Yellow-fin ricefish

Oryzias profundicola

Also known as Profundicola medaka

FreshwaterFish

Care at a glance

Temperature: 72–79°F (22–26°C)
pH: 7.5–8.5
Adult size: 2.4 in (6 cm)
Minimum tank: 20 gal (75 L)
Temperament: Peaceful
Social behavior: Schooling
Swim level: Middle
Difficulty: Medium
Breeding: Medium
Rarity: Rare
Origin: Lake Towuti, Sulawesi
Family: Adrianichthyidae

Overview

The yellow-fin ricefish is the largest of the Sulawesi lake medakas, a calm midwater schooler with lemon-edged fins that suits a hard-water biotope tank. Keep it in a group of at least six for natural behavior and the best finnage. It is community safe with other gentle species that want the same hard, alkaline water, and it appreciates open water over a rocky, sandy floor. Feed small foods: fine flakes, micro pellets, and frozen daphnia, cyclops, and brine shrimp. A tank of around 75 liters with room to cruise and some boulder cover suits a shoal.

In the wild

Oryzias profundicola is endemic to Lake Towuti, the largest of the ancient Malili lakes on Sulawesi, where it keeps to deeper water along gently sloping shores of boulders over sand and pebble. Recreate that with a rocky, sandy tank, open swimming space, and hard, alkaline water, roughly pH 7.5 to 8.5 and a warm 22 to 26 C. Stable chemistry and clean water matter for these lake specialists.

Good to know

Oryzias profundicola is a ricefish of the family Adrianichthyidae, reaching about 6 centimeters, described in 1990 and found only in Lake Towuti. Its name means depth-dweller, unusual for a group of fish that mostly live in shallow ditches and paddies, and it does indeed keep to deeper water than its relatives. The female, like other ricefish, holds her eggs at the vent for a while before planting them, breeding at a medium level.

Did you know

Most ricefish are fish of puddles, paddies, and shallow ditches. This one broke the mold: its name means depth-dweller, and in its home lake it lives and feeds deeper down than any of its shallow-water cousins.

Tank mates

Yellow-fin ricefish is a peaceful, schooling species that keeps to the middle. These picks match on water type, temperature, pH, size and temperament.