The island of Borneo is divided, politically speaking, in three parts: Kalimantan belongs to Indonesia, Sarawak and Sabah belong to Malaysia and Brunei represents an independent state. Kuching is the biggest town on Borneo. It is located in the northwest, in Sarawak (Malaysia). Ornamental fish are collected there only very occasionally. However, recently we were able to manage an import from there that contained a number of very interesting fish species. Among them were barbs that were sent under the name of Barbus kuchingensis. This species really exists, but shows only two vertical bands on the anterior body and a black spot right above the anal fin. Our fish looked completely different from that and showed a much more contrasting pattern.
Our research showed that our new fish in all probability represents the first (?) import of the “real” Barbus everetti. It is already known for some time that all fish in the hobby that are termed “B. everetti” in reality belong to the species Barbus dunckeri. This correct name is only slowly adopted by hobbyists worldwide due to the fact that the real B. everetti was not present in aquaria so far and thus there was no need for a change of the name.
Our new entries are beautiful fish in any way. It can be supposed that they will reach a similar size as the close relative B. dunckeri, eg 10-12 cm, and that they will reach sexual maturity at a length of about 6-8 cm. Keeping is totally problem free. The water should be soft to medium hard, pH range should be between 6.5-7.5 and the water temperature should be between 24-28°C. Fish that are kept under the described conditions are very lively and colourful. These barbs feed readily on any type of usual fishfood.
For our customers: the fish have code 369862 on our stocklist.We have only a very limited number in stock. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.
Lexicon: Barbus: Latin, means “the bearded”. everetti: dedication name for Alfred Hart Everett (1848-1898), the collector of the species. dunckeri: dedication name for Georg Duncker (1870-1953), ichthyologist and former custos of the Naturhistorisches Museum Hamburg (= Hamburg museum for natural history).
Suggestion of a common name: Kuching-Clownbarb
Text & photos: Frank Schäfer
| Angaben zum Tier | |
|---|---|
| Herkunft | Indonesien / Indonesia |
| Verfügbare Größe in cm | 4 - 7 |
