Yoyo loach

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Yoyo loach
Yoyo Loach.jpg
Typical aquarium specimen labelled as Botia almorhae, but these are likely a related species (see text). [1] [2]
Botia almorhae Day 154.jpg
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Cypriniformes
Family: Botiidae
Genus: Botia
Species:
B. almorhae
Binomial name
Botia almorhae
J. E. Gray, 1831
Synonyms

Botia grandiGray, 1832 [4]

The yoyo loach, Almora loach or Pakistani loach (Botia almorhae) is a freshwater fish belonging to the loach family Botiidae. It originates in the slow-running and still waters of the Ganges basin in northern India and possibly Nepal. [1] [2] Despite the alternative common name Pakistani loach, the true B. almorhae is not known from Pakistan (the species in this country is B. birdi ). [1] [2]

It may attain a length of 14–16 cm (5.5–6.3 in), and is named for its dark and pale patterns, which often can be seen to spell "yoyo" (especially in smaller/younger specimens), hence the common name yoyo loach. [1] The final common name, Almora loach, refers to Almora in Uttarakhand, India. [4] Specimens labelled as B. almorhae are commonly found in the aquarium trade, but most (if not all) of these appear to be the closely related B. lohachata , two possibly undescribed species popularly referred to as B. sp. "Kosi" and B. sp. "Teesta", or hybrids. [1] [2]

See also

Related Research Articles

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Cypriniformes is an order of ray-finned fish, including the carps, minnows, loaches, and relatives. Cypriniformes is an Order within the Superorder Ostariophysi consisting of "Carp-like" Ostariophysins. This order contains 11-12 families, although some authorities have designated as many as 23, over 400 genera, and more than 4,250 species, with new species being described every few months or so, and new genera being recognized frequently. They are most diverse in southeastern Asia, and are entirely absent from Australia and South America. At 112 years old, the longest-lived cypriniform fish documented is the bigmouth buffalo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cobitidae</span> Family of fishes

Cobitidae, also known as the True loaches, is a family of Old World freshwater fish. They occur throughout Eurasia and in Morocco, and inhabit riverine ecosystems. Today, most "loaches" are placed in other families. The family includes about 260 described species. New species are being described regularly.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clown loach</span> Species of fish

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<i>Botia</i> Genus of fishes

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dwarf loach</span> Species of fish

The dwarf loach, ladderback loach, pygmy loach, chain loach or chain botia, is a freshwater fish belonging to the family Botiidae. Formerly included in the genus Yasuhikotakia, it is frequently seen in the aquarium trade, the product of captive breeding.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Skunk loach</span> Species of fish

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Burmese border loach</span> Species of fish

The Burmese Border loach, angelicus loach or polka dot loach, Botia kubotai, is a recently described species that has quickly become a popular tropical fish for freshwater aquariums. In 2002, fish collectors working in western Thailand began to expand their search into Myanmar (Burma) area from the Three Pagodas Pass Thai-Myanmar border to look for new fish for the aquarium trade. This is one of several species discovered and explains the origin of the fish's common name: Burmese Border Loach. Its specific epithet honors Katsuma Kubota of an aquarium export company in Thailand who first purchased the catch and sent them out for identification.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zebra loach</span> Species of fish

The zebra loach is a freshwater loach native to rivers and streams in the Western Ghats of India. The maximum size is about 9 cm (3.5 in). It lives in tropical climate with temperature range of 21–26 °C (70–79 °F), and prefers water with 6.0 to 7.5 pH.

<i>Syncrossus berdmorei</i> Species of fish

Syncrossus berdmorei is a freshwater fish in the loach family Botiidae. It is native to streams and rivers in Thailand, Burma, and nearby parts of northeastern India, where typically found over a soft bottom near boulders and submerged trees. Syncrossus berdmorei grows up to 10 in (25 cm) and can be kept in private aquariums.

<i>Botia dario</i> Species of fish

Botia dario is a species of fish in the loach family Botiidae found in the Brahmaputra and Ganges basins in Bangladesh, Bhutan and northern India. The species is overall widespread.

