Siamese Algae Eater Confusion

[DioAquatics]

I've been doing a bit of research on the Siamese Algae Eater and I'm a little confused. Seriouslyfish states that Crossocheilus artilimes is one of the smaller members of the genus and will only grow to 70-75mm and some other members of the genus can get to 150mm. Does that mean that there are other members in the genus that look like SAE and will get really large? Which ones are more commonly sold in fish stores? Is there a way to tell the difference between Crossocheilus artilimes and any other genus members when they're still around 1 inch or so?

chromedome52 MikeRad89 any ideas?

 

[chromedome52]

According to Fishbase, C. artilimes have been measured at 16.4 cm (6.25"), and the better known C. oblongus at 16 cm. So once again, Seriouslyfish has some flawed size information. Also, it seems that the two species are often collected at the same time, just from slightly different habitats. C. artilimes was only described in 2000, so apparently they are so similar that it took science a long time to realize that they were two species. I suspect that the hobbyist is not going to tell them apart at any age.

 

[DioAquatics]

According to Fishbase, C. artilimes have been measured at 16.4 cm (6.25"), and the better known C. oblongus at 16 cm. So once again, Seriouslyfish has some flawed size information. Also, it seems that the two species are often collected at the same time, just from slightly different habitats. C. artilimes was only described in 2000, so apparently they are so similar that it took science a long time to realize that they were two species. I suspect that the hobbyist is not going to tell them apart at any age.

Okay so C. artilimes do get around 6-7 inches. Now, fishbase says that C. oblongus are really just Siamese flying foxes, is that true?

 

[DioAquatics]

Did some more looking around the web, are C. siamensis different from C. oblongus or C. artilimes? I really want to make sure I get the right fish (BBA eating purpose) and don't get a fish that turns into a monster of something

 

[DioAquatics]

TexasDomer would you have any insight on this?

 

[DioAquatics]

The more research I do on SAE, the more confused I get. Now I'm reading that real SAE, C. siamensis are super rare and almost never imported and sold in stores. Also, that the SAE commonly sold in fish stores could actually be one of be 4 different types of fish, either C. oblongus, C. langei, C. atrilimes, or C. citripinnis. And most of these don't eat algae! Only the C. langei and the rare C. siamensis eat different types of algae. I found that info on an old thread from another form. Is any of this true? Or am I just confusing myself more and more?

 

[TexasDomer]

I haven't looked into this that closely, Chromedome knows way more than me. But I wouldn't get a fish just for algae eating anyway

 

[MikeRad89]

I need to do my research on Asian species, really not comfortable giving advice on fish from that region.

That said, I’ve never known any commercially available SAE to directly eat algae. They’ll graze on it heavily and seem to have an affinity for whatever particles and microbes live in BBA, but won’t make an active dent in the algae itself.

I would suspect the easier to remove algae species are not being eaten but brushed off when grazed on. Not to say they WONT eat it, it’s just behavior you’d see more in the wild - not in a tank with an abundance of commercial food.

 

[DioAquatics]

I'll continue to do research on these guys. The further I look into SAE, the more complicated things seem to get.