The Japanese minnow is a small freshwater fish of Korea and western Japan, with a bold black stripe running from snout to tail. It is a : it slips its eggs into the nests of other fish, whose males then guard them. It isn't found in the wild in the United States.
Appearance
- Appearance
- About 4–6 in (10–15 cm) long, brown above and pale below, with a dark stripe from the tip of the pointed snout to the base of the tail and one pair of short . The stripe can fade in adults over about 4 in (10 cm).
Where it lives
- Typical habitats
- clear rivers and streams
- rocky and gravelly bottoms
- Range
- Native to most of the Korean Peninsula and to western Japan. It has also been carried into eastern Japan by people.
Behavior
- Diet
- Mostly small animals such as aquatic insects, plus algae picked off stones.
Life cycle
- Breeding season
- May–June in Japan.
- Reproduction
- Females lay eggs in the nests of perch-like fish such as the Japanese aucha perch. The host male guards the clutch without knowing some eggs aren't his.
Conservation
- IUCN Red List
- LCLeast ConcernLow risk of extinction
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