All fish / Cyprinidae

Siamese algae eater

Crossocheilus atrilimes

Also known as siamese algae eater, sae, true siamese algae eater, siamese flying fox, black-line algae eater, crossocheilus oblongus, crossocheilus siamensis, ปลาน้ำผึ้งเทียม, サイアミーズ・フライングフォックス, 小精灵飞狐, 暹罗飞狐, 黑线飞狐

A slim, silvery brown cyprinid with a bold black stripe that runs from the snout right into the tail fin, edged by a pale band above. Aquarists keep it because it is an active, hardy grazer that eats many nuisance algae, including black brush algae, in planted tanks.

Care at a glance

Care level

Easy

Temperament

Peaceful

Adult size

12 cm

Temperature

22 to 27 °C

pH

6.5 to 7.5

Smallest tank

110 litres

Keep as

Best in a group of 3 or more, or kept singly

Diet

Omnivore: algae, biofilm, sinking wafers, blanched vegetables, bloodworm and small live or frozen foods

Swims

Bottom of the tank

Lifespan

8 to 10 years

Water

Freshwater

Wild range

Mekong and Chao Phraya basins, Malay Peninsula and Indonesia (Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia)

Breeding

It scatters eggs in the wild and seasonal migrations appear to trigger spawning. Farmed fish are bred using hormones, and spawning in home aquariums has not been reliably reported.

Good to know

It is often sold confused with Garra cambodgiensis and the flying fox, Epalzeorhynchos kalopterus, which are more territorial and eat less algae; check that the black stripe reaches into the tail fork. It is a powerful jumper and needs a tight lid, and it tends to graze less on algae as it gets older if it is overfed.