TankBud

Sucker barb

Barbichthys laevis

Also known as Sucker barbel

FreshwaterFish

Sucker barb (Barbichthys laevis)

Care at a glance

Temperature
72–82°F
22–28°C
pH
6.0–7.5
Adult size
12.2 in
31 cm
Minimum tank
159 gal
600 L
Temperament
Mostly peaceful
Social behavior
Schooling
Swim level
Middle
Difficulty
Medium
Breeding
No record
Rarity
Rare
Family
Cyprinidae
Origin
Rivers of the Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, and Borneo

Overview

The sucker barb is a large, silvery river fish that grazes surfaces. It suits a keeper with a little experience and a very big tank.

Did you know

The sucker barb makes its living much like the little flying fox and Siamese algae eater, grazing biofilm from river stone. It does the same job at more than twice their length, a scaled-up version of the familiar aquarium algae grazers.

Caring for the sucker barb

Give sucker barbs a big river tank with long swimming lanes and strong current, and treat 159 gal (600 L) as a realistic minimum. Add plenty of grazable rock and wood, such as water-worn boulders and driftwood, over a sand bed. That setup lets them feed and behave naturally.

Keep the water warm, at 72 to 82°F (22 to 28°C) with a pH of 6.0 to 7.5. Give them high oxygen and heavy filtration.

The sucker barb works the middle and lower water, rasping biofilm and algae. Feed a green-leaning diet of algae wafers, vegetables and sinking pellets, with some frozen foods.

Sucker barbs are a shoaling species, happiest in a group. They are mostly peaceful, though large adults can be pushy, so give them room. Match them with other sizeable, robust tank mates rather than small fish. They are not bred in home aquariums.

Good to know

The sucker barb, Barbichthys laevis, is a member of the carp family, Cyprinidae, described by Valenciennes in 1842. It has a down-turned, grazing mouth. Unusually, greatly enlarged suborbital bones cover much of its cheek, and a dark stripe runs along each lobe of the tail.

In the wild

The sucker barb lives in medium and large rivers across the Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, Borneo and neighboring parts of Southeast Asia. It grazes stone and submerged wood in flowing water.

Weekly picks

Tank mates

The sucker 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 sucker barb need?

A sucker barb needs at least 159 gal (600 L). It spends most of its time in the middle.

What temperature and pH does a sucker barb need?

A sucker barb is comfortable at 72–82°F (22–28°C) with a pH of 6.0–7.5.

What does a sucker barb eat?

A sucker barb rasps biofilm and algae from surfaces. Feed it a green-leaning diet of algae wafers, vegetables and sinking pellets, with some frozen foods.

How big does a sucker barb get?

An adult sucker barb reaches about 12.2 in (31 cm).

Does a sucker barb need a group?

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

Related species