Pangio oblonga
Encyclopedia
Java Loach is a species of unbanded kuhli loach
native to the sandy streams of Southeast Asia
. Its common names include the java loach, black kuhli, and chocolate kuhli. It is a tropical freshwater
fish
common to the aquarium
trade.
. Its rayed dorsal fin
is set far back on the dorsal
side, halfway between the tail
and middle of the fish. The tail ends with a flat edge and may be slightly forked in the middle.
Due to the large range of the java loach, coloration varies between populations. Individuals carry a solid color of red-brown to chocolate brown to near black on their dorsal side, while the ventral side is pale by contrast.
Java loaches grow to 3 inches (8 cm) and readily scavenge bits of food from soft substrate. They will accept flake food in aquaria but prefer a meaty diet of Mysis shrimp, brine shrimp
, bloodworms, etc. They are a social species best kept in large groups. Sexual dimorphism is not readily apparent, although females carrying eggs will appear fatter.
is from 6.2 to 7.0 and the temperature ranges from 76° to 82°F, or 24° to 28°C.
Loach
Loach may refer to:* Loaches, fish families in the Cypriniformes:** Cobitidae, the "true" loaches – formerly all loaches were united in this family** Balitoridae, the hillstream loaches – the largest family, closely related to Cobitidae...
native to the sandy streams of Southeast Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
. Its common names include the java loach, black kuhli, and chocolate kuhli. It is a tropical freshwater
Freshwater
Fresh water is naturally occurring water on the Earth's surface in ice sheets, ice caps, glaciers, bogs, ponds, lakes, rivers and streams, and underground as groundwater in aquifers and underground streams. Fresh water is generally characterized by having low concentrations of dissolved salts and...
fish
Fish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
common to the aquarium
Aquarium
An aquarium is a vivarium consisting of at least one transparent side in which water-dwelling plants or animals are kept. Fishkeepers use aquaria to keep fish, invertebrates, amphibians, marine mammals, turtles, and aquatic plants...
trade.
Description and behavior
The java loach, like its fellow Pangio species, has a long eel-like body with small eyes set high in the skullSkull
The skull is a bony structure in the head of many animals that supports the structures of the face and forms a cavity for the brain.The skull is composed of two parts: the cranium and the mandible. A skull without a mandible is only a cranium. Animals that have skulls are called craniates...
. Its rayed dorsal fin
Dorsal fin
A dorsal fin is a fin located on the backs of various unrelated marine and freshwater vertebrates, including most fishes, marine mammals , and the ichthyosaurs...
is set far back on the dorsal
Dorsum (biology)
In anatomy, the dorsum is the upper side of animals that typically run, fly, or swim in a horizontal position, and the back side of animals that walk upright. In vertebrates the dorsum contains the backbone. The term dorsal refers to anatomical structures that are either situated toward or grow...
side, halfway between the tail
Tail
The tail is the section at the rear end of an animal's body; in general, the term refers to a distinct, flexible appendage to the torso. It is the part of the body that corresponds roughly to the sacrum and coccyx in mammals, reptiles, and birds...
and middle of the fish. The tail ends with a flat edge and may be slightly forked in the middle.
Due to the large range of the java loach, coloration varies between populations. Individuals carry a solid color of red-brown to chocolate brown to near black on their dorsal side, while the ventral side is pale by contrast.
Java loaches grow to 3 inches (8 cm) and readily scavenge bits of food from soft substrate. They will accept flake food in aquaria but prefer a meaty diet of Mysis shrimp, brine shrimp
Brine shrimp
Artemia is a genus of aquatic crustaceans known as brine shrimp. Artemia, the only genus in the family Artemiidae, has changed little externally since the Triassic period...
, bloodworms, etc. They are a social species best kept in large groups. Sexual dimorphism is not readily apparent, although females carrying eggs will appear fatter.
Distribution
- The Mekong River basin of LaosLaosLaos Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the south and Thailand to the west...
, CambodiaCambodiaCambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
, ThailandThailandThailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
and VietnamVietnamVietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –... - Chao Phraya River Basin and Nan River, Thailand
- Seroke Stream and Darjiling River, IndiaIndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
- Dangtong River, Cambodia
- Sungai Pinoh River, BorneoBorneoBorneo is the third largest island in the world and is located north of Java Island, Indonesia, at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia....
and Thailand - Brang and Tersat Rivers, Malaysia
- Mandalay and Tenasserim Divisions, MyanmarMyanmarBurma , officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar , is a country in Southeast Asia. Burma is bordered by China on the northeast, Laos on the east, Thailand on the southeast, Bangladesh on the west, India on the northwest, the Bay of Bengal to the southwest, and the Andaman Sea on the south....
(Burma)
Habitat
P. oblonga, like most loaches, lives in streambeds. In the wild and in optimal aquarium conditions, the water pHPH
In chemistry, pH is a measure of the acidity or basicity of an aqueous solution. Pure water is said to be neutral, with a pH close to 7.0 at . Solutions with a pH less than 7 are said to be acidic and solutions with a pH greater than 7 are basic or alkaline...
is from 6.2 to 7.0 and the temperature ranges from 76° to 82°F, or 24° to 28°C.