Pako hillstream loach

Sewellia breviventralis

Also known as Short-finned sewellia

FreshwaterFish

Pako hillstream loach (Sewellia breviventralis) — The Wet Spot Tropical Fish · Used with permission

Care at a glance

Temperature: 68–75°F (20–24°C)
pH: 6.5–7.5
Adult size: 2.4 in (6.2 cm)
Minimum tank: 24 gal (90 L)
Temperament: Mostly peaceful
Social behavior: Social
Swim level: Bottom
Difficulty: Difficult
Breeding: No record
Rarity: Rare
Origin: Pako River, central Vietnam
Family: Gastromyzontidae

Overview

Another Sewellia, kept much like the tiger hillstream loach it resembles: a disc-bodied grazer that spends its life clamped to the brightest, fastest stone in the tank. Keep a group of five or six, and expect males to defend favourite rocks with shimmying displays that seldom escalate. It grazes biofilm and algae, so mature the tank first, then supplement with fine sinking foods, crushed wafers, and small frozen foods. Its tankmates should be small, peaceful, current-loving fish. A tank of around 90 liters with a strong flow and a broad rock surface gives a group what it needs.

In the wild

Sewellia breviventralis is known from the Pako River in central Vietnam, a fast, clear, cool torrent flowing over stone. It needs the full hillstream setup: 20 to 24 C, strong laminar flow, and oxygen held high by brisk surface movement. Furnish it with broad, smooth grazing stones, a fine substrate, and keep pH in the mildly acidic to neutral range, 6.5 to 7.5.

Good to know

This Sewellia, a hillstream loach in the family Gastromyzontidae, reaches about 6.2 centimeters. Freyhof and Serov described it in 2000, and the name breviventralis means short pelvic fin, a small tailoring difference from its congeners in the shape of the suction disc. Its own breeding has not been recorded, though Sewellia in general spawn willingly.

Did you know

Like the Borneo suckers half a world away, many Sewellia are each tied to a single river; this one is named for the Pako and is known from almost nowhere else.

Tank mates

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