All fish / Cyprinidae

Cauvery barb

Puntius cauveriensis

Also known as cauvery barb, kaveri barb, barbus cauveriensis, coorg barb

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This is a small, slim silvery barb from the Western Ghats of southern India, with a dark spot near the tail and a yellowish tinge to the fins. It is an active, hardy shoaling fish, and keepers like it for well-oxygenated stream-style tanks with cooler water and native Indian species.

Care at a glance

Care level

Easy

Temperament

Peaceful

Adult size

6 cm

Temperature

20 to 26 °C

pH

6.5 to 7.5

Smallest tank

100 litres

Keep as

Shoal of 8 or more

Diet

Omnivore: quality flakes and small pellets, frozen or live bloodworm, daphnia and brine shrimp, plus some plant matter

Swims

Middle of the tank

Lifespan

4 to 6 years

Water

Freshwater

Wild range

India: Cauvery (Kaveri) river basin and nearby streams in Karnataka and Kerala, Western Ghats

Breeding

It scatters its eggs over plants or gravel and gives no parental care, and the adults will eat the eggs. It is seldom bred in captivity, but it should spawn like other small Puntius in a separate tank with fine-leaved plants or mesh, with the adults taken out after spawning.

Good to know

The IUCN lists it as Endangered, and wild-caught fish are rarely seen in the trade, so ask where any you are offered came from. It is easily mixed up with other small silver Puntius species, such as Puntius chola.