Author Archives: Paul_

The
Harlequin barb (Trigonostigma heteromorpha) belongs to the most popular
ornamental fish worldwide. The beautiful colours and the peaceful mood
make them ideal inhabitants of a community tank. One can hardly believe
today that once it was impossible to breed that species. In the 1930ies
the breeders hard to learn that water chemistry can be very important
for the breeding of fish and they learned it from the harlequin barb!
Nowadays millions and millions of that beautiful fish leave the breeding
farms each year.

So
it is not surprising that over the years also mutants appeared that
were also bred from then on. The two best known are the blue and the
golden sports. Despite the coloration they show no difference to the
wild form: they are beautiful and peaceful community fish that should
always be kept in small schools.

For our customers: “Blue” has
code 452523, “Gold” code 452563 on our stocklist. Please note that we
exclusively supply the wholesale trade.

Text & photos: Frank Schäfer

The great variety of species of Labeo from Africa is hardly known in the hobby. Even for scientists the determination is difficult. Only in 1990 a new species was detected in the Niger basin! This brings the number of Labeo-species known from the Niger to four: Labeo parvus, L. roseopunctatus, L. senegalensis, and L. coubie.

Recently we were able to import beautiful Labeo coubie from Nigeria. This species can attain a maximum length of 75 cm and a weight of up to 5 kg. Of course such giants appear only every now and then. Most specimens become only 25-30 cm long. Nevertheless the fish is suited for large aquaria only.

Our fish are currently 10-15 cm long. The smallest show a fade caudal spot, which is not present in larger conspecifics anymore. The bigger the fish are the larger is the dorsal fin. In our largest specimens it is a wonderful, sailshaped fin! Against conspecfics the fish are quarrelsome, as it is known from the whole relationship of the Labeo and Epalzeorhynchus group. However, they do not hurt each other. But one should keep them either solitary or in larger groups in the aquarium. It is very unlikely that two or three specimens together will do well on a long time sight.

At the first glimpse the fish seem to be of grey colour, but look nevertheless nice. This is due to a purple red spot of each scale. Also the membranes of the fins have a purplish shine.

For our customers: the animals have code 142253 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.

Lexicon: Labeo: this name refers to the enlarged lips of the members of that genus. coubie: after the vernacular name of the species on the fish market in Cairo (Egypt) from where the type specimens originate.

Common name: African carp

Text & photos: Frank Schäfer

The Siamese Dwarf Rasbora (Trigonostigma somphongsi, formerly Rasbora somphongsi) has been described scientifically in 1958 on the basis of specimens that were imported by the ornamental fish trade by the end of 1957 from Thailand. So the exact type locality was unknown from the beginning. In the original description nothing but “Thailand” was mentioned, later, in the more exact scientific description, Meinken wrote that they originate from “southern Menam (Thailand)”.

In the past 20 years the species was thought to be extinct in the wild. In the entrance in the international Red List the author (C. Vidthayanon, 2013) names as area of distribution the basin of the Mae Khlong near Ratchaburi in central Thailand. The species could not be found there anymore due to habitat destruction. The only reason, why the species was consideed as “critically endangered” and not as “extinct in the wild” was the fact that every now and then single specimens were spotted among mixed catches of other ornamental fish species. However, it was not known where these animals had been collected. It was clear: the species still exists! But nobody knew where…..

Now it was finally possible to rediscover the habitat of the fish in the wild again! And we were able now to import successfully some specimen!. Of course collecting small fish in the wild has no influence on natural populations at all. In contrast: it was only due to the interest of enthusiastic hobbyists the the species could be re-discovered again. So conservation acts become possible only now. One can only hope that the authorities do not regulate the trade with live animals (which is completely senseless, as everybody nows, for the trade with live specimens is not a serious treat for wild populations of small fish at all), but hopefully protected areas will be build up. Here the fish should be allowed to be collected, but the nature in its whole would be protected.

