This species is still very rare in the hobby although it has built up something of a following among enthusiasts of planted 'nano' aquaria and you may see it on sale under the trade names of 'dwarf amber/ember barb'. Its small adult size evolved via a process known as miniaturisation characterised by sexually mature adults with a significantly reduced size of less than 20mm SL. Among bony fishes cyprinids are one of the few groups in which this phenomenon occurs repeated...

'B.' candens is not really suitable for most community aquaria as it has something of a shy, retiring nature and may be intimidated or outcompeted for food by larger/more boisterous tankmates. Choose similarly-sized, peaceful African species such as 'B.' jae, Aplocheilichthys spp., Ladigesia roloffi or Lepidarchus adonis. We suspect it will also do ok with many small South American characins, Otocinclus or smaller Corydoras catfish and other cyprinids like Trigonostigma or Boraras species.

For many years this species was imported and sold as Barbus/Barbodes barilioides, now recognised as a junior synonym of 'B.' fasciolatus, and is sometimes called the Blue Banded or Angola Barb. It's an exceptionally attractive little fish when in good condition but like all African barbs is quite rare in the hobby due to sporadic exports from the countries in which it is found. Distinguishing features include 25-30 late...

The fish appearing in the majority of earlier literature as P. arulius or 'arulius barb', and often still traded as such, is the related D. tambraparniei. Though similar the latter can be told apart from D. arulius by possession of filamentous extensions to the dorsal-fin rays in males, longer maxillary barbels measuring > ½ eye diameter, i.e., 2.4 - 4.7 % SL, and some aspects of colour pattern.

There is a case, however, to suggest that D. exclamatio is not actually a distinct taxon but rather a natural hybrid between D. assimilis and a D. arulius-like fish (possibly D. rubrotinctus) which occur together at its type locality in the Kallada River at Thenmalai. The potential of hybridisation is evidenced by the somewhat intermediate colour pattern in that it possesses a (roughly) W-shaped mid-lateral blot...

Known only from Kanyakumari District, Tamil Nadu state, at the southern tip of the Indian peninsula. Type locality is the Kodayar River drainage and it's also been collected in the Paralayar and Pamburivaikal river systems. No precise data is available but it's certainly a pelagic, riverine species with habitats likely to vary depending on locality and time o...

This species may have appeared in the aquarium trade under the misapplied names Puntius arulius or P. tambraparniei in the past, both of which are also now classified within Dawkinsia. See the relevant profiles for D. arulius and D. tambraparniei for additional information regarding that confusion, since here we concentrate on D. rubrotinctus. It was initially described by Jerdon in 1849 but placed in synonymy with P. arulius by Day (1878), where it remained for ov...

D. exclamatio should also have a sub-terminal mouth and lack dorsal-fin filaments but some specimens possess a terminal mouth and/or possess dorsal filaments, and one specimen also had black caudal-fin tips as typically seen in D. filamentosa, whereas the description states that the fin tips are only dusky and lack distinctive markings.

Probably a micropredator feeding on small insects, worms, crustaceans and other zooplankton in nature. In the aquarium it will accept dried foods of a suitable size but should not be fed these exclusively. Daily meals of small live and frozen fare such as Daphnia, Artemia, and suchlike will result in the best colouration and encourage the fish to come into breeding condition. It's a schooling species by natur...

D. foerschi is sometimes traded as 'boomerang barb' or 'Foersch's fire barb' and is included in a group of closely-related, similar-looking fishes which were moved into the new genus Desmopuntius by Kottelat (2013). It can be told apart from other vertically-striped congeners by possession of additional dark blotches between the second, third and fourth vertical bars and a further marking at the posterior base o...

Native to parts of southern Borneo, eastern Sumatra, Singapore, and the Malay Peninsula. In Singapore it's considered highly-endangered and is now restricted to the Central Catchment nature reserve. Type locality is 'Tuluk and Gunung Sahilan, Sumatra, Indonesia' which appears to correspond to localities within the Kampar River drainage of which the former is now known as Teluk Meranti and is o...

D. johorensis can be distinguished by the following combination of characters: 5-6 dark, lateral stripes on body in specimens larger than 40 mm; stripes immediately above and below the central stripe (stripes '+1' and '-1', respectively) located on scale rows +2 and -2, not touching dorsal and ventral midlines (except in some small specimens from Peninsular Malaysia); stripes broad, typically between 0.5-1 scale rows deep...

