TankBud

Tubercled flower loach

Traccatichthys tuberculum

Also known as Jian River flower loach

FreshwaterFish

Tubercled flower loach (Traccatichthys tuberculum)

Care at a glance

Temperature
64–77°F
18–25°C
pH
6.5–7.5
Adult size
4.2 in
10.6 cm
Minimum tank
29 gal
110 L
Temperament
Mostly peaceful
Social behavior
Social
Swim level
Bottom
Difficulty
Medium
Breeding
No record
Rarity
Rare
Family
Nemacheilidae
Origin
Jian River, Guangdong, China

Overview

The tubercled flower loach is a social bottom loach for a cool-leaning tank with steady current. It is a fish for someone past the beginner stage.

Did you know

The bumps that name the tubercled flower loach sit on its pectoral fin rays, not on its body. Many stream fishes grow raised tubercles like these, usually most developed in breeding males.

Caring for the tubercled flower loach

Give the tubercled flower loach a tank of 29 gal (110 L) or more. It is active and grows to a fair size for a loach, so it needs open patrol routes. Lay an open floor of sand and cobbles, with rounded stones and roots for cover. The roots give it shaded lanes and refuges between the open runs.

Keep the water on the cool side of tropical, at 64 to 77°F (18 to 25°C) with a pH of 6.5 to 7.5. Run brisk, steady current and keep the water clean and well oxygenated. It works the bottom for small meaty foods and willingly takes sinking granules, frozen bloodworm and chopped foods.

The tubercled flower loach is social and mostly peaceful, and it settles best in a small group. Group members interact and jostle constantly without doing harm. Keep it with other calm, current-tolerant stream fish. Aquarium spawning has not been reported.

Good to know

The tubercled flower loach, Traccatichthys tuberculum, is a stone loach of the family Nemacheilidae. Its fin tubercles helped separate it from its two Chinese relatives when it was described in 2012.

In the wild

The tubercled flower loach is known only from the Jian River, a coastal drainage in Guangdong, southern China. It lives there in mild, flowing streams.

Weekly picks

Tank mates

The tubercled flower loach is a mostly peaceful, social species that keeps to the bottom. 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 tubercled flower loach need?

A tubercled flower loach needs at least 29 gal (110 L). It spends most of its time in the bottom.

What temperature and pH does a tubercled flower loach need?

A tubercled flower loach is comfortable at 64–77°F (18–25°C) with a pH of 6.5–7.5.

What does a tubercled flower loach eat?

A tubercled flower loach works the bottom for small meaty foods. It willingly takes sinking granules, frozen bloodworm and chopped foods.

How big does a tubercled flower loach get?

An adult tubercled flower loach reaches about 4.2 in (10.6 cm).

Related species