Keeping the charming animals in the aquarium is completely undemanding. The fish become only 2-2.5 cm long. Like all the close relatives of the fish (eg the harlequin barbs Trigonostigma heteromorpha, T. espei, and T. hengeli) they spawn on the underside of broad plant leaves. T. somphongsi prefers to live in schools, but for spawning the pairs most often separate themselves from the conspecifics. The males even defend a small spawning territory for a short time. So-called V-tanks are ideally suited for the extensive breeding of this species. Here young fish can be usually separated on a regular basis.

The list of species of ornamental fish that have been discovered by hobbyists and the ornamental fish trade is much enriched by this charming fish. Hopefully it can be also placed on list of species finally safed from extinction, too. We hope that many hobbyists show interest in that fish and ask for it in the pet shops. This would maybe even make a commercial breeding possible, another important step for protection of the species.

For our customers: the fish have code 452888 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.

Literature:
Meinken, H. (1958): Rasbora somphongsi, eine neue Zwergrasbora. XXIX. Mitteilungen der Fischbestimmungsstelle des VDA. Die Aquarien- und Terrarienzeitschrift 11 (3): 67-69
Meinken, H. (1958): Rasbora somphongsi nov. spec., eine neue Rasbora aus Siam (Pisces: Cyprinidae, Unterfam. Rasborinae). Opulusca Zoologica Nr. 19 (Oktober 1958): 1-6
Vidthayanon, C. (2013): Trigonostigma somphongsi. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2014.3. . Downloaded on 16 January 2015.

Lexicon: Trigonostigma: means “triangle spot”. somphongsi: dedication name for the discoverer and ornamental fish exporter Somphongs. Rasbora: after the vernacular name of one of the species in Bengal.

Suggestion of a common name: Siamese Dwarf Rasbora

Text: Frank Schäfer, photos: Aquarium Glaser

For the first time ever we could import this pretty barb from Thailand. At first we thought the fish would belong to the species Opsarius ornatus, but after they has settled all of our fish showed a clearly marked caudal spot, which is typical for O. bernatziki, but lacking in B. ornatus. Another very similar species from Thailand, O. signicaudus, also has a well marked caudal spot, but here it extends on the caudal fin. Some scientists do not see Opsarius as a separate genus, but include all species mentioned here under Barilius.

O. bernatziki can grow to a length of more than 10 cm, but usually stays much smaller (7-8 cm). Regarding the aquarium biology Opsarius can be best compared with Devario. However, Opsarius love a stronger current. So one should keep Opsarius species in a tank that reflects a biotope as it can be found in a brook a small river. All Opsarius are peaceful schooling fish. Male of O. bernatziki can be recognized by the bigger head and larger fins.

Text & photos: Frank Schäfer

Two
beautiful species of barb are continiously confused in the ornamental
fish trade, because they look much alike as juveniles: Barbonymus altus
and B. schwanefeldii. Both are known in the international trade as
“tinfoil barbs”. In German they are named “bream barb” what refers to
the deep body of adult fish.

The
main differences in coloration are found in the caudal fin. B.
schwanefeldii has always distinct black stripes on the upper and lower
margin of the caudal fin, which are always lacking in B. altus. This
feature is visible in all sizes of the fish. However, the red coloration
of the fins becomes more intensive with every day the fish grow. In
small juveniles the fins are only light reddish or pink. Both species
attain a length of 15-25 cm, but it seems that B. schwanefeldii tends to
grow larger than B. altus.

Currently
we have very pretty Barbonymus altus in stock, which are already 10-12
cm long. At that size they are almost as pretty as the adults, but not
that deep in body. We also have small ones in stock (5-7 cm). B.
schwanefeldii is currently rather rare in the trade. Almost any
specimens listed under the name “schwanefeldi” on the exporter´s lists
in Thailand and Vietnam are in fact B. altus. Both species are wide
spread all over Southeast Asia. They are bred as food fish and for the
ornamental fish trade.

For
our customers: B. altus with a size of 10-12 cm have code 371405 on our
stock list, the ones with 5-7 cm 371403. Please note that we
exclusively supply the wholesale trade.

