INDIAN LOACHES : 8 - Balitora brucei HILLSTREAM LOACH!

Hillstream loach / Gray's stone loach
Scientific name : Balitora brucei (Gray 1830)

IUCN status : Near threatened

Occurrence : North-East India, also reported from Bangladesh, Nepal, Mayanmar (Burma), Bhutan

Aquarium type : Species/specialist hillstream loach setup
Water : Needs pristine water conditions, high dissolved oxygen, pH neutral around 7
Temperature : 18-22 Degrees Celsius
Diet : Biofilm, aufwuchs, micro-crustaceans 

Pictures from my personal tanks, this is a hardy species and a well acclimated fish should thrive in the aquarium

Underside shown in this shot of the fish on aquarium glass, a specimen with perfect finnage. 

Notes : Very rarely available in the international aquarium trade. Increasingly threatened by habitat loss.

Related links :
http://www.fishbase.org/summary/24498
http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/166923/0