Loaches Online Forum

I have four of these guys in the tank.

Notice the differences. Two are the same. One has a yellow cast to his upper body and one is very dark.






Tank mates in love.....

nice fish!

when reading this query, bear in mind thta this isn;t my area at all; but is it possible that the lighter two are actually histrionica? I'm asking as an enquiry rather than a suggestion, if you see what I mean...

Nice pictures!

Botia kubotai carry the lateral line with there black/brown markings. Botia histrionica's don't carry any, sophie.

Graeme, if I understand correctly, the kubotai have vertical as well as horizontal markings? because the paler loaches in Wendie's pictures have partial vertical-only banding, hence the query.

they're all so varied, dammit!

Yes, they hold the vertical barring, which also depends on age/size and location of habitat. But the Horizontal line always connects from each vertical barring in Kubotai. Histrionica's don't have the horizontal connection.

so if they have some but not total horizontal connection along the lateral they're still kubotai? the two pale ones of wendie's look quite different to the kubotai I've seen (which is probbaly a fairly limited amount), which have been noticeably yellow and with much more of the dark pattern to them...

my 8 botia's also have 2 types of patterns as the pictures shown here. one type have the larger yelley spots en the other is with the small yellew spots

Sophie. I forgot to mention the Botia sp. aff rostrata which is in the middle of a Kubotai and Histrionica. They have part horizontal lines which connect and some area's which don't. Most juvenile Kubotai often look like these Botia sp. aff rostrata.