Kuhli Loach
Pangio kuhlii
Photo: Wikipedia / Wikimedia Commons
Nocturnal noodles. They want a group, a soft substrate, and places to vanish. Three is the absolute floor.
Nocturnal sand noodles. They work leftover food after lights-out.
In the tank
- Pick food that hit the sand overnight.
- They are not an algae crew.
- Water
- freshwater
- Temperament
- Peaceful
- Swims
- Bottom
- Adult size
- 4 in
- Minimum tank
- 15 gal
- Group
- School of 3+
- Temperature
- 75–86°F
- pH
- 5.5–6.5
- Diet
- Sinking wafers and frozen bloodworms, fed after lights-out if they are shy.
- Beginner
- Not a first fish
How to keep them
- Group of three-plus, six is better.
- Soft substrate and places to vanish.
- Feed sinking food after the lights dim.
Tankmates
Peaceful community fish that leave the sand alone.
Avoid
Aggressive bottom sharks and gravel that they cannot dive into.
Check tankmates · Stocking calculator
Same group
Corydoras Catfish
Corydoras spp.
The correct bottom crew for a community.
Sift sand so leftover food and mulm do not sit and rot.
Bristlenose Pleco
Ancistrus spp.
The pleco that actually fits in a home tank — and eats algae.
Rasp green algae and biofilm off glass, wood, and hardscape.
Common Pleco
Hypostomus plecostomus
Sold as an algae eater. Becomes an 18-inch waste factory.
Juveniles do eat algae.
Otocinclus
Otocinclus spp.
Tiny algae grazer for a mature planted tank.
Best small fish for soft green algae on leaves and glass.
Clown Loach
Chromobotia macracanthus
Snail-eater that outgrows the tank it was sold for.
Will hunt pest bladder snails.
Rainbow Shark
Epalzeorhynchos frenatum
One shark per tank. Owns the lower third.
Picks some algae and leftover food on the bottom.