Order Cypriniformes ( Cypriniformes )
Family Balitoridae ( Balitoridae )
Subfamily Balitorinae ( Balitorinae )
Small fishes (6-10 cm) from Asia. They live in fast mountain streams, moving in short dashes from stone to stone. Many balitorids have a very flat body so that the oncoming water flow presses it against a hard surface. They have huge paired fins (outer rays are stiff, with adhesive pads on the underside) and an extremely flattened body.
The pectoral and pelvic fins form a wide sucker — by releasing water from under the fins and thereby creating a vacuum, the fish adheres to any smooth surface with its entire body, holding firmly in a turbulent water jet. In some varieties, this fin structure feature is so effective that the fish can climb a waterfall. Scales on the head and belly are absent. To make the upper part of the body invisible to birds, it is camouflaged with a pattern that mimics the play of light on the bottom of the water body.
The coloration consists of a combination of yellow, gray, and brown colors, often with spots and stripes. Males are brighter, slimmer, and smaller. These are bottom-dwelling fish. Algae eaters — on animal food, they quickly get fat and die. Very sensitive to medications. Active aeration is needed, biological filtration and water changes are desirable, and driftwood should be kept in the aquarium. They live for 3 years. pH 6.5-7.5; dH 2-12°; T 20-25°C.
Feeding and keeping Beaufortia, Gastromyzon, and Sewellia: To begin with, Beaufortia, Gastromyzon, Pseudogastromyzon, and Sewellia are completely different fish, although they look similar externally. But the keeping conditions for all these fish in the aquarium are approximately the same and common to all so-called “fast-flowing river” fish — clean fresh water, filtration, aeration, preferably a temperature not exceeding 26 degrees.
Their main feature is that in nature these fish feed on algae growth, scraping it off the stones. Once in the aquarium, they hang on the glass or the internal filter, less often crawl on driftwood and grottoes. Even less often can they be seen on the substrate. If there is not enough light in the aquarium or the aquarist has carefully cleaned the glass, the fish will begin to starve.
The main problem is to train new fish that were recently swimming “in nature” to food. So that the fish do not become severely exhausted from hunger while they figure out what food is and how to eat it, place flat smooth stones on the bottom (preferably large wide polished pebbles), thereby increasing the surface area from which the fish can gather unicellular algae.
Tablets placed in a shallow, flat container speed up the process of getting used to the food. The advantage of these particular tablets is that they do not break down in water for a long time, unlike spirulina and other soft ones. It is better to use a container with high edges so that the tablet stays there as long as possible and is not kicked out by other fish. Later, you can just drop them straight onto the bottom.
You can also offer fish fresh vegetables such as zucchini and cucumbers. There is a better chance that the fish will appreciate the treat if a round slice of cucumber or zucchini is fixed in a sucker and attached to the glass slightly above the bottom, placing the vegetable horizontally — in this form, the fish can sit right on the piece and eat it leisurely, while bottom-crawling neighbors will not disturb it. Give the vegetable in the morning and remove it in the evening — a piece left longer will quickly begin to rot. It should be remembered that ancistrus and snails are food competitors of Beaufortia, Gastromyzon, and Sewellia.
The aquarium should have many broad-leaved plants suitable for crawling (Anubias, Echinodorus, ferns), as well as coconut halves, on which they like to sit. Due to the instinct to suck onto surfaces, as well as the fact that the fish have very delicate skin on their bellies, they do not like lying on the substrate (except for very fine sand). Therefore, for comfortable well-being, and also so that the fish do not sit exclusively on the glass, it is recommended to place quite a lot of large wide flat stones (polished pebbles) on the substrate. If you put pebbles of a color contrasting with the substrate, you can observe how the fish change their color, literally before your eyes adjusting to the background they are sitting on: from light beige to dark brown and almost black.
Fish are territorial, intolerant of representatives of their own and similar species, however, they cannot cause physical harm to each other. It is quite easy to identify the strongest and most aggressive (usually the largest) fish, to which all others usually yield way even before it decides to use force.
When severely frightened, the coloration of the fish becomes very light with barely distinguishable spots, and in angry fish, during skirmishes between each other, the coloration also becomes lighter, but a very dark stripe appears on the back, along the entire length of the spine, and the fin borders also acquire a darker shade. A raised dorsal fin and a spread tail mean a threat or warning — in a calm state, they are folded.
Having not too wide fins and small sizes, gastromyzons hold on wonderfully to any leaves, crawling on them and cleaning the vegetation from unicellular algae; the fish cannot damage the leaves themselves. Beaufortia and Sewellia, being quite large and heavy, and also because of the large fin span, practically do not clean plants, except for very large hard leaves on which the fish can fit.
Being wild (caught in nature), all fish need a rather long acclimatization and getting used to life in captivity. Do not buy fish with light spots (bald patches, as it were) on their backs — such specimens often stop feeding and die quickly. How quickly the fish can fully adapt in the aquarium after purchase depends entirely on: its age/size, how long ago it was caught, and how much time it has already managed to live in temporary tanks — in quarantine (not always), in a store, from market sellers, etc.
Young specimens get used to it faster and easier. Adults and old fish (large ones that have reached maximum size) are unlikely to live long in aquarium conditions. In order to fully appreciate these wonderful fish, you should make sure they feel comfortable: clean water, plenty of oxygen, calm neighbors that are neither food nor territorial competitors — in this case, the fish will delight the owner for a long time with their health, beautiful coloration, and interesting behavior.
Genus Annamia — Annamia.
— Vietnamese Giraffe Loach — Annamia normani [Hora, 1931]. Synonym: Parhomaloptera normani. (Eng.: Vietnamese Giraffe Loach, Vietnamese Homaloptera). Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Mekong River, and other rivers with very fast currents. 8 cm. They have a flat belly and a horseshoe-shaped mouth. Their pectoral and pelvic fins are similar to car airfoils and perform the same function — the current presses them down. Thus, the fish manages to withstand the water flow without much effort and energy expenditure. The coloration of the fish can vary depending on the habitat, acquiring the color of the surface of the area where they live. Females are usually larger and thicker than males.
A non-aggressive fish, it is better to keep them in a group of 4 or more; when alone, they will hide in shelters. This species is peaceful and will combine well with other loach species. It can be a bit timid, and the group prefers to gather in shady areas with high water flow. Having chosen a living area in the aquarium, they will jealously guard it from conspecifics, rarely leaving it, trying to feed on it as well. Substrate from a mixture of gravel and sand, on which smooth stones and boulders of various sizes are placed; driftwood and branches can be added, and to a lesser extent, plants.
Very sensitive to nitrite content in the water, intolerant of organic waste accumulation, and require impeccably clean water. They have a very high need for oxygen and water movement through a powerful external filter. They should not be introduced into biologically immature aquariums. In nature, these loaches feed on small crustaceans. In the aquarium, they will accept frozen foods, live food, and some quickly get used to dry foods.
Lighting should be bright to promote good algae growth on smooth stones in the aquarium. They feed on algae growth and the microorganisms they contain. For feeding, they are given pellets containing Spirulina and live foods — small bloodworms, daphnia, cyclops, artemia. Also, they can be gradually trained to dry foods. pH 6.5-7.5; dH 2-12; T 21-25°C.
Genus Balitora, Genus Erromyzon, Genus Glaniopsis, Genus Liniparhomaloptera.
Yunnanilus brevis, Yunnanilus cruciatus. 
