''Botia'' (Indian loaches) is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...

freshwater Fresh water or freshwater is any naturally occurring liquid or frozen water containing low concentrations of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids. Although the term specifically excludes seawater and brackish water, it does in ...

fish in the

loach Loaches are fish of the superfamily Cobitoidea. They are freshwater, benthic (bottom-dwelling) fish found in rivers and creeks throughout Eurasia and northern Africa. Loaches are among the most diverse groups of fish; the 1249 known species ...

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

(

Botiidae Botiidae is a family of cypriniform ray-finned fishes from South, Southeast, and East Asia. Until recently they were placed in the true loach family Cobitidae, until Maurice Kottelat revised the loaches and re-elevated this taxon to family rank ...

). It was a large genus with about 20 species. In 2004

Maurice Kottelat Maurice Kottelat (born 16 July 1957 in Delémont, Switzerland ...

proposed in his paper (along with the description of ''Botia kubotai'', see References below) to divide the genus into four related genera based on fish appearance and locality: * ''Botia'' for Indian loaches (shorter body). * '' Chromobotia'' for

clown loach The clown loach (''Chromobotia macracanthus''), or tiger botia, is a tropical freshwater fish belonging to the botiid loach family. It is the sole member of the genus ''Chromobotia''. It originates in inland waters in Indonesia on the islands ...

. * '' Syncrossus'' for tiger loaches (elongated body). * '' Yasuhikotakia'' for

Mekong The Mekong or Mekong River is a trans-boundary river in East Asia and Southeast Asia. It is the world's twelfth longest river and the third longest in Asia. Its estimated length is , and it drains an area of , discharging of water annuall ...

loaches (shorter body). Another genus, ''

Parabotia ''Parabotia'' is a genus of loaches. Most species in the genus are endemic to China, but ''P. curtis'' is from Japan, ''P. dubius'' is from Vietnam, and ''P. mantschuricus'' is from the Amur River basin. Species There are currently 12 recognized ...

'', was considered a separate genus earlier. It has an elongated body quite similar to '' Syncrossus'', but with its range mostly restricted to China. With all these as separate genera, ''Botia'' species are restricted to

South Asia South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The region consists of the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.;;;;; ...

(including

Burma Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...

). The fish in these genera possess a pair of razor-sharp spines under their eye sockets. These spines normally lie flat, but may be extended when the loach feels threatened. This behavior is rarely observed when the fish is swimming, but care must be taken when catching botia in fishnets — the projecting spines may become entangled, causing injury to the fish and/or damage to the net. Care must also be taken when transporting the larger botia, as their subocular spines may puncture the enclosing

polyethylene Polyethylene or polythene (abbreviated PE; IUPAC name polyethene or poly(methylene)) is the most commonly produced plastic. It is a polymer, primarily used for packaging (plastic bags, plastic films, geomembranes and containers including ...

bags that are normally used for this purpose. One special characteristic of this loach group is the ability to produce a loud "clicking" noise, which is commonly heard during feeding time. This noise stems from a special type of

pharyngeal teeth Pharyngeal teeth are teeth in the pharyngeal arch of the throat of cyprinids, suckers, and a number of other fish species otherwise lacking teeth.

that are used to extract snails from their shells. For aquarists, this gives the botia a practical application, as they can be used to fight a snail infestation. Another peculiarity of botia is that they are often seen resting on their side or in other strange positions. While this can be normal, healthy behaviour for botia, it is rarely observed in other types of fish. The unusual habit often causes needless panic for the inexperienced aquarist, who mistakenly assumes their fish is ill.

Species

There are currently nine recognized species in this genus:Kottelat, M. (2012)
Conspectus cobitidum: an inventory of the loaches of the world (Teleostei: Cypriniformes: Cobitoidei).
''The Raffles Bulletin of Zoology, Suppl. No. 26: 1-199.''

References

* Turner, Emma. 2007. "An Introduction To Keeping Botia" ''Loaches Online'

* Kottelat, M. 2004. ''Botia kubotai'', a new species of loach (Teleostei: Cobitidae) from the Ataran River basin (Myanmar), with comments on botiine nomenclature and diagnosis of a new genus. Zootaxa, 401: 1-18. * "Botia." ''ITIS Standard Report''. (

Integrated Taxonomic Information System The Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) is an American partnership of federal agencies designed to provide consistent and reliable information on the taxonomy of biological species. ITIS was originally formed in 1996 as an interagenc ...

: National Museum of Natural History, Washington, D.C., 2004-10-11)
ITIS 638919
* Ophir, M. 2009. "Keeping Loaches in Home Aquaria: General Tips and Recommendations". ''www.loachworld.com'

{{Taxonbar, from=Q134261 Botiidae Freshwater fish genera Taxa named by John Edward Gray