Cyprinidae: Barbus schuberti

Thursday 12 July 2012

Barbus schuberti

The Green Barb or Chinese Barb (Puntius semifasciolatus) is a subtropical freshwaterfish belonging to the minnow family (Cyprinidae). Its native habitat is the Red River basin in southeast China. This species was originally named Barbus semifasciolatus, and is also referred to as Capoeta semifasciolata, Barbus fasciolatus, and Puntius semifasciolate. The popular gold strain P. semifasciolatus var. schuberti (Gold Barb orSchuberti barb) was developed by hobbyist Thomas Schubert of Camden, New Jersey in the 1960s through selective breeding. For many years it was thought to be a distinct species but is in fact a selected sport of the indigenous (green) species which is rarely found in aquaria.The gold barb is a medium-long barb. Adults have highly arched backs and a short pair of barbels on the upper jaw at the corners of the mouth. The back is light to reddish brown, the sides are metallic green or yellow-green, with a brassy or golden sheen below.