This species is rare in the aquarium trade with the majority of fish available under the name or the vernacular 'pentazona barb' being the closely-related D. hexazona. The two are almost identical in terms of both appearance and meristics but can be separated by the fact that D. pentazona possesses a small dark marking at the posterior base of the dorsal-fin which is absent in D. hexazona.

Endemic to southern Kalimantan, the Indonesian portion of Borneo where it's been recorded from several river systems including the Kapuas, Kepayang, Barito and Kahajan. Type locality is given as 'Canal along the highway from Oelin to Bandjermasin, about 15 kilometers from Bandjermasin, Borneo.' Often referred to as the 'rhomb' or 'rhombo' barb and included in a group of closely-related, similar-looking congeners which also includes...

This species is one of three similar-looking members of the genus alongside D. johorensis and D. trifasciatus, while it may also be confused with Striuntius lineatus. Juveniles of all except S. lineatus exhibit a vertically-barred rather than laterally-striped colour pattern, the metamorphosis to adult patterning beginning at around 20 mm SL and normally being complete by 30-40 mm.

This species is traded under various vernacular names including 'ember barb', 'banded barb' and 'black spot barb', and is perhaps among the more undervalued small cyprinids in the aquarium hobby being peaceful, relatively hardy, colourful, and of interesting behaviour. It exists in a number of colour for...

This species is also traded as 'checker barb', 'checkerboard barb', or 'island barb', and is among the most ubiquitous species available in the aquarium trade. It is farmed commercially in enormous numbers with wild examples rarely, if ever, available. It was formerly included in the polyphyletic catch-all genus Puntius which contained over 100 species, but this situation has been largely resolved since the turn of the century.

This species was considered to be a phenotype of the similar-looking P. gelius prior to its description. Following Knight (2013) it is included a group of closely-related species alongside P. gelius and P. canius, the trio being distinguished from other members of the genus Pethia by the following combination of characters: lateral line incomplete with 3-4 por...

This species' identity was settled and a neotype designated by Knight (2013), with its validity having been discussed since the late 19th century. P. canius and the closely-related P. gelius were both described by Hamilton (1822) and share the type locality of 'northeastern Bengal'. Although Hamilton did not provide drawings M'Clelland (1839) included colour illustrations depicting two quite different-looking species.

Generally considered one of the hardiest small cyprinids available in the aquarium hobby, P. conchonius is an excellent choice for the beginner. Selective breeding has produced various ornamental strains including long-finned, 'veil-tail', 'super red', 'neon', and 'golden' forms. It's also been hybridised with some congeners although the offspring of such experiments are apparently infertile. It was formerly included in th...

For many years this species was considered to occur in two colour forms with yellow or red dorsal, anal, and pelvic fins, respectively, but the red-finned variant has now been elevated to full species status as P. reval (Meegaskumbura et al. 2008). The latter is a smaller fish with a maximum SL of 33.6 mm recorded to date. As well as the obvious differences in body size and fin colour P. cumingii can be told apart from P. reval by the following...

The type locality is a stream with a mixed substrate of mud and stones which flows swiftly through an area of bamboo forest so is quite well-shaded. At time of collection the water was clear but slightly tannin-stained and sympatric species included Pethia thelys, Puntius sophore, Devario strigillifer, Rasbora daniconius, R. rasbora, Acanthocobitis botia, Notopterus notopterus, plus unidentified species of Oreichthys, Parambassis, Xenentodon, and Mastacembelus.

This species' identity was settled and a neotype designated by Knight (2013) who also revalidated the congener P. canius (Hamilton, 1822) and described the closely-related P. aurea. These three had previously been considered to represent geographic forms of P. gelius, albeit on a tentative basis, with the validity of P. canius having been discussed since the late 19th century.

Within this assemblage P. manipurensis is most similar to 'P.' meingangbii and P. padamya by virtue of the fact that males in all three possess orange-red pigmentation on the flanks and caudal-fin. It can be told apart most easily by the fact it possesses a relatively small, spot-like humeral marking, vs. a vertically-elongated, relatively large humeral marking in both the other species.

At one locality in the Kalindhi drainage the water was clear, 1 m at its deepest point and flowing either side of a small check dam, below which the flow was stronger though still not particularly fast. The substrate was composed of rocks and cobbles with a thick layer of fine silt and sand above the dam. There were no aquatic plants but marginal grasses and shrubs were growing to the margins with some submerged roots protruding into the water.

