TAXONOMY
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes)
Order: Cypriniformes (Carps)
Family: Cobitidae (Loaches) Worm-shaped do not have true scales, and like many other Cypriniformes or catfishes, they have barbels at their mouths. Mouths are small bottom-facing for scavenging benthic lifestyle.
Genus/species: Botia sidthimunki
GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS: Max. size: 6 cm (2.4 inches). The smallest loach species. Males and females similar. The back is light brownish to light yellow with longitudinal bands that are connected by smaller bands across the back. Underside is white with a silvery sheen. Adapted to a bottom-dwelling lifestyle typical of most loaches, this species has a downward facing mouth and fleshy barbels for searching bottom gravels and mud for food.
DISTRIBUTION/HABITAT: Cambodia, Laos, Thailand. Found in small muddy lakes and other standing water habitats. Prefer areas of with bogwood, caves, and aquatic plants.
DIET IN THE WILD: Small aquatic invertebrates and insect larvae; algae.
CONSERVATION: IUCN Red List Endangered (EN) Extirpated from most of its range as a result of dam construction in the 1980s and 1990s, as well as overfishing and land conversion for agriculture. It is now only found in Katchanaburi, Thailand.
BO09 Rainforest Borneo Exhibit, Southeast Asia Community
References
IUCN Red List www.iucnredlist.org/details/2953/0
fishbase www.fishbase.org/summary/Yasuhikotakia-sidthimunki.html
Encyclopedia of Life eol.org/pages/210821/details
Ron’s flickr http://www.flickr.com/photos/cas_docents/3729701172/in/set-72157627795872023/
Ron’s WordPress shortlink http://wp.me/p1DZ4b-17o
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