TankBud

Dwarf botia

Ambastaia sidthimunki

Also known as Dwarf Chain Loach

FreshwaterFish

Dwarf botia (Ambastaia sidthimunki)
Lerdsuwa · CC BY-SA 3.0

Care at a glance

Temperature
68–86°F
20–30°C
pH
6.0–7.5
Adult size
2.4 in
6 cm
Minimum tank
20 gal
75 L
Temperament
Peaceful
Social behavior
Shoaling
Swim level
Bottom
Diet
Omnivore
Difficulty
Medium
Breeding
No record
Rarity
Rare
Family
Botiidae
Origin
Thailand

Overview

The dwarf botia is one of the smallest and most peaceful loaches. In a proper shoal it is active and outgoing through the day, working the lower levels of the tank in a loose, restless pack. It asks a little more of its keeper than the easiest community fish.

Did you know

The dwarf botia was once collected so heavily that its wild stocks crashed. It is now considered endangered across its small Thai range. Nearly every one sold today is farm bred, which has taken the pressure off the remaining wild populations.

Caring for the dwarf botia

Keep dwarf botias in a group of six or more, in a well-planted tank of 20 gal (75 L) or larger. Give them a soft floor, driftwood and rock for cover, and open lanes for the group to patrol. Plants and a scatter of leaves soften the light.

They tolerate a wide temperature band, 68 to 86°F (20 to 30°C), with a pH of 6.0 to 7.5 and gentle to moderate flow. Feed small sinking foods such as frozen daphnia and cyclops, crushed pellets and the occasional algae wafer. They will also pick at tiny snails.

Dwarf botias are peaceful and mix well with small, calm community fish. They are not bred in home aquaria, since their wild breeding is tied to seasonal migration. Farmed fish are produced commercially in the Far East, a process thought to involve hormone treatment.

Good to know

Ambastaia sidthimunki, also sold as the dwarf chain loach, is a botiid loach. It was once placed in Botia and later Yasuhikotakia, before moving to the genus Ambastaia in 2012. It is a dwarf of the family, marked with a chain-like ladder of dark blotches along a pale gold body. Like its relatives it has an erectile spine below the eye.

In the wild

Ambastaia sidthimunki comes from the Mae Klong and Khwae basins of western Thailand. It lives in flowing streams and quieter connected pools over sand, stone and leaf litter, and it gathers along their sheltered margins.

Weekly picks

Tank mates

The dwarf botia is a peaceful, shoaling 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 a dwarf botia need?

A dwarf botia needs at least 20 gal (75 L). It spends most of its time in the bottom.

What temperature and pH does a dwarf botia need?

A dwarf botia is comfortable at 68–86°F (20–30°C) with a pH of 6.0–7.5.

What does a dwarf botia eat?

A dwarf botia eats small sinking foods, such as frozen daphnia and cyclops, crushed pellets and the odd algae wafer. It also picks at tiny snails.

How big does a dwarf botia get?

An adult dwarf botia reaches about 2.4 in (6 cm).

Does a dwarf botia need a group?

Yes. A dwarf botia is a shoaling species and should be kept in a group, not singly.

How does a dwarf botia breed?

The dwarf botia is not bred in home aquariums, because its breeding in the wild is tied to seasonal migration. Farmed fish come from the Far East, where hormone treatment is thought to be involved.

Related species