Myxocyprinus asiaticus

New Fish Tank Tips: Give your fish plenty of places to hide. Ironically, it seems the more places they have to hide the less they do hide. Hiding places can be a place of refuge for your fish and it should lower stress levels for them.

Contents of this page belong to www.fishlookup.com The Chinese high fin banded shark, Myxocyprinus asiaticus, is a popular freshwater community-aquarium[1] fish that belongs to the Catostomidae family. It is also known under twenty other common names: Chinese banded shark,[2] Chinese sailfin sucker fish,[2] high fin (also spelled hi-fin[3]) banded loach,[2] high fin loach,[2] Chinese high fin sucker fish, sailfin sucker, topsail sucker, Asian sucker fish, Chinese sucker fish, wimple carp, wimple,[2] freshwater batfish, Hilsa herring, rough fish, Chinese or Asian zebra high fin shark,[1] Chinese or Asian zebra high fin sucker,[1] Chinese emperor,[4] Siamese sucker,[4] Chinese banded shark,[5] and Entsuyui in Japanese. Its popularity in the aquarium trade placed it as an endangered species in China.[6][4] It should be noted that Myxocyprinus asiaticus bears no relation to true sharks except that they are both fish.

Young Chinese high fin banded sharks normally possess brown bodies bearing three dark-colored slanting bands. Adult males are distinguished from adult females by their red coloration. Adult females are of dark purple color with a broad and vertical reddish area along the body. The Chinese high fin banded sharks are also characterized by high and triangular dorsal finnage that extends up to the rear of the anal fin. The thick and fleshy[1] lips bear small papillae without barbels. They have a single row of pharyngeal teeth that have comb-like arrangements.[7]

Through adulthood, Chinese high fin banded sharks become darker in appearance. In old age, they lose their characteristic white bands.[1]

Chinese high fin banded sharks are native to the Yangtze River basins of China in Asia.[7]

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