Vietnamese Lizard Loach

About

Known in the trade as the Vietnamese lizard loach or Vietnamese giraffe loach, Annamia normani is a small hillstream fish native to the middle Mekong basin, where it lives in shallow, rapidly flowing mountain streams rushing over bedrock and cobble. Its body is noticeably flattened and elongated, with a tiny horseshoe-shaped mouth set well back from the tip of the snout. Adaptations that suit life in high-gradient, oxygen-rich current. The patterning can superficially resemble related genera like Balitoropsis, but the more depressed body profile and elongated lower caudal-fin lobe help distinguish this genus. In the wild, these fish gather in large groups, and that social nature carries over into the aquarium. A minimum of eight individuals is really the starting point. Smaller groups tend to produce shy, stressed fish that rarely behave naturally. Temperament is generally peaceful, though tankmates need to match the preference for cool, well-oxygenated, fast-moving water. Good companions include river-adapted danionins, Garra, Rhinogobius gobies, and various hillstream loaches, though a little bickering can occur with other gastromyzontids. Diet in the wild centers on small bottom-dwelling invertebrates, particularly insect larvae, so meaty foods should form the core of their aquarium diet. This species has not been bred in captivity.