Ornate stone loach

Nemacheilus ornatus

Also known as Ornamented loach, Ornate sand loach

FreshwaterFish

Ornate stone loach (Nemacheilus ornatus) — The Wet Spot Tropical Fish · Used with permission

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
Origin: Mae Khlong basin, Thailand
Family: Nemacheilidae

Overview

A compact, peaceable stone loach for a warm river community, easy to keep in a small group. Give it a floor with structure, stones and gravel divided into patches, and it settles in without much squabbling. Pair it with calm, current-tolerant midwater fish and keep the water warm and moving. It forages over the bottom, so feed fine sinking foods, frozen daphnia, and small bloodworm that reach the substrate. A tank of around 75 liters or more, warm and gently flowing, suits a small foraging group.

In the wild

The ornate stone loach is known from the Mae Klong basin in western Thailand, in flowing water over gravel and sand. Recreate that with a mixed sand and gravel floor, rounded stones for cover, and moderate current. Keep it warm at 22 to 26 degrees Celsius with a pH of 6.5 to 7.5. As a stream fish it prefers clean, oxygen-rich water, so steady filtration and some flow keep it in good shape.

Good to know

Nemacheilus ornatus reaches about 5 centimeters and was described by Maurice Kottelat in 1990. Its name means adorned, for a busier pattern than the plain barring of many relatives, with markings broken and edged rather than simple. It belongs to the family Nemacheilidae, and its aquarium breeding is not on record.

Did you know

Ornate is a relative term among stone loaches: this one earned the name with bars that break up and wobble, in a genus where a set of tidy straight stripes is the usual uniform.

Tank mates

Ornate stone loach is a mostly peaceful, social species that keeps to the bottom. These picks match on water type, temperature, pH, size and temperament.