Wasp bee catfish

Akysis vespa

Also known as Orange mini bee cat, Vespa catfish

FreshwaterFish

Wasp bee catfish (Akysis vespa) — The Wet Spot Tropical Fish · Used with permission

Care at a glance

Temperature: 72–79°F (22–26°C)
pH: 6.0–7.5
Adult size: 1.6 in (4 cm)
Minimum tank: 11 gal (40 L)
Temperament: Peaceful
Social behavior: Social
Swim level: Bottom
Difficulty: Medium
Breeding: No record
Rarity: Rare
Origin: Ataran basin, Myanmar
Family: Akysidae

Overview

The wasp bee catfish is the best known of the bee catfishes, a boldly banded nano species that buries in sand with only its eyes showing and comes out to forage at night. It is peaceful and community safe, happy alone or in a small group of its own kind with other calm, small fish. A soft sand bed is a must. Feed sinking and frozen foods after dark, such as bloodworm, daphnia, and brine shrimp; dried foods may be ignored at first. Give it around 40 liters with sand, smooth stones, strong flow, and cool, well oxygenated water. Its name is a warning as much as a description, so handle it carefully to avoid its stinging spines.

In the wild

Akysis vespa comes from the Ataran river drainage of southern Myanmar, part of the wider Salween system, where it lives in fast, clear, well oxygenated streams over sand and cobble. Match that with a sandy bottom, rounded stones and wood, and strong flow from a generously sized filter. As a cool-water stream fish it does best on the cool side of tropical, about 22 to 26 C, at soft to neutral chemistry of roughly pH 6.0 to 7.5.

Good to know

Akysis vespa is a stream catfish of the family Akysidae, reaching only about 4 centimeters, banded in orange and dark brown. Its name, vespa, is Latin for wasp, chosen for both the striped colors and the painful sting its fin spines can deliver. Spawning has been reported after a sharp drop in temperature, with eggs hatching in around four days, but it is still rarely bred and carries no established breeding record.

Did you know

The whole genus is nicknamed for this one fish. Akysis vespa stung so memorably that its describers named it after the wasp, and the wider group picked up the bee and bumble bee trade names from the same banded, well armed template.