TankBud

Sawbwa barb

Sawbwa resplendens

Also known as Rummynose Rasbora

FreshwaterFish

Sawbwa barb (Sawbwa resplendens)
The Man On The Street at English Wikipedia · CC BY 3.0

Care at a glance

Temperature
68–75°F
20–24°C
pH
7.0–8.0
Adult size
1.2 in
3 cm
Minimum tank
20 gal
75 L
Temperament
Mostly peaceful
Social behavior
Schooling
Swim level
Middle
Difficulty
Medium
Breeding
Egg scatterer · Medium
Rarity
Common
Family
Cyprinidae
Origin
Endemic to Lake Inle and its watershed, Shan State, eastern Myanmar

Overview

The Sawbwa barb is a tiny, shy schooling fish for a cool, hard-water planted tank. Its water needs matter more than usual, so it suits a keeper with some experience.

Did you know

The Sawbwa barb is so small and so unlike a typical barb that the hobby keeps inventing new names for it. It has been called a rummynose rasbora or a naked microrasbora instead.

Caring for the Sawbwa barb

Keep Sawbwa barbs as a colony of at least 8 to 10, in a tank of 20 gal (75 L) or larger. Skew the group heavily toward females, roughly four females per male or more. Males spar constantly for dominance, and a female-heavy group spreads that aggression out. Give them a heavily planted tank with a dark substrate and gentle flow.

Keep the water moderately hard and neutral to alkaline, at 68 to 75°F (20 to 24°C) and a pH of 7.0 to 8.0. Do not treat the Sawbwa barb like a soft, acidic blackwater fish. It is a subtropical fish that suffers in warm tropical setups, so a warm community tank does not suit it.

Its scaleless body leaves it more sensitive than most fish to ammonia, poor water quality and medications. Run mature, stable, well-oxygenated water. Feed small live and frozen foods such as daphnia and brine shrimp. On dried food alone they often refuse to color up or feed well.

They are mostly peaceful toward other fish and sit in the middle of the water. They are shy and easily pushed off food by pushy tank mates, so pick small, calm company.

Breeding males turn bright, with a vivid orange-red nose and tail tips against a steely blue body. Females stay plain silver, so you can sex the group and set a female-heavy ratio by eye. The Sawbwa barb is an egg scatterer that deposits its eggs on the undersides of broad leaves. Spawning is tied to high general hardness, around 20 dGH or more, and they will not spawn much above 25°C.

Good to know

The Sawbwa barb is a tiny cyprinid in the family Cyprinidae. Its body is effectively scaleless, which is where the naked name comes from.

In the wild

Sawbwa barbs are endemic to Lake Inle and its watershed in Shan State, eastern Myanmar. Lake Inle is a high-altitude lake, and its water runs cool, hard and alkaline.

Weekly picks

Tank mates

The Sawbwa barb is a mostly peaceful, schooling species that keeps to the middle. 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 Sawbwa barb need?

A Sawbwa barb needs at least 20 gal (75 L). It spends most of its time in the middle.

What temperature and pH does a Sawbwa barb need?

A Sawbwa barb is comfortable at 68–75°F (20–24°C) with a pH of 7.0–8.0.

What does a Sawbwa barb eat?

A Sawbwa barb eats small live and frozen foods, such as daphnia and brine shrimp. On dried food alone it often refuses to color up or feed well.

How big does a Sawbwa barb get?

An adult Sawbwa barb reaches about 1.2 in (3 cm).

Does a Sawbwa barb need a group?

Yes. A Sawbwa barb is a schooling species and should be kept in a group, not singly.

How can you tell a male Sawbwa barb from a female?

Males in breeding color turn bright, with a vivid orange-red nose and tail tips against a steely blue body. Females stay plain silver.

How does a Sawbwa barb breed?

Sawbwa barbs are egg scatterers that deposit their eggs on the undersides of broad leaves. They need high general hardness, around 20 dGH or more, and will not spawn much above 25°C.

Related species