Many good aquarium fish have come to us from the extremely species-rich genus Garra. The “doctor fish” Garra rufa (https://www.aquariumglaser.de/en/fisharchive/garra-rufa-2/), Garra flavatra (https://www.aquariumglaser.de/en/08-carp-like-fishes-2-barbs-minnows-carps-goldfish-etc/garra_flavatra_en/) is very pretty, and Garra panitvongi (https://www.aquariumglaser.de/en/fisharchive/garra-panitvongi-sp-red-tail-2/) is bizarre and beautiful.
Now we received two specimens of a Garra species as samples, whose beauty took our breath away. This is Garra qiaojiensis, which occurs only very locally in the Irrawaddy system of China and Burma. Our fish come from the Putao region in Burma. They are approximately 9 cm long. Based on certain characteristics (one specimen has a red spot on its shoulder, which the other fish does not have, there are also differences in the coloration of the pelvic fins, and one fish appears to be slimmer than the other), we believe that they are a pair.
What took our breath away next, however, was the price. Our supplier only had a small number of animals in stock, all of which we have now imported.
For our customers: the animals have codes 416383 (8-10 cm) and 416384 (10-12 cm) on our stock list. Please note that we only supply wholesale customers.
Text & photos: Frank Schäfer
