TankBud

Arulius barb

Dawkinsia arulius

FreshwaterFish

Arulius barb (Dawkinsia arulius)
(c) Marcus Knight, some rights reserved (CC BY) · cc-by

Care at a glance

Temperature
66–77°F
19–25°C
pH
6.0–7.5
Adult size
4.7 in
12 cm
Minimum tank
37 gal
140 L
Temperament
Peaceful
Social behavior
Schooling
Swim level
Middle
Difficulty
Medium
Breeding
Egg scatterer · Medium
Rarity
Rare
Family
Cyprinidae
Origin
Kaveri basin, Karnataka, India

Overview

The Arulius barb is a sizable, energetic schooling barb that wants room to swim and cool water. It is a fish for keepers past the beginner stage.

Did you know

The true Arulius barb is rarely offered, and almost every fish sold under the name is Dawkinsia tambraparniei. Most of what the hobby has written under this name, the famous dorsal streamers included, describes the other fish.

Caring for the Arulius barb

Give a group of Arulius barbs a roomy tank of at least 37 gal (140 L), with some current and open swimming space. A few plants along the edges suit them. The near-identical Tambraparni barb needs the same care.

Keep the water on the cool side, at 66 to 77°F (19 to 25°C), with a pH of 6.0 to 7.5. Feed a varied diet of flakes and pellets, with regular live or frozen food to keep their color and condition up.

Keep them in a school of at least six, since they are happiest and calmest in numbers. They are active, peaceful swimmers that like room to move. Their size and energy suit other active fish rather than slow or delicate ones. They are egg scatterers, and breeding them is moderately difficult.

Good to know

Dawkinsia arulius is a cyprinid described by Jerdon in 1849, and it is listed as Endangered. Its genus name honors the biologist Richard Dawkins, for his work explaining evolution to the public. Adults carry three black blotches along the flank. Unusually for the genus, males never grow dorsal filaments, and the dorsal fin stays plain. The maxillary barbels are so short they are easy to miss, under a quarter of the eye. The near-identical Dawkinsia tambraparniei has trailing dorsal filaments in adult males and barbels longer than half the eye.

In the wild

The Arulius barb was described from the Kaveri (Cauvery) River at Srirangapatna, in Karnataka, southern India. It seems to have vanished from that stretch since the Krishna Raja Sagara dam went in upstream. Today it holds on in the upper Kaveri around Coorg and in the headwaters of the Tungabhadra. It lives in clear, flowing water over rock and sand, cooler than many tropical fish prefer.

Weekly picks

Tank mates

The Arulius barb is a peaceful, schooling species that keeps to the middle. 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 Arulius barb need?

An Arulius barb needs at least 37 gal (140 L). It spends most of its time in the middle.

What temperature and pH does an Arulius barb need?

An Arulius barb is comfortable at 66–77°F (19–25°C) with a pH of 6.0–7.5.

What does an Arulius barb eat?

An Arulius barb eats a varied diet of flakes and pellets. Regular live or frozen food keeps its color and condition up.

How big does an Arulius barb get?

An adult Arulius barb reaches about 4.7 in (12 cm).

Does an Arulius barb need a group?

Yes. An Arulius barb is a schooling species and should be kept in a group, not singly.

How does an Arulius barb breed?

Arulius barbs scatter their eggs, and breeding them is moderately difficult.

Related species