<i>Yasuhikotakia modesta</i> Species of fish

Yasuhikotakia modesta is a tropical freshwater fish of the family Botiidae. It is native to large rivers in Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam. The blue botia is a widely available fish in the aquarium trade and can be purchased globally.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Botiidae</span> Family of fishes

Botiidae is a family of cypriniform ray-finned fishes from South, Southeast, and East Asia. Until recently they were placed in the true loach family Cobitidae, until Maurice Kottelat revised the loaches and re-elevated this taxon to family rank in 2012. The family includes about 56 species.

The True Kuhli loach is a small eel-like freshwater fish belonging to the loach family (Cobitidae). They originate from the island of Jawa in Indonesia. This snake-like creature is very slender and nocturnal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Loach</span> Superfamily of fishes

Loaches are fish of the superfamily Cobitoidea. They are freshwater, benthic (bottom-dwelling) fish found in rivers and creeks throughout Eurasia and northern Africa. Loaches are among the most diverse groups of fish; the 1249 known species of Cobitoidea comprise about 107 genera divided among 9 families.

<i>Botia udomritthiruji</i> Species of fish

Botia udomritthiruji is a small freshwater fish in the loach family Botiidae native to the Great Tenasserim (Tanintharyi) River Basin in south Burma. It reaches 13–15 cm (5.1–5.9 in) in length, and the female's abdomen plumper than the abdomen of the male.

<i>Botia rostrata</i> Species of fish

Botia rostrata, the Gangetic loach, ladder loach, or twin-banded loach, is a freshwater fish belonging to the loach family Botiidae. It originates in calmer water pool areas of highland streams in the lower Ganges and Brahmaputra basins in Bangladesh and north India. Records from elsewhere are believed to be misidentification of relatives. It is not as common in the aquarium trade as the clown loach or yoyo loach.

<i>Syncrossus hymenophysa</i> Species of fish

Syncrossus hymenophysa, commonly known as the tiger loach, tiger botia or green tiger loach, is a species of freshwater fish in the loach family Botiidae. It is native to fast mountain streams and large rivers, over soft substrates and often near submerged boulders and fallen trees, in Peninsular Malaysia, Borneo and Sumatra. Unlike most loaches, S. hymenophysa is very aggressive, especially when food is added to the tank.

<i>Syncrossus helodes</i> Species of fish

Syncrossus helodes, commonly known as banded loach, tiger botia or lesser katy loach, is a freshwater fish in the loach family Botiidae. It is native to rivers in Vietnam, Thailand, Laos and Cambodia. S. helodes resembles S. hymenophysa from Borneo, Sumatra and Peninsular Malaysia, and the two have frequently been confused. It differs from the latter species by the absence of a dark spot on the dorsal fin, 10–12 bars on body without blue borders and the presence of irregular dark markings on the lower body.

<i>Paracanthocobitis botia</i> Species of fish

Acanthocobitis (Paracanthocobitis) botia also known as the mottled zipper loach is a species of ray-finned fish in the genus, or subgenus, Paracanthocobitis. This species is known from the mainstem, and possibly tributaries of the Brahmaputra River, in Assam, India.

<i>Syncrossus beauforti</i> Species of fish

Synocrossus beauforti, the barred loach, chameleon loach or chameleon botia, is a species of freshwater fish from the loach family Botiidae which is found in mainland south-east Asia.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 SeriouslyFish: Botia almorhae. Retrieved 15 July 2014.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Grant, S. (2007). Fishes of the genus Botia Gray, 1831, in the Indian region (Teleostei: Botiidae). Ichthyofile 2: 1-106
  3. Chaudhry, S. (2010). "Botia almorhae". The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . IUCN. 2010: e.T168483A6500554. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2010-4.RLTS.T168483A6500554.en . Retrieved 4 January 2018.
  4. 1 2 Kottelat, M. (2012): Conspectus cobitidum: an inventory of the loaches of the world (Teleostei: Cypriniformes: Cobitoidei). The Raffles Bulletin of Zoology, Suppl. No. 26: 1-199.