Text & Photos: Frank Schäfer

For the first time ever we were able to import a quite bizarre species of carp from Southeast Asia: Bangana behri. This up to 45 cm long relative of Labeo has in adult state a horn on the head and a lot of tubercles in the face. In its native range – the Mekong basin – the species is a highly demanded food fish. The pictures from a fish market in Laos have been kindly provided by Mike Meuschke.

Currently our specimens are 6-8 cm long, so they still have to grow a bit. The fish is not only interesting for public aquaria, but might also be a interesting species for heated koi ponds. Most probably the species will be quite useful here, for Bangana behri is reported to feed mainly on algae in the wild. However, as it is a tropical species, water temperatures must not be under 20°C on a long time sight.

Against conspecifics Bangana behri are – as most Labeo-type fish – a bit quarrelsome. In our fishhouse about 30 specimens are together in a tank and so they live peacefully together; but it can be expected that two or three specimens will not do so good. So one should keep them either solitary or in larger groups, a rule that is also true for almost all fish of the Labeo relationship.

Another interesting by-catch reached us along with Bangana behri and possibly these two fish are the first time ever specimens in Europe: Labeo pierrei. This Labeo even grows up to 80 cm. Sadly one has to be concerned a bit about this fish. Scientific authorities have placed the species as “vulnerable” on the IUCN Red List. This is the last warning stage before a species is regarded to be endangered. The catches of Labeo pierrei, which is a much sought for food fish, are heavily decreasing.

For our customers: the fish have code 368682 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.

Lexicon: Bangana: the native name for one of the species in Bengal. behri: dedication name for Otto Behr from Lopez, Sullivan County, Pennsylvania.

Common name: Two-headed carp

Postscriptum: Due to the unique head structure this species is also placed in the monotypical genus Incisilabeo. The full correct name is in that case Incisilabeo behri Fowler 1937

Text: Frank Schäfer, photos: Mike Meuschke & Frank Schäfer

The Golden barb is an artificial sport that is said to have derived from the half-banded barb (Barbus semifasciolatus). However, nobody can say this for sure. The fish appeared in the 1960ies in the aquarium trade and is said to have been bred by an aquarist named Thomas Schubert of Camden, New Jersey, US. That is the reason why the fish is often referred to as “Barbus (or Puntius, both is wrong) schuberti”.

The Golden barb is an absolutely peaceful fish that never disappeared again and is always available in pet shops all over the world. In more recent times other sports have been developed, among them animals that have two or three colours on the body. These fish are called “Koi Golden barb” in the trade. We currently have very nice specimens of that sport in stock which we received from a breeder.

Regarding keeping this fish it is not necessary to make many words: it thrives very well both at room temperature and at 28°C and hardness and pH are of no meaning for the fish. As long as the water is drinkable for humans, the Golden barb will like it. And the species feeds virtually on any type of food that is produced for ornamental fish.

For our customers: the fish have code 371343 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.

Text & photos: Frank Schäfer

We could import this pretty fish finally once more via Singapore. The two species of the genus Trigonopoma were placed in the genus Rasbora for a very long time. The second species, T. pauciperforata, the glowlight rasbora, occurs interestingly very often syntopically with its close relative.

In die elder aquarium literature Trigonopoma gracile was usually named Rasbora taeniata. The first importation to Germany was as early as 1913; at that time is was not yet known to science yet. Persons interested in the history of the species and the different names should study the paper of Zarske in the Aquaristik Fachmagzin 213 (June/July 2010), which can be downloaded for free from Dr Axel Zarskes homepage at Senckenberg Museum. Sadly it is available in German only.

The pretty rasbora attains a maximum length of about 5 cm. In the natural habitat it can be found along with fish like harlequin rasboras (Trigonostigma heteromorpha) or chocolate gouramis (Sphaerichthys osphronemoides). The rasbora is a perfect community fish for tanks with soft and acidic water, a dark bottom (place some peat on it) and delicate water plants.

For our customers: the fish have code 452002 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.

Text & photos: Frank Schäfer