Cambodian Logsucker

About

The Cambodian Logsucker (Garra cambodgiensis) is one of those fish that turns up in the trade under a string of misleading names. False Siamese Algae Eater, stone-lapping minnow, and occasionally still sold under the outdated label Garra taeniata. It's native to rocky, fast-flowing streams across the Mekong, Chao Phraya, and Mae Khlong drainages of Southeast Asia, where it uses its modified lower lip, a fleshy adhesive disc, to hang onto surfaces in strong current while rasping periphyton and plant matter from rocks. That sucker mouth is one of the key ways to tell it from the Crossocheilus species it's so frequently confused with; real Siamese algae eaters lack this structure, have more prominent rostral barbels, and carry their dark lateral stripe right into the caudal fin, whereas in this species the stripe stops at the caudal peduncle and is bordered above by a lighter band. Crossbanded dorsal fin markings are another useful ID clue. In terms of temperament, this fish is broadly peaceful with unrelated species but genuinely territorial with fish of similar body shape, including its own kind. Keeping a group of four or more, rather than a lone specimen or a pair, generally helps distribute that tension and reduces fixation on any single tankmate. A longer tank with broken sightlines works in everyone's favor.