Little sun is able to penetrate the forest floor so aquatic habitats are shaded and water temperature may be relatively cool, while conductivity and hardness are generally low and pH slightly acid. Macrophytes are uncommon though there may be dense, marginal vegetation, sometimes overhanging the full width of the stream, the roots of which may penetrate the banks underwater. Typical substrates are sandy but covered by a layer of leaf litter with fallen twigs and branches.

This species has been in the aquarium trade since the early 1970s but its precise origin was a mystery until 2003. It first appeared in Ukraine, the common name 'Odessa' being derived from the port city of that name, and when it arrived in western Europe was widely considered a hybrid of similar-looking congeners such as P. conchonius, P. ticto and P. cumingii. It was also hypothesised as a subspecies of P. ticto or P. conchonius, and some suggested the fish to be artificially dyed.

In P. phutonio the flank markings comprise two black, vertically-orientated blotches, one posterior to the operculum and the other on the caudal peduncle, and within the P. conchonius group this patterning is shared with P. bandula, P. cumingii, P. didi, P. meingangbii, P. padamya, and P. tiantian. It can be told apart from these by the following combination of characters: smaller adult size of 25 - 30 mm vs. at least 35 - 40 mm; minute maxillary barbels; incomplete lateral line with ab...

Described from Pookode Lake in Wayanad district, Kerala state, southern India and possibly endemic there although some unconfirmed records exist from within the surrounding Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary. Pookode is a small freshwater lake surrounded by forest with a surface area of around 2 km² and is the source of the Panamaram River, a tributary within the much larger Kabani system. Its maximum depth is around 6.5 metres and in marginal areas dense patches of water lilies can be found.

This species is poorly-known in the aquarium hobby and has a confusing taxonomic history having been considered both synonymous with or a subspecies of the congener P. ticto in the past. It can be distinguished from other members of the genus by the following combination of characters: lateral line complete with 27 scales (following Day); body with two dark blotches; anterior spot one scale row below lateral line; dorsal-fin with rows of spots.

This species was considered a colour form of the related Pethia cumingii prior to its description. It can be told apart from P. cumingii by the following combination of characters: maximum standard length 33.6 mm (vs. 41.2 mm); smaller eye diameter (9.8-10.5, vs. 10.8-12.1 % SL); 11+13 (vs. 11+15) vertebrae; cleithrum with a single spine (vs. smooth); proximal arm of fifth ceratobranchial with an oval...

This species is widely referred to and traded as the congener 'Puntius' narayani (Hora, 1937). The precise identity of the latter is in doubt, however, plus P. setnai possesses a serrated dorsal-fin spine whereas 'P.' It was formerly included in the Puntius conchonius 'group' of closely-related species alongside P. ater, P. bandula, P. conchonius, P. cumingii, P. erythromycter,...

A benthopelagic fish mostly recorded from streams and minor tributaries at relatively high altitudes of more than 1200 metres AMSL with cool, clear, well-oxygenated water and substrates of bedrock, boulders, cobbles, and gravel. Aquatic plants aren't usually present though riparian vegetation may be well-developed. It's also present in some ponds and small lakes, including some stagnant water bodies with muddy substrates.

This fish has been widely misidentified and sold as the congener P. tiantian and its vernacular name of 'Burmese bumble-bee barb' but actually appears to be an undescribed member of the genus Pethia. This assemblage was erected by Pethiy...

This species is confused with P. ticto in much of the available literature and is sometimes listed as a synonym of it. Although some populations of the two species possess a similar colour pattern (there are reports of a P. ticto variant from the south of West Bengal state in India with a red, black-flecked dorsal-fin, for example) they do not occur in the same waters in nature and can be distinguished by examining the lateral line. This is complete in...

Known only from the remote, mountainous area of Putao in Kachin state, northern Myanmar. The holotype and most of the type series was collected from the Nan Hto Chaung (Nan Hto stream) with the Mali Hka River representing the only other locality known. Both are part of the upper Irrawaddy/Ayeyarwady system. The Nan Hto Chaung flows through forested hills and...

Apparently most abundant in shallow streams and minor tributaries, sometimes at relatively high altitudes, and apparently shows a preference for substrates of mud or silt. Given the extent of its range it would seem sensible to assume that it inhabits various habitat-types which also vary in water depth, flow, and turbidity depending on the time of year.

