Cheeya rasbora

Brevibora cheeya

Also known as Longnose blackwater rasbora, Giant emerald eye rasbora

FreshwaterFish

Cheeya rasbora (Brevibora cheeya) — The Wet Spot Tropical Fish · Used with permission

Care at a glance

Temperature: 72–81°F (22–27°C)
pH: 4.5–6.5
Adult size: 1.3 in (3.4 cm)
Minimum tank: 14 gal (54 L)
Temperament: Peaceful
Social behavior: Schooling
Swim level: Middle
Difficulty: Medium
Breeding: No record
Rarity: Rare
Origin: Peat swamps of Malaysia and Sumatra
Family: Danionidae

Overview

A blackwater specialist that should be kept as a school of eight or more with other soft-water miniatures such as small rasboras and pygmy loaches. It is peaceful and stays in midwater, feeding on small foods, so offer crushed flake, micro pellets, and frozen daphnia, cyclops, and baby brine shrimp. The key to keeping it is chemistry, not company: it wants soft, acidic, tannin-stained water and will fade and sulk in hard, bright conditions. A shaded, planted tank of around 54 liters over leaf litter suits it.

In the wild

The cheeya rasbora lives in peat swamp forest waters of Peninsular Malaysia and Sumatra, which run tea-dark, soft, and strongly acidic. Build a blackwater tank with botanicals and leaf litter, a dark substrate, dim light, and gentle filtration through peat or almond leaves. Keep it warm and acidic, 22 to 27 degrees Celsius with a pH of 4.5 to 6.5.

Good to know

Brevibora cheeya is a danio-family rasbora, Danionidae, and one of the larger members of its small genus, longer-bodied and longer-snouted than the familiar eyespot rasbora it was separated from. Liao and Tan described it in 2011, distinguishing it partly by its complete lateral line. Its breeding is not on record in the hobby.

Did you know

Its name comes from Cheeya, a tall figure in Chinese folklore who hunts ghosts for the lord of death; the describers chose him as a nod to this being the taller, larger rasbora of its pair.