''Boraras merah'' is a species of

ray-finned fish Actinopterygii (; ), members of which are known as ray-finned fish or actinopterygians, is a class of bony fish that comprise over 50% of living vertebrate species. They are so called because of their lightly built fins made of webbings of sk ...

in the genus ''

Boraras ''Boraras'' is a genus of freshwater ray-finned fishes belonging to the subfamily Rasborinae - the Rasbora, which along with sister subfamily Danioninae (Danio, Devario, Microdevario) comprise the family Danionidae, group popular among freshw ...

'', also known as Phoenix rasbora. It is between 15 and 20mm long with a red base colour to the body.

Etymology

''Boraras'' is an anagram of

Rasbora ''Rasbora'' is a genus of fish in the family Danionidae. They are native to freshwater habitats in South and Southeast Asia, as well as southeast China. A single species, ''R. gerlachi'', is only known from an old specimen that reputedly origina ...

(a generic term for the group that includes this species), highlighting the reversal of the ratio of abdominal and caudal vertebrae in this species. ''Merah'' is the

Indonesian Indonesian is anything of, from, or related to Indonesia, an archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. It may refer to: * Indonesians, citizens of Indonesia ** Native Indonesians, diverse groups of local inhabitants of the archipelago ** Indonesian ...

word for red due to its body colour.

Distribution and habitat

It is found in southern and western

Borneo Borneo () is the List of islands by area, third-largest island in the world, with an area of , and population of 23,053,723 (2020 national censuses). Situated at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, it is one of the Greater Sunda ...

where it inhabits

freshwater Fresh water or freshwater is any naturally occurring liquid or frozen water containing low concentrations of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids. The term excludes seawater and brackish water, but it does include non-salty mi ...

streams and rivers with a high

peat Peat is an accumulation of partially Decomposition, decayed vegetation or organic matter. It is unique to natural areas called peatlands, bogs, mires, Moorland, moors, or muskegs. ''Sphagnum'' moss, also called peat moss, is one of the most ...

content.

References

merah ''Merah'' () is a 1996 Malaysian Malay-language romantic action film directed, co-written and composed by M. Nasir in his directorial debut and starring himself, Awie in the titular role and Ziana Zain. Cast *Awie as Merah *Ziana Zain as Kasih * ...

Freshwater fish of Borneo Taxa named by Maurice Kottelat Fish described in 1991 {{Danioninae-stub