Red Tail Botia “Yasuhikotakia modesta”

Description

Common name: Red-finned Loach, Blue Botia, Orange-Finned Loach, Redtail Loach.

The Redtail Botia “Yasuhikotakia modesta” is a very common freshwater loach and is quite attractive with a very distinct body shape and coloration. It has a compact heavy body build, but can get quite large. It can reach up to at least 10 inches (25 cm) in length in the wild, though in the aquarium they are a bit smaller, getting up to about 7 – 8 inches (17-20 cm).

The natural coloring of this loach is most attractive and quite variable. It ranges from blues to grays and sometime tints of green with fins and a tail that can be yellow, red, or orange. As juveniles they can have more intense green accenting as well as some dark stripes. With this variable coloration its not surprising that the Redtail Botia has a number of descriptive common names. It is also known as the Blue Botia, Orange-Finned Loach, Blue Loach, and other variations of these.

Botia modesta