Matt Clarke on a rare little gem from Myanmar - the Dwarf danio, Danio nigrofasciatus.
Common Name: Dwarf Danio
Scientific name: Danio nigrofasciatus
Origin: This species is found in northern Myanmar (formerly Burma) around Pegu, Moulmein.
Size: Up to 4cm/1.5" at most
Diet: Insects and their larvae so daphnia, cyclops and bloodworm would be good for aquarium specimens.
Habitat: Found in the Salween River (the same river as Parambassis pulcinella).
Notes: The Dwarf, or spotted, Danio was described by Day in 1870, but it's never been common in the hobby. The species may have geographic races with slightly different melanin patterns - these ones differ from those we've seen in other imports. Like D.choprae, D.nigrofasciatus has no prominent lateral line and one pair of maxillary barbels. D.rerio, which is only vaguely similar, has two pairs.
A wide range of new Danio imports have started appearing recently. Keep an eye out for D.kyathit, which was described in 1998 (it's found around Myanmar and looks a bit like a pale-blur Zebra danio with orange fins); D.roseus, which was described in 2002 (it looks like a blue and red pearl danio); D.pathirana and devario, which are attractively patterned Giant danios, and D.sp. "Burma", which looks like D. nigrofasciatus.
Availability: These fish were imorted from Myanmar by Wildwoods, Enfield. Specimens are also occasionally imported through suppliers in India. hard to obtain.
Price:Expect to pay about 1.50
This article was first published in the 2004 February Issue of the Practical Fishkeeping Magazine.