Smallscale archerfish facts for kids
The smallscale archerfish (Toxotes microlepis) is a cool fish that lives in rivers and estuaries. It's part of a group of fish called archerfish, famous for their amazing hunting skills! As its name suggests, this fish has scales that are smaller than those of other archerfish. They can grow up to about 15 centimeters (about 6 inches) long. Smallscale archerfish live in warm areas of Asia and the Indo-Pacific region. They move between fresh and slightly salty (brackish) water during their lives.
Quick facts for kids Smallscale archerfish |
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| Illustration from Pieter Bleeker's Atlas Ichthyologique 1878 | |
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Contents
What Does It Look Like?
Smallscale archerfish have a pointy snout and big eyes, which help them spot their prey. Their back is flat, and their belly is curved. They have one main fin on their back, called a dorsal fin, which has four or five sharp spines. One of these spines is usually longer than the others.
These fish also have special scales along their side called lateral line scales, which help them sense movement in the water. Most smallscale archerfish have about 40 to 42 of these scales.
How to Tell Them Apart
Like other archerfish, the smallscale archerfish has dark, wedge-shaped stripes or spots on its sides. These marks can be yellow or silvery. They can grow up to 15 cm (about 6 inches) in the wild, but usually only 12 cm (about 4.7 inches) if kept in an aquarium.
It's easy to confuse the smallscale archerfish with another fish called the banded archerfish (T. jaculatrix). Both have four or five dark, wedge-shaped bars. However, the banded archerfish's bars go all the way up to its dorsal fin, while the smallscale archerfish's bars stop below the fin. The smallscale archerfish also has an extra dark spot right on its dorsal fin, and its snout is shorter than other archerfish.
What Do They Eat?
Smallscale archerfish are excellent hunters! They mainly eat insects that live on land. They are famous for their ability to shoot down insects from plants above the water using a stream of water from their mouths. They also eat tiny water creatures called zooplankton, small crustaceans (like shrimp), and insect larvae that live in the water.
Where Do They Live?
Smallscale archerfish live in big rivers and estuaries (where rivers meet the sea) across Asia and the Indo-Pacific. You can find them in river systems like the Mekong and Chao Phraya in Southeast Asia. They also live in waters around the Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, and Borneo.
They usually hang out near the edges of both moving and still waters, especially where there are plants hanging over the water. The smallscale archerfish is sometimes called a "freshwater archerfish" because it doesn't need to go into saltwater during its life, unlike some other archerfish. They are often found further upstream in rivers than their relatives.
Archerfish and People
Many people who keep fish as a hobby believe the smallscale archerfish is the most popular type of archerfish sold in pet stores. However, it's often confused with other archerfish species, so you might find different types sold together under the same name.
Because smallscale archerfish can live perfectly well in freshwater (even though they can also live in slightly salty water), they are sometimes sold as the "freshwater archerfish." This is helpful for people who don't want to set up a brackish water tank.
In Thailand, this fish has special names like Pla Suea Pon Nam Nakhon Sawan (which means "Nakhon Sawan archerfish") or Pla Suea Pon Nam Leung (meaning "yellow archerfish"). This is because they are often caught in a place called Bueng Boraphet in Nakhon Sawan Province, and they can have a bright yellow color.
