TankBud

Annam hillstream loach

Annamia normani

Also known as Norman's hillstream loach, Vietnamese butterfly loach

FreshwaterFish

Annam hillstream loach (Annamia normani)
The Wet Spot Tropical Fish · Used with permission

Care at a glance

Temperature
68–77°F
20–25°C
pH
6.5–7.5
Adult size
3.7 in
9.4 cm
Minimum tank
25 gal
95 L
Temperament
Peaceful
Social behavior
Social
Swim level
Bottom
Diet
Omnivore
Difficulty
Difficult
Breeding
No record
Rarity
Rare
Family
Gastromyzontidae
Origin
Mekong basin, Laos and Vietnam

Overview

The Annam hillstream loach is a peaceful, current-loving bottom fish for a cool river tank with strong flow. It is a fish for experienced keepers.

Did you know

In the hobby, the Annam hillstream loach sometimes travels under the name Vietnamese giraffe loach. The name comes from the network of dark markings over its pale body, which recalls the patchwork coat of a giraffe.

Caring for the Annam hillstream loach

Give a group of Annam hillstream loaches a tank of 25 gal (95 L) or more, with room along the current line. Build a river-style layout of smooth, rounded stones over a substrate of sand and pebbles. Drive strong laminar flow with a large pump, and keep oxygen high with plenty of surface movement.

Hold the temperature on the cooler side, at 68 to 77°F (20 to 25°C), with a pH of 6.5 to 7.5. The Annam hillstream loach spends the day clinging to stone and wood in the fastest water, grazing the biofilm that coats hard surfaces. A mature tank with established algae matters more than any fancy feeding routine.

Offer sinking foods such as crushed algae wafers, fine sinking pellets and a little frozen bloodworm or daphnia. Make sure the flow does not sweep the food away before the loaches reach it.

It is peaceful and does best in a small group of its own kind, so plan on five or six. Keep it only with calm, slim tank mates that enjoy the same brisk water and will not outcompete it at the floor. Its breeding has not been recorded in the aquarium, and little is documented about how it spawns in the wild.

Good to know

The Annam hillstream loach belongs to the hillstream loach family Gastromyzontidae. It is an elongate, flattened fish, far more streamlined than the disc-shaped Borneo suckers. The ichthyologist Hora named it for the British zoologist John Roxborough Norman, who had loaned him the type specimen.

In the wild

Annamia normani lives in swift, shallow, rocky stretches of Mekong tributaries in Laos and Vietnam. The water there runs clear, cool and heavily oxygenated over cobbles and bedrock.

Weekly picks

Tank mates

The Annam hillstream loach is a peaceful, social species that keeps to the bottom. These picks share a community profile with it, are safe together in both directions, and overlap on water type, temperature and pH.

Check the full mix in the stocking calculator

Common questions

What size tank does an Annam hillstream loach need?

An Annam hillstream loach needs at least 25 gal (95 L). It spends most of its time in the bottom.

What temperature and pH does an Annam hillstream loach need?

An Annam hillstream loach is comfortable at 68–77°F (20–25°C) with a pH of 6.5–7.5.

What does an Annam hillstream loach eat?

An Annam hillstream loach grazes the biofilm that coats stone and wood. Offer it sinking foods such as crushed algae wafers, fine sinking pellets and a little frozen bloodworm or daphnia.

How big does an Annam hillstream loach get?

An adult Annam hillstream loach reaches about 3.7 in (9.4 cm).

Related species