TankBud

Stoliczka's barb

Pethia stoliczkana

Also known as Stoliczkae's barb, Puntius stoliczkanus, Barbus stoliczkanus, Stoliczkana Barb, Pearlscale Barb

FreshwaterFish

Stoliczka's barb (Pethia stoliczkana)
The Great Mule of Eupatoria · CC0

Care at a glance

Temperature
64–79°F
18–26°C
pH
6.5–7.5
Adult size
2 in
5 cm
Minimum tank
20 gal
75 L
Temperament
Peaceful
Social behavior
Schooling
Swim level
Middle
Difficulty
Easy
Breeding
Medium
Rarity
Common
Family
Cyprinidae
Origin
Widespread from northeastern India through Myanmar and Thailand into western Laos.

Overview

Stoliczka's barb is an easy, adaptable little barb for a community tank. It handles a broad spread of conditions, which makes it hardy.

Did you know

Stoliczka's barb tolerates a span of temperatures that is unusually wide for a small barb. It can live in an unheated room-temperature tank in many climates. That makes it one of the easier barbs for a first cooler community.

Caring for the Stoliczka's barb

Keep Stoliczka's barbs in a group of at least six to eight in a tank of 20 gal (75 L) or more. Plenty of open swimming space with plants around the edges suits their active nature.

Keep the water at 64 to 79°F (18 to 26°C) with a pH of 6.5 to 7.5. Feed flakes, micropellets and frozen foods such as daphnia and bloodworm.

Stoliczka's barb is peaceful in a good-sized group. Males show a red-tinged dorsal fin with a dark blotch and spot, and they spar for color rank without doing harm. Breeding them is moderately difficult.

Good to know

Stoliczka's barb was formerly Puntius stoliczkanus or Barbus stoliczkanus. It moved to the genus Pethia in the 2012 revision of the small South Asian barbs. It was named after Ferdinand Stoliczka, a nineteenth-century naturalist who worked in the Himalayas.

In the wild

Stoliczka's barb lives in a wide range of streams, ponds, ditches and flooded fields. Its range runs from northeastern India across Myanmar and Thailand into western Laos.

Weekly picks

Tank mates

The Stoliczka's barb is a 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 Stoliczka's barb need?

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

What temperature and pH does a Stoliczka's barb need?

A Stoliczka's barb is comfortable at 64–79°F (18–26°C) with a pH of 6.5–7.5.

What does a Stoliczka's barb eat?

A Stoliczka's barb eats flakes, micropellets and frozen foods such as daphnia and bloodworm.

How big does a Stoliczka's barb get?

An adult Stoliczka's barb reaches about 2 in (5 cm).

Does a Stoliczka's barb need a group?

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

How can you tell a male Stoliczka's barb from a female?

Males show a red-tinged dorsal fin with a dark blotch and spot.

Related species