Five-banded Barb

Looks how to spot one

Small scaled cyprinid (barb)

A small, gold to orange barb crossed by five dark vertical bars. A small dark mark sits at the rear base of the dorsal fin, which helps tell it apart from the very similar six-banded barb. Males are slimmer and brighter than females.21

Personality what they are like

A peaceful little schooling barb that fits well into a calm community of similar-sized fish.12

Daily activity how busy a day looks

Active schooling fish that likes a planted tank with rocks and wood but still needs open swimming room.2

Grooming and care the hands-on bits

Seriously Fish suggests a tank base of at least 80 x 30 cm (about 72 litres). It prefers soft, acidic water: Seriously Fish gives 21 to 26 C, pH 4.0 to 7.0 and 1 to 5 dGH; FishBase gives 26 to 29 C and pH 5.0 to 6.0.13

Home where they are happiest

Wild fish live in blackwater streams and peat swamps with calm lowland water. A dimly lit, well-planted tank with wood and leaf litter suits it.23

Food basics what goes in the bowl

A micropredator in nature, eating small insects and crustaceans. It accepts dried foods but shows its best colour with regular small live or frozen foods such as Daphnia and brine shrimp.1

Company who they like around

Best kept in a group of eight to ten or more.1

The story where it all began

Boulenger described the five-banded barb in 1894. It was later placed in Puntius and then, in 2013, moved by Kottelat to the new genus Desmopuntius. True five-banded barbs are uncommon in the hobby, since most fish sold under the name are actually the six-banded barb.13

Recognised by the official bits

IUCN Red List

Assessed as Least Concern (LC), March 20203

Scientific description

Described by Boulenger in 18943