Spottedsail barb facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Spottedsail barb |
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The Spottedsail Barb is a small, colorful fresh water fish. It is also known as the Dwarf Barb or Pygmy Barb. Its scientific name is Pethia phutunio. This fish is a type of carp, belonging to the family Cyprinidae.
Spottedsail Barbs come from inland waters in Asia. You can find them in countries like Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, and Myanmar.
Contents
What Does It Look Like?
This fish can grow up to about 3.1 inches (8 centimeters) long. It has a shiny, silvery body. You will notice three dark spots on its sides. There is also a special spot near its gills that is not truly black. Instead, it is clear, letting you see the pink color of the gills underneath!
The fins of the Spottedsail Barb are a light orange color. Male fish usually have slightly darker fins than females. It can be tricky to tell males and females apart. However, female fish often have a rounder body shape, especially when they are ready to lay eggs.
Where Does It Live?
Spottedsail Barbs live in warm, tropical climates. They prefer water temperatures between 72–75 °F (22–24 °C). You can find them in clear or muddy streams and rivers. They also live in calm, standing water areas. These fish like places with a soft, silty bottom.
What do they eat? Spottedsail Barbs enjoy a varied diet. They feed on small worms and tiny crustaceans that live at the bottom of the water. They also eat insects and some plant matter.
Reproduction and Life Cycle
Spottedsail Barbs are "open water, substrate egg-scatterers." This means they lay their eggs freely in the water, often near plants. The adult fish do not guard their eggs after they are laid.
They usually spawn, or lay eggs, in the early morning. The eggs are scattered among plants near the water's surface. At a temperature of 75 °F (24 °C), the eggs hatch in about two days.
The name phutunio comes from a local name, "pungti phutuni."
In the Aquarium
The Spottedsail Barb is a popular fish in the aquarium trade. Many people like to keep them as pets in their home aquariums because of their small size and interesting appearance.
See also
- List of freshwater aquarium fish species
