I myself have only ever kept 3 of the sucker-bodied hillstream loaches, those being a species of Annamia plus Sewellia lineolata and Sewellia sp. 'spotted'. Both Sewellia species are so entertaining to watch, especially the S. lineolata which are a lot more confident and venture out and about more than the spotties. They spend a lot of their time grazing about on the cobbles and glass, shuffling along and enjoying the current. I think they have very good eyesight and can spot another Sewellia from some distance and often glide through the water to get to it. They quite often have minor shoving matches, pushing each other off of favourite pebbles etc and sometimes it gets a bit more serious such as what was happening in that video I posted. When people who aren't familiar with this sort of fish see them in our shop, they have been known to ask whether they are baby stingrays! Not only is the shape quite similar, but they also engage in some of the 'topping' behaviour when squabbling. Mine also sit on the sand and flutter their fins about to agitate the sand and look for morsels of food - this fluttering action is reminicent of a butterfly, which is probably why some have the common name of butterfly loaches. There are so many quirky behaviours that I could describe, but hopefully this will give a bit of an insight. Others here who keep different species will be able to fill you in on the behaviours of some of their fish. And of course, when you are lucky enough to have some spawn, raising the young is so rewarding.
I'll have to try for some more video footage soon, maybe at feeding time when the tank is a real hive of activity.
Emma
