Penguin Flying Fox

About

A rarely seen Bornean cyprinid, Crossocheilus nigriloba is one of several near-identical species that enter the trade mislabeled as 'Siamese algae-eater' or 'Crossocheilus siamensis'. A name with a tangled and largely invalid history in the hobby. Sorting out which fish you actually have can be a headache, but this species is refreshingly easy to pin down once you know what to look for. The dark lateral stripe, continuous and bold under normal conditions, breaks apart into a series of separate blotches when the fish is sparring with a tankmate, stressed, or sleeping. The lower lobe of the tail fin carries dark pigmentation tinged with red, a trait responsible for its occasional trade name 'penguin flying fox.' In the wild it comes from East Borneo, where it shares habitat with a rich mix of cyprinids in and around places like Danau Sentarum. It's a shoaling fish that forms a loose pecking order within the group, so keeping six or more individuals is strongly recommended. Smaller numbers often result in persistent bullying of subordinate fish. A group given adequate space will settle into relaxed, natural-looking social behaviour that makes the setup genuinely interesting to watch. It has not been bred in captivity as far as the hobby knows.