Tin Win's spiny eel
Mastacembelus tinwini
Also known as Tinwini spiny eel, Tinwin's spiny eel
FreshwaterFish
Care at a glance
- Temperature
- 73–82°F
- 23–28°C
- pH
- 6.0–7.5
- Adult size
- 17.7 in
- 45 cm
- Minimum tank
- 106 gal
- 400 L
- Temperament
- Mostly peaceful
- Social behavior
- Solitary
- Tankmates
- With caution
- Swim level
- Bottom
- Diet
- Carnivore
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Breeding
- No record
- Rarity
- Rare
- Family
- Mastacembelidae
- Origin
- Irrawaddy basin, Myanmar
Overview
Tin Win's spiny eel is a large, solitary bottom dweller for a big, well-covered tank. It suits a keeper with some experience.
Did you know
Tin Win's spiny eel is named for U Tin Win, a Burmese collector who helped find it in the field. He supplied the specimens used to describe it. The name is a small tribute to the local knowledge that much fish taxonomy quietly depends on.
Caring for the Tin Win's spiny eel
Keep Tin Win's spiny eel in a tank of 106 gal (400 L) or larger, since it grows large. Give it a long footprint and a heavy, close-fitting lid. It needs a deep, soft sand bed and secure hides, such as driftwood and pipes.
Keep the water soft to neutral, at 73 to 82°F (23 to 28°C) and a pH of 6.0 to 7.5, with gentle, shaded flow. Keep it clean and well filtered for a large, actively feeding eel. It buries in sand by day and hunts the bottom at night. Feed meaty foods in the evening, such as earthworm, prawn, cockle and frozen bloodworm.
Keep it singly, as it is territorial with its own kind in anything but a very large, broken-up tank. It is peaceful toward tank mates too large to eat but will take small fish. Keep companions robust and calm rather than tiny. Like its large relatives, it has no recorded history of aquarium breeding.
Good to know
Mastacembelus tinwini is a spiny eel of the family Mastacembelidae, described by Ralf Britz in 2007. It carries about five dark bands along its length, often broken into rows of blotches. Its soft dorsal, anal and tail fins have clean pale margins.
In the wild
Tin Win's spiny eel comes from the rivers of the Irrawaddy basin in Myanmar. It keeps to stretches with sand, wood and root cover.
Common questions
What size tank does a Tin Win's spiny eel need?
A Tin Win's spiny eel needs at least 106 gal (400 L). It spends most of its time in the bottom.
What temperature and pH does a Tin Win's spiny eel need?
A Tin Win's spiny eel is comfortable at 73–82°F (23–28°C) with a pH of 6.0–7.5.
What does a Tin Win's spiny eel eat?
Tin Win's spiny eel eats meaty foods such as earthworm, prawn, cockle and frozen bloodworm. Feed it in the evening, before it hunts at night.
How big does a Tin Win's spiny eel get?
An adult Tin Win's spiny eel reaches about 17.7 in (45 cm).
Related species
17.7 in (45 cm)106 gal (400 L)73–82°F (23–28°C)Eyespot spiny eel
Mastacembelus notophthalmus
17.7 in (45 cm) · 106 gal (400 L)
19.3 in (49 cm)106 gal (400 L)73–82°F (23–28°C)White-spotted spiny eel
Mastacembelus alboguttatus
19.3 in (49 cm) · 106 gal (400 L)
19.7 in (50 cm)106 gal (400 L)73–82°F (23–28°C)Blackedge spiny eel
Mastacembelus nigromarginatus
19.7 in (50 cm) · 106 gal (400 L)
19.7 in (50 cm)119 gal (450 L)75–82°F (24–28°C)Marbled spiny eel
Mastacembelus favus
19.7 in (50 cm) · 119 gal (450 L)
15 in (38 cm)79 gal (300 L)73–82°F (23–28°C)Greshoff's spiny eel
Mastacembelus greshoffi
15 in (38 cm) · 79 gal (300 L)
15 in (38 cm)79 gal (300 L)73–82°F (23–28°C)Liberian spiny eel
Mastacembelus liberiensis
15 in (38 cm) · 79 gal (300 L)