This species occasionally appears in the aquarium hobby, but the trade is largely reliant on commercially-produced 'tiger barbs' of questionable origin. It is distinguished from congeners by the following combination of characters: lateral line complete; 14 circumpeduncular scales; 21-23+2 scales in the lateral row; dorsal-fin black with red outer band; pelvic fins red.

Recorded from numerous river basins in Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Peninsular Malaysia, including the Mekong, Chao Phraya, Mae Khlong, Chanthaburi, Tapi, Golok, Terengganu, Pahang, Endau, and Muar. Type locality is 'Kratt, southeastern Siam', which corresponds to modern-day Trat Province, Thailand.

This species occasionally appears in the aquarium hobby, but the trade is largely reliant on commercially-produced 'tiger barbs' of questionable origin. It was considered a synonym of P. anchisporus for a number of decades following Alfred (1963), but revalidated by Kottelat and Tan (2011).

P. tetrazona is traditionally considered to be among the most ubiquitous species available in the aquarium trade. Wild examples are rarely traded, however, and there exists ongoing confusion as to the identity of the commercially-produced 'aquarium' tiger barb. A number of selectively-bred, ornamental strains are available. The albino, 'green' (aka 'moss'), and 'golden' (leucistic) variants are particularly pop...

Generally very peaceful making it an ideal resident of the well-researched community tank. As it places no special demands in terms of water chemistry it can be combined with many of the most popular fish in the hobby including other small cyprinids as well as tetras, livebearers, rainbowfishes, anabantoids, catfishes and loaches. It's a schooling species by nature, and at least 6-10 specimens should be purchased. Maintaining it in such...

P. chola was retained in Puntius sensu stricto, of which members are defined by the following combination of characters: adult size usually less than 120 mm SL; maxillary barbels absent or present; rostral barbels absent; 3-4 unbranched and 8 branched dorsal-fin rays; 3 unbranched and 5 branched anal-fin rays; last unbranched dorsal-fin ray weak or strong and unserrated; lateral line complete with 22-28 pored body scales...

Probably a micropredator feeding on small insects, worms, crustaceans and other zooplankton in nature. In the aquarium it should accept dried foods of a suitable size but should not be fed these exclusively. Daily meals of small live and frozen fare such as Daphnia, Artemia, Moina, etc., along with good quality flakes and granules will result in the best colouration and encourage the fish to come into breeding condition.

One of four similar-looking, laterally-striped 'Puntius' spp. native to Southeastern Asia alongside 'P.' gemellus, 'P.' johorensis, and 'P.' trifasciatus. Of these 'P.' lineatus is most often confused with 'P.' johorensis by virtue of the fact that these two seem most common in the aquarium trade. Telling them apart is relatively simple since 'P.' lineatus has 0 - 1 pairs of barbels (vs. 2 pairs in the other three species), juv...

This species has a chaotic taxonomic history with certain issues still to be resolved. While the name P. mahecola was misapplied to members of the genus Dawkinsia for over a century the fish itself has been widely misidentified as the congener P. amphibius (Valenciennes 1842). Its identity was partially resolved by Pethiyagoda and Kottelat (2005b) who demonstrated that though valid P. mahecola is not a Dawkinsia spp. but rather a smaller, relatively plain species with a single dark blotc...

The hill streams in which this fish can be found are generally shaded by the forest canopy and dense marginal vegetation. Substrates are typically composed of boulders, smaller stones, sand or gravel with submerged tree roots around the margins and quieter areas in which fallen branches and leaf litter collect. Other fish species occurring in the Tunga...

This species is almost unheard of in the aquarium hobby outside of India but is maintained by some private collectors. It's distinguished from similar species by possessing a single pair of maxillary barbels, a relatively elongate body, and distinctive black spot above the anterior anal-fin base. The genus Puntius was for a number of years viewed as a polyphyletic catc...

This species is almost identical to the wild form of 'P.' semifasciolatus which is best known as the 'golden barb' in the aquarium hobby due to the popularity of a yellowish ornamental strain. The natural colour pattern is greenish in both species, however, and in terms of external characters they're only reliably distinguished by the fact that 'P.' semifasciolatus possesses a pair of prominent maxillary barbels wherea...

