Aqua Fanatic: Loaches

Scientific Name(s)	: Acanthocobitis botia, Botia nebulosa
Common Name(s)	: Striped Loach, Zipper Loach
Family	: Balitoridae
Species Type:	: Asian Loaches
Maximum Size	: 4 inches
Life Span	: 5 years
Natural Habitat	: Asian Rivers
Minimum Tank Size	: 20 gallons
Tank Region	: Bottom
Possible Tank Mates	: Other community fish
Temperature Range	: 72°F – 82°F
pH Range	: 6.8 - 7.5
Hardness	: 20° - 25°

Description: The zipper loach does well with water that has a current, so the use of a powerhead is reccomended. A sandy or small gravel substrate is preferred because this species digs constantly. Caves, rocky outcroppings, and plants are favorite hiding places. This loach has a very distinctive eye spot which does not go away with age. This is the number one way to determine if you have a true zipper loach or if you have Botia striata. The two are very commonly mislabeled because they are so similar in appearance.

Breeding Information: Breeding can be accomplished by experienced aquarists. Known triggers are large water changes and minor pH changes. They lay the eggs in a hidden spot and leave them. Parents may eat the eggs, and will not guard them; so the eggs or parents should be removed.

Sexing Information: No known method to sex this species visually.

Hikari Bio Pure FD Tubifex Worms 0.78 oz

Diet: Omnivorous - Mainly bottom feeders which will appreciate a varied diet of sinking algae wafers, sinking shrimp pellets, blood worms, tubifex worms, etc. Will eat most commercial foods that are offered and will even with time eat from the top of the tank and the middle, even though it highly prefers to bottom feed. To keep a good balance, give them a high quality flake or tablet food everyday. Feed mosquito larvae, brine shrimp (either live or frozen), tubifex, daphnia, and some vegetable foods such as algae wafers.

Temperament: Peaceful community fish.

Common Diseases: None specific to species

General Info:The Zipper Loach is a beautiful, slender, and elongated fish whose patterning when it is young looks just like a 'zipper'! On its sides the Zipper Loach has a grayish green background color, a light to whitish belly, and dark blotches on the sides and top. The dorsal and tail fins have stripes made up of dark spots. If well cared for, it can also have an orange-red cast to its fins.

This loach is described by many names, most of which are indicative of its looks. The most common name for this loach is Zipper Loach. This is very descriptive when it is young as it looks like it is covered with a 'zipper' pattern. It also has a unique 'eye-spot' on the top part at the base of the caudal fin, lending to the name Eye-Spot Loach or Spot Loach. But as this loach grows, its pattern stretches out and other distinctive names come into play, such as Mottled Loach or Striped Loach. The only odd-ball name is Sand Loach, which probably comes from its preference for digging and hiding in soft substrates such as sand or fine gravel.

The Zipper Loach is nocturnal and can be quite shy until it becomes acclimated. Provide subdued lighting and be sure to provide plenty of hiding and resting places created with rocks and driftwood. As they like to burrow, a substrate of sand or fine gravel is best. Plants are not necessary but they are appreciated.

Zipper Loaches are hardy, personable, and generally peaceful. They are good for a community aquarium, but with reasonably robust tank mates. They have been known to nip angelfish and gouramis who have longer fins. This fish will do well in a larger aquarium (ideally 30 gallons or so) with good water movement, subdued lighting, and places for retreat such as rocks, caves, and roots. They do best in soft to medium, slightly acidic water with frequent water changes of about 10% a week. The substrate can to be a fine or medium gravel that does not have sharp edges.

Social Behaviors: Though most Hill stream loaches are best kept singly as they have a tendency to quarrel with others of their own species and other similar loaches, this one has reportedly been kept with others of its own kind. They are peaceful in a community aquarium with mildly aggressive tank mates, but have been know to nip fish with longer fins such as angelfish and gouramis. Though they hide during the day, they can be lively and active in the evening or when feeding.

Clown Loaches are found throughout Borneo and Sumatra. Due to regionally separated breeding groups, certain bio-diversity has lead to distinct differences which may not be particularly noticeable until you place two fish from different areas beside one another. Fish from Borneo, in all the examples I've seen, tend to be overall less colorful than fish from Sumatra. Sumatran fish seem to have a "glow" about them.

I would say that the quickest ID could be made by looking at the color of the pelvic fins. Fish from Borneo have a black area in the base and center of the fin, and usually the front (hard) ray is red/orange in color, with the end of the fin being clear, smoky, or slightly red, whilst in Sumatran fish the fin is all red/orange.

Other differences are that the Dorsal and Anal fins have less yellow at their lead edges in Sumatran fish. Also the rear stripe extends onto the Caudal Peduncle in Borneo fish, but not in Sumatran. Sumatran's tend to have some redness from the Caudal extending into the Caudal Peduncle.

Clowns also come from Kalimantan, and the fish from here are basically like Sumatrans, but have more intense red coloration. The source article for this information states that Sumatran fish have a kind of silver sheen to the body not seen in Kalimantan fish.

"Graying Out"

This is a term we've come to use here as a description of one particular color mode seen in our fish. New owners of Clowns are always posting panicked messages, assuming that there's something drastically wrong with their new fish. Usually, there is no problem at all.

Clowns are able to change their coloration within certain parameters. These changes can be based on mood, aggression, possibly stress and other factors. The illustration shows a fish sitting at a slight tail-down attitude with fins spread. This position will often be taken accompanied by "graying out", during mock fights between Clowns.

These fights are often referred to as "Sparring", and are used to determine the natural pecking order within a group. People have theorized that "gray" fish are sub-dominant when they remain this color for prolonged periods, but I have noticed that my Dominant (Alpha) fish is often the one showing this color. They can change from regular coloration to "gray" quite quickly, particularly at feeding time, when many squabbles break out. Depending on one's tank lighting, this color change may show a kind of greenish, metallic sheen to the whole body, most noticeable over the stripes. The edges of the stripes tend to have a sort of paler area than the rest of the stripe.

Stripe Variations

The vast majority of Clowns we see have a "Classic" stripe pattern as in the color drawings. However, once in a while, some fairly funky variations are seen. These are just genetic variations that throw up odd patterns. I've illustrated the most common variations that I've seen. They seem to fall into 6 basic categories, but variations in marking sizes, plus combinations of the patterns shown are almost certain to occur. These fish can provide their owner with a readily identifiable fish that can only add to the cuteness of the pet by its uniqueness.

I've taken it upon myself to give the variations a name, so that any future talk of a particular pattern might be clearer once everyone's memorized them. However, if anyone has better suggestions for a name for any particular pattern, they can be changed.