Odessa Barb

Odessa barb is a striking fish that makes a good aquarium fish. It is less popular than its other barb relatives who are popular such as Rosy Barb and Cherry Barb. It is liked and loved by the hobbyists who keep it as their pet. It was in the year 2008 when it was described scientifically. Lifespan of Odessa Barb is that of three years of more. If you want to know more about Odessa Barb, go through the following article.

Odessa Barb is native to South East Asia. It is found from the great Himalayas to Thailand. India, Nepal, Pakistan, Bhutan, Bangladesh, China, Myanmar, Laos, Sri Lanka and Thailand are its native regions. It is also found in upper Mekong, Irrawady and Salween and also upper parts of Chao Phraya basin.

The habitat of Odessa Barb is shallow and tranquil rivers and streams. Often the bottom, where it prefers to live is muddy and this fish likes to spend ample time in the shallow water close to the substrate.

Water preferences: Not critical. Temperature preferred is 21-30 degree C (70-86 degree F). About 25 degree C (around 77 degree F) is also tolerated.

This fish is omnivorous. It eats freeze-dried, flakes and live foods. Its diet varies but, it will thrive well if you feed it on a good quality flake food as its chief nutrition source.

Breeding: A bit unpredictable. Well conditioned specimens will spawn in typical Barb fashion.

The origin of this fish is obscure. Some believe it to be a variety of B. ticto (the Ticto Barb from Sri Lanka). Others say that it is an artificial variety developed from crosses involving B.conchonius (Rosy Barb), B. cumingi (Coming's Barb), B. ticto (again) or B. tictostoliczkae (Stoliczk's Barb, otherwise known as B. stoliczkanus). Whatever the case, the Odessa Barb is a lively, colourful fish.

Body of Odessa barb is diamond shaped which is laterally compressed. Females have pink and silver body with a black spot over pectoral fin. Males have black to silver body coloration. A bright red stripe runs horizontally from its head to tail. Red-brown banding can be seen in both, males and females. In case of males which are sexually mature, the band which was red-brown becomes thick and bright red. This band starts at the mouth-tip, proceeds through the eyes and then to the tail. Males commonly display more intense coloration of the body than normal during period of breeding. Noticeable differences between males and females have not been recorded but bodies of males are slimmer. This fish can grow up to 10 cms or 4 inches.

The aquarium of Odessa barb should measure minimum of 60 cms or 24 inches lengthwise. This tank should have the capacity to hold a minimum of 30 gallons of water. Take care that the water in the tank is soft and slightly acidic. Make efforts that you imitate the natural habitat of this fish while setting up its aquarium. Some rocks and driftwood should be added. The aquarium or tank of Odessa Barb must be well planted and it should be kept in mind that the set up must have an open area for swimming.

Odessa barb does well with a majority of barbs such as Platies, Swordtails, Tetras and Rasboras. It can also be kept with other larger fish such as Silver Shark that are more peaceful. It is recommended to keep Odessa Barb in a group of minimum of five. It is not suitable to be kept with long finned and slow moving fish such as Siamese Fighting Fish or Guppies.

Odessa Barb is not very aggressive, active and an unchallenging fish. In aquariums of cold water, they are good pets. They like to have ample swimming space and make your aquarium more vivacious. It is prudent if you keep more females than males in your aquarium. It reduces aggression between males.