Ornate stone loach
Nemacheilus ornatus
Also known as Ornamented loach, Ornate sand loach
FreshwaterFish
Care at a glance
- Temperature
- 72–79°F
- 22–26°C
- pH
- 6.5–7.5
- Adult size
- 2 in
- 5 cm
- Minimum tank
- 20 gal
- 75 L
- Temperament
- Mostly peaceful
- Social behavior
- Social
- Swim level
- Bottom
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Breeding
- No record
- Rarity
- Rare
- Family
- Nemacheilidae
- Origin
- Mae Khlong basin, Thailand
Overview
The ornate stone loach is a compact, mostly peaceful bottom loach for a warm river community tank. It is a fish of moderate difficulty.
Did you know
The ornate stone loach's name means adorned, yet ornate is a relative term among stone loaches. Its bars break up and wobble, and its markings are edged rather than simple. Most of its genus wears a set of tidy straight stripes as the usual uniform.
Caring for the ornate stone loach
Give a small foraging group of ornate stone loaches a warm tank of 20 gal (75 L) or more. Lay a floor with structure, mixed sand and gravel divided into patches by rounded stones for cover. They settle into a layout like this without much squabbling.
Keep the water warm and moving, at 72 to 79°F (22 to 26°C) and a pH of 6.5 to 7.5. As a stream fish, it prefers clean, oxygen-rich water, so run steady filtration with a gentle to moderate current.
The ornate stone loach forages over the bottom. Feed fine sinking foods, frozen daphnia and small bloodworm that reach the substrate. It is mostly peaceful, so pair it with calm, current-tolerant midwater fish. Its aquarium breeding is not on record.
Good to know
Nemacheilus ornatus was described by Maurice Kottelat in 1990. It belongs to the family Nemacheilidae.
In the wild
The ornate stone loach is known from the Mae Khlong basin in western Thailand. It lives in flowing water over gravel and sand.
Weekly picks
Tank mates
The ornate stone 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.
Rex halfbeak
Nomorhamphus rex
Freshwater2.2 in (5.5 cm) · 20 gal (75 L)72–79°F (22–26°C)
Bloodfin tetra
Aphyocharax anisitsi
Freshwater2.2 in (5.5 cm) · 20 gal (75 L)72–82°F (22–28°C)
Agassiz's dwarf cichlid
Apistogramma agassizii
Freshwater3.5 in (9 cm) · 20 gal (75 L)72–84°F (22–29°C)
Norman's lampeye
Poropanchax normani
Freshwater1.6 in (4 cm) · 20 gal (75 L)72–79°F (22–26°C)
Blue-green lampeye
Procatopus aberrans
Freshwater2.2 in (5.5 cm) · 20 gal (75 L)72–79°F (22–26°C)
Cinnamon loach
Pangio pangia
Freshwater2.4 in (6 cm) · 20 gal (75 L)72–81°F (22–27°C)
Common questions
What size tank does an ornate stone loach need?
An ornate stone loach needs at least 20 gal (75 L). It spends most of its time in the bottom.
What temperature and pH does an ornate stone loach need?
An ornate stone loach is comfortable at 72–79°F (22–26°C) with a pH of 6.5–7.5.
What does an ornate stone loach eat?
An ornate stone loach forages over the bottom for fine sinking foods, frozen daphnia and small bloodworm.
How big does an ornate stone loach get?
An adult ornate stone loach reaches about 2 in (5 cm).
Related species
2 in (5 cm)20 gal (75 L)68–79°F (20–26°C)Corica loach
Nemacheilus corica
2 in (5 cm) · 20 gal (75 L)
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Nemacheilus guentheri
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