Imperial Flower Loach

Care

The Imperial Flower Loach is a very special member of the Cobitidae family of loaches. It has long been revered as the "Holy Grail" of loach keeping, due to its unique gargantuan size, undeniable beauty, and scarcity in the ornamental fish trade. These giants of the loach world require enormous aquaria, with correspondingly powerful filtration to deal with the large amounts of nitrogenous wastes produced. A high level of oxygenation is absolutely essential to their wellbeing; powerheads that create a vigorous stream effect are ideal, especially when angled slightly upwards to create a churning effect at the water's surface. Juvenile fish grow quickly and require enough space so as not to become stunted and later suffer health problems. The fast-flowing subtropical waters in the native range of L.elongata are naturally hard and alkaline, with smooth water-worn gravel/pebbles as a substrate. There are significant seasonal fluctuations in temperature from around 5 °C during the winter to approximately 29 °C in summer. However, prolonged exposure to either extreme is not recommended, and for best long-term care in the home aquarium, try to maintain the tank water between 15-22 °C. In most centrally heated British homes, room temperature will be ideal and a heater set at around 18 °C would be necessary only to stop any drastic overnight temperature fluctuations during winter time. L. elongata does not appreciate bright lighting and should be kept under subdued illumination. Provide plenty of shady hiding places such as large PVC tubes, and caves built from smooth cobbles/small boulders/slate or sizeable pieces of driftwood, and here they will spend most of the day resting. Crepuscular by nature (most active at dusk and dawn), L. elongata is a gregarious species that must be housed in groups; five fish being considered the absolute minimum in order that they may form a pecking order. Keeping alone specimens would be considered cruel as these cobitids depend so much company of their own kind, this behaviour is often only truly appreciated when sizeable shoals are maintained together. Tankmates (if desired) must be chosen with much care, as although L. elongatais not an aggressive species, it is predatory by nature, restricting the aquarist somewhat in his/her choices. Mature specimens will eat any fish that are small enough to be sucked into their capacious mouths. The body colour of these beautiful loaches varies from a golden yellow to light greyish-brown, with 5-8 bands/blotches of dark brown. As the fish mature, the elongated, serpentine body shape develops into a much wider, stockier form. The background colour of the fish tends to become more gold and the caudal fin turns an intense red. Once the fish reaches 20cm or so, the dark bars tend to "breakup", with the fish taking on a much more marbled appearance. These rosettes of colour have lent themselves perfectly to the common name of Imperial FlowerLoach. Some sources also refer to these fish as Royal Clown Loach. Sadly, it would seem that in recent times the larger breeding adults are not as commonly encountered in the wild as they once were. This is not due to exports for the aquatic trade, as these have always been very few and far between, and of fish smaller than 15cm/6". Instead, the severe drop in numbers is due partly to overfishing for the food industry (although L.elongata is not fished for specifically or considered a particular delicacy, larger specimens are often a by-catch and are destined for the same as the other fish that are caught); and also from hydro-electric damming activity along the tributaries of the Yangtze River, which has had the resultant effect of the species being no longer able to migrate to their preferred spawning grounds. Regrettably, pollution also plays its part in some areas. There are reports of captive breeding of L. elongata via hormone treatment, but this has not yet taken off on a large scale, most probably because the species is not an esteemed food fish, nor is it a fish suited to the average community aquarium. The Chinese government supposedly recognises that this is a species of special concern, yet they are not actively protecting it, and even now it is still waiting to be evaluated for IUCN red list status. This is despite catches and sightings being down some 80% on what they were 10 years ago with specimens over 25cm now rarely encountered. With such a blase attitude from the government, L. elongata needs aquaculture and dedicated aquarists to come to its aid quickly. If you can provide these fish with all the special requirements mentioned here, they will not disappoint!

Feeding

Carnivorous. Small specimens prefer bloodworms, white mosquito larvae, chopped prawns, Mysis shrimp etc. Larger specimens are reported to feed on small catfish, loaches and shrimp in the wild, so offer large prawns, chopped lancefish/smelt etc. There is no call to offer live fish as part of the diet as not only is it considered unethical, but it also brings with it the potential risk of disease being introduced to the aquarium, plus there is often little nutritional value to be gained. Larger specimens have remarkable appetites, hence the need for oversized filtration and regular partial water changes. Be aware that L .elongata often shun pellet/dried foods and will hold out for meatier fare. Feeding a diet that is rich in carotenoids (such as is found in many crustaceans) will help to intensify their beautiful colours.

Breeding

This species has been bred in captivity via hormone treatment on a small scale, but details are scarce.