Quite a rarity in the hobby, but when available it is much sought after by enthusiasts. It can be found living in huge mixed species groups with other Cyprichromis species and the similar Paracyprichromis. There are a few geographical variants known, each of which has both a yellow and blue tailed form. Individual populations can also contain males with different colour and patterning, a phenomenon known as polychromatism. The different forms should never be mixed in the aquarium, as they will i…

This species is sometimes confused with S. hymenophysa, native to the Greater Sunda Islands and Peninsular Malaysia, but differs in several ways, the most immediately identifiable of which are possession of small, irregular, dark markings in the lower half of the body and lack of a dark spot in the dorsal-fin. It also has 10-12 vertical body bars…

Y. eos isn't as commonly-traded as it once was but is still available occasionally. It's difficult to confuse with any other member of the genus due to its colour pattern consisting of yellow to reddish brown base body colour (can appear greyish in some specimens, especially post-import or when introduced to a new aquarium) with a metallic green/blue golden sheen and large darkish marking on either side of the caudal peduncle. The fins can be yellowish to reddish, and the dorsal and c…

Following Grant (2007) this species is included in the B. dario complex of closely-related species within the genus alongside B. striata. They're characterised by body patterning consisting of a base yellow to golden colour with 7-9 blue, green, grey or black body bars usually with thinner, lighter bars between. In some individuals the…

Interestingly some observations suggest that the character of the highest-ranked, or alpha, fish appears to affect that of the whole group though it must be said that scientific studies of botiid loach behaviour are virtually non-existent. It certainly seems that they display a degree of ‘personality’ with some specimens being naturally bolder/more aggressive than others. The alpha is normally the largest specimen within the group and often female.

Sound also appears to be an important factor in communication since these loaches are able…

C. afra is easily confused with some species of Pseudotropheus, but can be distinguished by its smaller adult size and unicuspid (as opposed to bicuspid) teeth. Also in this species the black bars on the flanks continue into the dorsal fin, unlike in Pseudotropheus zebra, for example. It exists in many different colour forms in nature. These forms should not be mixed in aquaria as they may spawn with each other, producing unwanted hybrid fry. Despite this ability to interbreed, it's probabl…

This species is very similar in appearance to S. berdmorei which is native to India and Myanmar, and has been widely mislabelled under that name in older aquarium literature. The two can appear identical on first glance but there are some notable differences, most obviously possession of 9-10 branchedrays in S. beauforti vs. 11-14 in S. bermorei, and the fact that even young specimens of S. beauforti exhibit laterally-orientated rows of small, dark markings running across the …

One of the favourite Tanganyikan cichlids among hobbyists, this species occurs in several geographical morphs. Each of these further exists in both blue and yellow-tailed forms. They congregate in large shoals of several thousand in nature, preying on zooplankton.

In the hobby you may also see C. leptosoma sp. "Jumbo" for sale. These fish grow to the size quoted above, whilst the "true" leptosoma only reaches around 4" in length. Although it's likely we are deal…

This species is sometimes confused with Y. modesta though in reality the two are readily distinguishable from one another by body shape since Y. lecontei is a slimmer, more elongate fish.

Further, in Y. lecontei the overall body colouration is usually brownish with a gold/green sheen and the dark markings…

This species is one of the more commonly-encountered botiids in the hobby and is also sold as ‘blue’, ‘orange-finned’, or ‘red-finned’ botia/loach. It’s sometimes subject to artificial colouring with bright blue or purple dyes and we strongly recommend you do not purchase such fish (they’re illegal in several countries).