This species is uncommon in the aquarium trade which is a little surprising given its huge natural range. Different populations can vary in colour pattern to an extent though all share the defining aspects given by Hamilton, comprising a diffuse yellow-golden marking on the operculum plus a dark spot on the caudal peduncle. The latter is usually surrounded by a variably-sized golden-yellow margin, and the dorsal-fin often contains irregular dark spots and streaks, these sometimes forming a longitudinal band.

As of 2006 only 4.6% of the old forest was left with the remainder existing only in small, highly-fragmented patches, most covering areas less than 10 km², of which some are now officially-protected reserves. Kottawa Forest is one of these and comprises just 15-20 hectares of wet, evergreen jungle, though the combined Kottawa-Kombala forest covers around 1600 ha. A number of minor, pristine streams...

It can be told apart from similar-looking congeners such as P. crescentus and P. muzaffarpurensis by the following combination of characters: barbels absent; lateral line incomplete with up to 5 pored scales; 20-22 lateral line scales; 8 predorsal scales; dorsal-fin with a vertically-orientated black streak and a black tip with orange markings; a dark spot at the base of the caudal peduncle.

This species has become an extremely popular aquarium fish since it first appeared in the ornamental trade during the late 1990s, and it has been sold under various names including 'Denison's barb', 'denisoni barb', 'Denison's flying fox', 'rose line shark', 'bleeding-eye barb', 'red flash barb', and 'Indian flasher barb'. In India it is known locally as 'Miss Kerala' and 'Chorai Kanni' ( literally 'bleeding eyes').

S. resplendens is traded under several names including 'Asian rummynose', 'rummynose rasbora' and 'naked microrasbora'. It can be immediately distinguished from all other Asian cyprinids by the distinctive colour pattern. The genus Sawbwa is currently monotypic and endemic to the isolated lake basin of Inlé in Shan State, eastern Myanmar.

The type series was collected from a small clear-water stream with a pH of 6.0, forming a series of riffles and deeper pools, with a maximum width of 5 metres and depth ranging from 10 cm to 1 metre. The substrate was composed of sand gravel and rocks, with some leaf litter and overhanging marginal vegetation.

This species is uncommon in the aquarium hobby, although the scientific name is widely misapplied to Barbodes dunckeri, a similar-looking species native to Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore commonly referred to as 'clown barb' and labelled as B. everetti in the majority of available literature. The two are quite easy to tell apart, with B. everetti an overall less...

This species is commonly-referred to as 'T-barb' in some countries. It's closely-affiliated with and sometimes traded as the congener B. kuchingensis but that species can be told apart by colour pattern comprising a prominent row of dark spots along the lateral line, plus a short, horizontally-orientated streak extending from the upper part of the operculum. In B. lateristriga the lateral markings usually form a solid stripe and there is no streak extending from the operculum.

This is one of two species sold with the common/trade name of "tinfoil barb", the other being the more widely-recognised B. schwanenfeldii. Despite this it appears that B. altus is just as widely available as B. schwanenfeldii and in many cases is seen on sale more regularly. Unfortunately both are usually offered at a small size (usually around 2 - 3"/5 - 7.5cm) with little to no information regarding the eventual size of the fish. Although B. altus is the ...

The genus Barbonymus was erected by Kottelat in 1999 and contains former members of Barbodes from southeast Asia. The type species is B. schwanenfeldii and currently there exist only three other representatives; B. altus, B. collingwoodii and B. gonionotus. The latter two are rare in the hobby although an SF member has kept B. gonionotus in the past so they are worth looking out for if you harbour an...

This is one of two species traded under the vernacular name 'tinfoil barb', the other being the less well-known congener B. altus. Despite this it appears that B. altus is just as widely available as B. schwanefeldii and in many cases is seen on sale more regularly. Unfortunately both are usually offered at a small size (usually around 50 - 75 mm) with little to no information regarding the eventual size of the fish.

A stylish-looking but rare barb in the hobby and unfortunately little information is available regarding its captive care. Forum member Andy Rushworth has kept a lone individal and told us it was a perfect aquarium inhabitant in terms of behaviour and maintenance. He also mentioned that the fish he had looked exactly like the specimen in our images but that he has seen at least one batch of what appeared to be a different species imported under the same na...

