Burmese spiny eel

Care at a glance

Overview

Keep this Burmese eel on its own, as it lives solitary and can be short-tempered with others of its kind in anything but a very large tank. Provide a deep bed of soft sand, since it spends daylight hours buried with only the snout showing and emerges after dark to forage. It is peaceful toward tankmates too big to eat, but small fish and shrimp are fair game, so match it with calm, medium-sized companions. Feed meaty foods in the evening, such as frozen bloodworm, chopped earthworm, and blackworm, and drop them near its hide until it learns the routine. A tank of about 200 liters with fine sand and a secure lid meets its needs.

In the wild

The Burmese spiny eel comes from lowland streams in the Tanintharyi region of southern Myanmar, slow and gently flowing over sand and leaf litter. Set it up with a soft sand base, scattered wood and leaves, and shaded cover from plants or floating growth. It does best in warm water from about 23 to 28 C with a soft to neutral pH around 6.0 to 7.5 and gentle current, conditions typical of the forested lowlands it inhabits.

Good to know

Macrognathus orthosemos is one of the most recently described spiny eels, named by Ralf Britz and Maurice Kottelat in 2020. A member of the family Mastacembelidae, it reaches about 22 centimeters and carries the group's short pre-dorsal spines and flexible probing snout. The name orthosemos points to the upright markings along its flanks. No aquarium breeding has been recorded for it.

Did you know

This eel was only formally named in 2020, from streams in far southern Myanmar, a reminder that new spiny eels are still being described from Southeast Asia even now.

Common questions

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