River Loaches

The name River Loaches is given to the fish that are part of the family Balitoridae. However, the classification of this family is quite modified. Previously, the family consisted of two subfamilies:

Balitorinae (River Loaches)
Nemacheilinae (Stone Loaches)

The family is now split into three separate families:

Balitoridae (River Loaches)
Gastromyzontidae (Loaches)
Nemacheilidae (Stone Loaches)

As you can see, three families now belong to the Loaches. The family Balitoridae has about 34 genera and 202 species. Gastromyzontidae currently has 2 genera and 50 species. All in all, there are quite a few types of loaches.

Loaches all come from Asia. Their body is adapted to the living environment. Their fins have changed so that they can hold on to stones. They stay in place even in very fast-flowing water.

The Aquarium

Many of these loaches remain fairly small. You can therefore keep many of them in an aquarium. However, they prefer fairly fast-flowing water. Due to the currents in their natural habitat, the water is also rich in oxygen. In English, these fish are also called Hillstream Loaches or River Loaches.