Neon golden-stripe shark

Sarcocheilichthys parvus

Also known as Chinese neon golden stripe shark, Golden-stripe gudgeon

FreshwaterFish

Neon golden-stripe shark (Sarcocheilichthys parvus) — The Wet Spot Tropical Fish · Used with permission

Care at a glance

Temperature: 61–75°F (16–24°C)
pH: 6.5–7.8
Adult size: 3.5 in (9 cm)
Minimum tank: 30 gal (112 L)
Temperament: Mostly peaceful
Social behavior: Schooling
Swim level: Bottom
Difficulty: Medium
Breeding: No record
Rarity: Rare
Origin: Hill streams of southern China
Family: Gobionidae

Overview

This small gudgeon is sold as a shark but behaves like a sociable, mostly peaceful bottom fish, so keep a group of six or more to settle it and spread out any low-level squabbling. It spends its time near the floor, pecking at surfaces with a small downturned mouth, and does best in cool, unheated water with steady flow. Give it open sand and smooth stone with room to forage, and choose calm tankmates of similar size. Feed sinking foods that are not too coarse: micro pellets, crushed wafers, and small frozen items such as bloodworm and daphnia. A tank of at least 112 litres suits a group.

In the wild

It comes from clear, cool hill streams in southern China, over gravel and stone in flowing water. Keep it unheated or lightly cooled, around 16 to 24 degrees Celsius, with a neutral chemistry of pH 6.5 to 7.8. A bottom of sand and rounded gravel, some smooth boulders, and a decent current recreate the open, running water it prefers and keep its colours strong.

Good to know

A member of the gudgeon family, Gobionidae, it reaches about 9 cm. A bright gold stripe runs the length of its pewter body, and breeding males flush their fins with pink-red and develop a pale patch on the snout. Like other members of its genus it has a small, pecking mouth suited to picking food from surfaces, and there is no established aquarium breeding record.

Did you know

The gold stripe that gives it its shark-shop name is strongly iridescent, catching light like polished metal, so against a dark substrate the fish can look almost lit from within.

Tank mates

Neon golden-stripe shark is a mostly peaceful, schooling species that keeps to the bottom. These picks match on water type, temperature, pH, size and temperament.