Modesta or Lecontei

[YellowFinned]

Last month I fished a bunch of loaches out of the canal and have had them in my large tank since. I am not sure if they are Modesta or Lecontei. From the profile pages, I would say they look more like Modesta, they are slate gray and have no black blotch near the tail. But the fins are bright yellow.

I have seen other fish at the market, that I can be sure are either one or the other.

Are Modesta and Lecontei distinct species or is there a gradual - and location - variation between the two?

[shari2]

As far as I know they are distinct species.
Modestas can have red, orange, or even yellow fins, as in the species profile, "yellow finned varieties can be mistaken for Y. lecontei."
Whether the various fin colorations can be attributed to regional variation or which colors are located in which areas, i can't really say.

Others may chime in who know more about that aspect.

And welcome to LOL.

[piggy4]

Modesta are quite different in appearance to Leconte, Modesta's are much deeper in the body , Leconte are quite slim, similar in shape to the Syncrossus group ! in other words , it is the overall depth of body that differentiate's the two, fin colour can vary in Leconte, i.e. red or yellow ! iv'e only ever seen Modesta's with red fins , but have heard of yellow finned varieties ! but here's the problem , there is a fish that in the trade that, is regularly refered to as Modesta , but is apparently different , it looks like Modesta in shape i.e. deep bodied , the best way to tell this Botia , is by the dorsal fin , as it is the same colour as the body ,[bluish gray], i think some people think this fish is a Modesta varient , and because it has yellow fins , and tail , excluding the dorsal , it is somtimes labelled as Leconte because of the fin colour 's [yellow ] which is strange as Leconte , come in both yellow and red ! yellow being in my experience the more common of the two , hope this isn't to confusing ha ha ha, and of some use .

[YellowFinned]

Hi Piggy and Shari,

Have just had a look to confirm their looks. It amazes me how seventeen loaches can be so shy. So, from memory, the body shape is deep similar to other Modesta I have seen, but the body is not so bluish. All the fins, including the dorsal are translucent, fading to almost bright yellow at the fringes. These are not juveniles, between three and five inches.

It is quite common to see local loaches at the market, especially solid orange finned Modesta. But never seen any quite like my own canal loaches.

Last week I saw an eight inch tiger loach at the market. Did not get it because its tail was damaged. This week nothing.

[piggy4]

Very interesting ! the description makes them sound like yellow finned Modesta's , they dont by any chance have any small speckle like spots on the finnage ? if this was the case then , they could be B.Caudipunctata ! although these are not quite as deep as Modesta , they are deeper than Leconte ! and except for the small fin speckles are similar to Modesta'a perhaps a bit lighter in the body colour ! if it were possible a pic would be great !

[YellowFinned]

Definitely no speckles.

As for pictures, I wish they would come out so I could just see them. On the rare occasions they come out, they arc about at the back of the tank.

The missus is going to be at the canal tomorrow, and I have asked her to get some more. If she gets any, I will take some pictures before they go in the tank.

[piggy4]

Just out of interest , would it be possible to talk about the canal , giving us an insight ,into the wild domain of these loaches ? i.e. depth of water , plant varieties , water parameters , and last but not least , other fishes found at the location , i dont know what the typical canal in Thailand is like! over here they vary quite a lot , in their width and depth , some are large shipping lanes , and others are no more than about 5 mtr's wide , with an abundance of aquatic life , usually silted up , and no deeper than a metre , or there about , i imagine there are lots of interesting fishes , loaches, barbs , eels , etc etc !

[YellowFinned]

Hi Piggy, please see thread http://forums.loaches.com/viewtopic.php?t=4192.