Teleostei (teleosts) >
Cypriniformes (Carps) >
Danionidae (Danios) > Danioninae
Etymology: Devario: Bangla/Bengali:‘debari’, local name for these fishes; also meaning ‘brother in law’ (Ref. 2031).
More on author: Jerdon.
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Freshwater; benthopelagic. Tropical; 18°C - 25°C; 22°N - 6°N, 72°E - 81°E
Asia: west coast of India and Sri Lanka. Has been widely transported around the world through the aquarium fish trade industry.
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ? range ? - ? cm
Max length : 12.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 41236); common length : 8.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 6028)
Dorsal soft rays (total): 12 - 16; Anal soft rays: 15 - 20; Vertebrae: 34 - 36. Devario malabaricus differs from all its congeners by the combination of the following characters: absence of process on 1st infraorbital; body depth 27-35 %SL; predorsal scales15-17; dorsal fin with 11½-12½ branched rays; anal fin with 12½-17½ branched rays; presence of danionin notch; origin of dorsal fin to hypural distance when carried forward falling well short of posterior border of eye; tip of pectoral fin almost reaching origin of pelvic fin when adpressed; snout length subequal to or greater than eye diameter; P stripe originating level with pelvic-fin origin, 1-2 scale-widths anterior to dorsal-fin origin; P-1 stripe less than half width of P stripe, bifurcated anteriorly by a more or less broken whitish line; 5-6 dark, irregular, vertical bars on the anterior half of body; and absence of nuptial tubercles in both sexes (ref. 118056).
Found in a variety of habitats from boulder-strewn mountain torrents to small pools in dry zone streams. Most common in flowing water than in reservoirs and tanks. Forms medium sized shoals and prefers flowing water. Feeds on terrestrial insects and detritus. Spawns in shallow water, among marginal weeds and roots usually after heavy rains. Eggs are light orange and sticky; more than 200 eggs are laid and hatch in 1-2 days. Fry are free-swimming on fifth day. Exhibits cannibalism on eggs (Ref. 6028). Rarely reaches 12 cm (Ref. 41236).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Spawns in shallow water, among marginal weeds and roots usually after heavy rains. Eggs are light orange and sticky; more than 200 eggs are laid and hatch in 1-2 days. Fry are free-swimming on fifth day. Exhibits cannibalism on eggs (Ref. 6028).
Kullander, F.F., 2001. Phylogeny and species diversity of the South and Southeast Asian cyprinid genus Danio Hamilton (Teleostei, Cyprinidae). Ph.D. Thesis-Stockholm University, Department of Zoology. p. 1-26. Sweden, Stockholm University. Department of Zoology. (Ref. 38392)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-1)
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
Fisheries: of no interest; aquarium: highly commercial
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Estimates based on models
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref.
82804): PD
50 = 0.5000 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00977 (0.00422 - 0.02262), b=3.04 (2.84 - 3.24), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this (Sub)family-body shape (Ref.
93245).
Trophic level (Ref.
69278): 3.2 ±0.2 se; based on diet studies.
Resilience (Ref.
120179): High, minimum population doubling time less than 15 months (tm<1; assuming multiple spawing events per year; Fec=200).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref.
59153): Low vulnerability (10 of 100).