This species is native to Central West Africa where it is principally found in the great Ogooué and Congo River systems. It therefore has an extensive range and has been recorded at numerous localities right across the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) from the Ituri River in the far east of the country to the Luki River basin in the extreme west. The Congo River appears to represent the southernmost limit of its range as a...

Two closely-related species are also found in the Congo basin and infrequently seen in the trade. 'B.' candens has been collected northeast of the range of 'B.' hulstaerti around the city of Kisangani (formerly Stanleyville) and nearby town of Yangambi. It can be distinguished from 'B.' hulstaerti by its paler body colouration, smaller dark markings on the body and red ventral and anal fins in males. 'B.' papillo is known only from its type locality close to the eastern town of Kindu between the Lualaba and Lomami rivers. It has an elongated central body marking and males possess black dorsal, ventral and anal fins.

Although gregarious by nature it is a shoaling rather than schooling species which develops a distinct pecking order between males. It should ideally be maintained in a group of 8 or more but the tank must be of a sufficient size which will allow weaker individuals some respite from dominant conspecifics and decorated in such a way that many broken lines of sight are provided. Conversely if kept singly, in a very small group or in cramped conditions it can become withdrawn and subdominant fish may be bullied incessantly.

The genus Barbus is in something of a confused state classification-wise. While there exist almost 340 putative species the vast majority of them do not appear to be closely-related to the genus Barbus sensu stricto. Berrebi et al. (1996) proposed that only the European, Southwest Asian and North African representatives should be included in Barbus (around 20 species) and that 'all species of Barbus sen...

Clypeobarbus was originally put forward as a subgenus of Barbus by Fowler in 1936 on the basis that member species possessed a midlateral row of enlarged, shield-like scales but he only included the type species 'Barbus' kemoensis (now a junior synonym of Clypeobarbus pleuropholis) in the group. Subsequent work by Poll and Lambert (1961), Jubb (1965) and Skelton (1993) resulted in several additional species being placed into the grouping although it appears that little of this work was widely-recognised until the recent study was published.

D. assimilis has been misidentified as Puntius mahecola (Valenciennes 1844) in the past but the identity of both species was resolved by Pethioyagoda and Kottelat (2005 a, 2005b). They inspected the syntypes of P. mahecola and concluded that though valid it isn't closely related to any Dawkinsia (then the Puntius filamentosus group) but is rather a smaller, silvery fish with a single dark blotch on the caudal peduncle, located entirely posterior to the anal-fin. It's wi....

Not difficult to keep in a well-maintained set-up, though we recommend aquascaping the tank to resemble a flowing stream/river with a substrate of variably-sized, water-worn rocks, sand, fine gravel and perhaps some small boulders. This can be further furnished with driftwood roots or branches, and while the majority of aquatic plants will fail to thrive in such surroundings hardy types such as Microsorum, Bolbitis or Anubias spp. can be grown attached to the décor.

The type series was purchased from a market in Jambi province, eastern Sumatra, Indonesia and this species is also known from neighbouring Riau province plus the island province of Bangka. On Sumatra it may be restricted to the Indragiri and Batang Hari river systems. Inhabits peat swamp forests and associated black water streams in which the water is typically stained brown with humic acids and other chemicals released by decaying organic material. The dissolved mineral content is generally negligible and the pH can be as...

This species first appeared in the aquarium hobby in 2006 and is sometimes traded under the name 'Tulip barb'. It was officially described by Kullander in early 2008 in a paper describing five new Puntius species from Kachin, all of which are superficially similar in possession of a dark band or blotch on the caudal peduncle. P. erythromycter can be distinguished b...

S. chalakkudiensis can be told apart from S. denisonii by possession of an inferior mouth (vs. subterminal) and presence of a black marking in the dorsal-fin (vs. absence), and the scarlet body stripe being duller and terminating beneath or anterior to the dorsal-fin origin (vs. brighter and terminating beneath the centre of the dorsal-fin).

The genus Puntius is currently viewed as something of a catch-all for well over 100 species of small to mid-sized cyprinid. Most experts agree that a full revision is required with the likely outcome that many species will be placed into new or different genera since it is clearly polyphyletic. When describing the grouping in 1822 Hamilton identified the defining characteristics as: presence or absence o...

Prior to its description P. kamalika was referred to as P. amphibius, a putatively valid species probably restricted to western India. It differs from all congeners in the following combination of characters: 4½/1/2½ scales in a transverse line between the mid-dorsal...