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Finespot hillstream loach

Sewellia analis

Also known as Finespot sewellia

FreshwaterFish

Finespot hillstream loach (Sewellia analis)

Care at a glance

Temperature
68–75°F
20–24°C
pH
6.5–7.5
Adult size
2.4 in
6 cm
Minimum tank
24 gal
90 L
Temperament
Mostly peaceful
Social behavior
Social
Swim level
Bottom
Difficulty
Difficult
Breeding
No record
Rarity
Rare
Family
Gastromyzontidae
Origin
Central Vietnam

Overview

The finespot hillstream loach is a small, disc-bodied grazer for a cool, oxygen-rich tank with real current. Its care matches the well-known tiger hillstream loach, and it suits experienced keepers.

Did you know

The finespot hillstream loach takes its trade name from its dusting of small dots. Its scientific name, analis, points elsewhere entirely, to the unusual forward position of its vent, set close to the anal fin.

Caring for the finespot hillstream loach

Give a group of finespot hillstream loaches a tank of 24 gal (90 L) or more, with a boulder field for them to graze. Furnish it with smooth, flattened stones for grazing and perching, over a fine substrate. Set it up as a full river tank, with strong laminar flow and brisk surface movement to keep oxygen high.

Keep the water cool, at 68 to 75°F (20 to 24°C), with a pH of 6.5 to 7.5. Most of its food is grazed biofilm and algae, so give it a mature tank. Then add fine sinking foods, crushed wafers and small frozen foods that sink to the floor.

Keep a group of five or six. Expect males to hold favorite stones and shimmy at neighbors in low-key display contests that rarely turn serious. Tank mates should be small, peaceful fish that share its love of fast, cool water. Its own spawning has not been recorded in tanks, though the genus as a whole breeds readily.

Good to know

Sewellia is a genus of Vietnamese and Lao hillstream loaches in the family Gastromyzontidae. The genus is named for the British naturalist R. B. Seymour Sewell. Two Vietnamese researchers, Nguyen and Nguyen, described this species in 2006.

In the wild

Sewellia analis lives in clear, fast torrents in central Vietnam. The water there runs cool and highly oxygenated over broad stones.

Weekly picks

Tank mates

The finespot hillstream loach is a mostly peaceful, social 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 finespot hillstream loach need?

A finespot hillstream loach needs at least 24 gal (90 L). It spends most of its time in the bottom.

What temperature and pH does a finespot hillstream loach need?

A finespot hillstream loach is comfortable at 68–75°F (20–24°C) with a pH of 6.5–7.5.

What does a finespot hillstream loach eat?

A finespot hillstream loach grazes most of its food as biofilm and algae. Add fine sinking foods, crushed wafers and small frozen foods that sink to the floor.

How big does a finespot hillstream loach get?

An adult finespot hillstream loach reaches about 2.4 in (6 cm).

Related species