Clown loach

Care at a glance

The clown loach is sold as a cheerful orange-and-black fish of five centimetres, but grows into a thirty-centimetre animal that can live for decades. It is also markedly social: in a group it plays, clicks and sleeps lying on its side; on its own it wastes away.

That combination — large, long-lived and needing company — makes it one of the most underestimated purchases in the hobby. Plan on a big tank and a long commitment. It loves snails and small shrimp, so it will solve your snail problem but also your shrimp colony. Bear in mind, too, that it is prone to white spot.

Good to know

• Outgrows most home tanks
• Preys on shrimp and snails

Best not combined with

• Cherry shrimpNeocaridina davidi
• Nerite snail (zebra)Neritina sp.
• Racing nerite snailVittina turrita
• Olive nerite snailNeritina reclivata
• Mystery snailPomacea bridgesii
• Ramshorn snailPlanorbella duryi
• Horned nerite snailClithon corona
• Spixi snail (zebra apple snail)Asolene spixi

Related species

• Denison barbSahyadria denisonii
• Yoyo loachBotia almorhae
• Hillstream loachSewellia lineolata
• Rosy barbPethia conchonius
• Cockatoo dwarf cichlidApistogramma cacatuoides
• Endler guppyPoecilia wingei