Id Help Please.

[andyw823]

Bought this today, i thought it was a Batik Loach but i realise now that it isnt. Can anyone give me an ID from this picture, its tail is slightly red.

Reading up on the Batik loach, this prefers to live single, does the same apply to this one i have?

 

[-germ-]

What Lateral Line said....

 

[Lateral Line]

Schistura mahnerti, territorial and can be somewhat aggressive. Make sure you have only one, or in larger tanks, clearly and obvious territories, where the fish, (bottom huggers, can live in their patch without seeing their neighbours.

 

[andyw823]

Schistura mahnerti, territorial and can be somewhat aggressive. Make sure you have only one, or in larger tanks, clearly and obvious territories, where the fish, (bottom huggers, can live in their patch without seeing their neighbours.

Schistura mahnerti, http/www.loaches.com/species-index/schis...tura%20mahnerti seems alot darker than the one i have but the body patterns do match up. Well i did one thing right by just getting the one.

 

[mikev]

May or may not be S. Mahnerti.

There are several schistura species very similar in appearance. For example, S. Poculi would also be a candidate. The behavioral pattern is really different: Manherti is territorial, Poculi is really not: I've kept them for two years and saw only one argument...while the animals were really going at each other, no damage resulted from it. I avoided Mahnerti's because of their aggressive nature.

How to distinguish:
1. Size. Manherti's are larger, Poculis are pretty much limited by 2.1". (BTW, my Poculi's profile on this forum has been edited to incorrectly proclaim their larger size).
2. Tail color: the amount of red is more for Manherti on the average, half of the Poculi's will have no red, the rest mostly pale red (like yours).
3. Count the fin rays (see Fishbase or the Kottelat's book for details).

Now, to make this all worse: I mentioned Manherti's and Poculi's since the former are the more common, the latter is what I keep...but there are more species like this, I know of at least two. There are likely several more undocumented species with this pattern... You need to know the collection area and then really research this...and probably will not find out for sure anyway.

HTH

 

[Lateral Line]

The reason I eventually plumped for Schistura mahnerti is because as well as being a good match physically, and there are an awful lot of them doing the rounds in the trade at the moment. Of the various sand loaches, it was the most probable.

 

[mikev]

Really no way to know, schistura classification is a hopeless mess, especially in this cluster. Mahnerti is generally far the most common, but I've seen Schistura bucculenta several times recently, and I'm not 100% convinced that it is not the same species as Mahnerti, or that what is labelled as Mahnerti actually always is (what does one make out of a "Zebra Sand Loach" shipment that feels like Mahnerti, is said to be Mahnerti, but all the tails are very pale: geographical variation or another species with perhaps a different mentality?...).

S. Mahnerti at least can be distinguished from S. Poculi by the number of fin rays (see Kottelat or fishbase), but these additional species confuse the issue beyond any certainty.

The main reason this matters is that one can, for example, put six S.Poculi's into a 15g tank, and they will be fine....but this would not be a smart idea with S.Mahnerti's... so buying this type of Schistura is gambling.

 

[mikev]

Andy,

Sorry for not paying attention to the original question.

Firstly, a correction: it is not obvious that Batik Loach prefers to live single. I don't keep them myself -- I prefer Zipper's who are milder -- but I know someone who keeps several in a large tank and sees no aggression and some interaction between them.

If one looks at the entire subfamily, they are all somewhat territorial. From very mildly so (Zipper) to seriously so (Mahnerti) to deadly so (Balteata aka Sumo Loach)....

My attitude toward these animals: if you keep them, keep more then one. They interact, and some of them may even breed.

The way you protect them from each other -- if needed -- is by making a more complicated landscape. Make it impossible for a fish to see the entire tank bottom by putting in stones, pieces of driftwood, etc. This way even aggressive species can survive, a weaker fish will be able to hide.

Your tank may already have the required landscape, so in your place, I'd get at least a couple more, and if they fight, add some more stones....

HTH

 

[andyw823]

Wow... im even more confused to what this loach is lol. Since i got it, it colours havn`t darkend but the little fella is always out and about, not shy or skitish in any way, i can walk right upto the tank and it will just sit there. The only thing it gets nervous of is the clown loaches! On feeding it goes mental, the little fella is everywhere to get what it can!

 

[mikev]

Here is to confuse you a little more: schistura bucculenta

this is a "new" import species.

How large is your fish exactly? it looks adult, and moderately fattened, probably at max size already.

and, if you still can, get it some buddies. i don't think anyone will get killed in your tank, you have enough of a landscape...

 

[andyw823]

Here is to confuse you a little more: schistura bucculenta

this is a "new" import species.

How large is your fish exactly? it looks adult, and moderately fattened, probably at max size already.

and, if you still can, get it some buddies. i don't think anyone will get killed in your tank, you have enough of a landscape...

Body paterns look the same but mine is more yellow-ish with a slightly red tail fin. Its approx 1.5 inch long.

 

[mikev]

Amount of red and body tint are useless for identification, these vary greatly between individuals of the same species.

1.5" is somewhat indicative of a smaller species like Poculi, most schistura's are shipped as adults or nearly adults.

 

[mikev]

LL:

to confuse this even further: I saw an import list today with this new item:
Schistura cf. Poculi 3"

no idea wth this may be...Poculi's are really limited by 2.1"

 

[Lateral Line]

The whole group is something of a mess at the moment.

 

[mikev]

at the moment and forever on...

however, some things are being fixed, see

http/www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/pfk/...m.php?news=1350

this effectively undoes splitting of the Botia genus .. even makes it rational rather than obscene...