Binduchitra barb

Systomus binduchitra

Also known as Dotted-line systomus

FreshwaterFish

Care at a glance

Temperature: 72–81°F (22–27°C)
pH: 6.0–7.5
Adult size: 3.9 in (10 cm)
Minimum tank: 29 gal (110 L)
Temperament: Peaceful
Social behavior: Schooling
Swim level: Middle
Difficulty: Medium
Breeding: No record
Rarity: Rare
Origin: Chindwin basin, Myanmar
Family: Cyprinidae

Overview

Keep this lively barb in a school of six or more; it is a very social fish that turns nervous and drab kept in ones and twos. It swims mainly in the middle water and is peaceful, suiting a spacious community with other active, similarly sized fish such as danios, larger rasboras and loaches. Feed a varied diet of flake and pellets with regular frozen and live foods. Allow at least 110 liters, and expect it to want more room as it grows toward full size.

In the wild

The binduchitra barb comes from the Chindwin basin of Myanmar, part of the wider Irrawaddy system, in flowing fresh water. Give it a planted tank with open swimming lanes, a bed of sand or gravel, wood and rock, and some water movement. It is comfortable across a broad tropical range, about 22 to 27 degrees Celsius, at pH 6.0 to 7.5.

Good to know

Systomus binduchitra is a barb of the family Cyprinidae and a close relative of the olive barb, Systomus sarana, reaching roughly 10 centimeters and probably a little more in large tanks. It shows a red wash on the gill cover, a dark bar at the dorsal base and a spot on the tail base. The species name comes from Sanskrit for spotted, after its markings. Its captive spawning has not been recorded.

Did you know

The name binduchitra is Sanskrit for something close to dot-pictured, describing the spots and marks on the fish, and traders sometimes sell it as the saddled red-cheek barb for the red flush across its gill plate.