Editing Botia

{{Short description|Genus of fishes}}
{{Automatic taxobox
| image = Botia striata.jpg
| image_caption = ''[[Botia striata]]''
| taxon = Botia
| authority = [[John Edward Gray|J. E. Gray]], 1831
| subdivision_ranks = Species
| subdivision = See text
| type_species = Botia almorhae 
| type_species_authority = Gray 1831
| synonyms = {{Specieslist
| Diacantha | [[William Swainson|Swainson]], 1839
| Hymenphysa | [[John McClelland (doctor)|McClelland]], 1839
}}
| synonyms_ref = <ref name = CofF/>
}}

'''''Botia''''' ('''Indian loaches''') is a [[genus]] of [[Fresh water|freshwater]] fish in the [[Loach (fish)|loach]] [[Family (biology)|family]] ([[Botiidae]]). It was a large genus with about 20 species. In 2004 [[Maurice Kottelat]] proposed in his paper (along with the description of ''Botia kubotai'', see References below) to divide the genus into four related genera based on fish appearance and locality:

* ''Botia'' for Indian loaches (shorter body).
* ''[[Chromobotia]]'' for [[clown loach]].
* ''[[Syncrossus]]'' for tiger loaches (elongated body).
* ''[[Yasuhikotakia]]'' for [[Mekong]] loaches (shorter body).

Another genus, ''[[Parabotia]]'', was considered a separate genus earlier.  It has an elongated body quite similar to ''[[Syncrossus]]'',  but with its range mostly restricted to China. With all these as separate genera, ''Botia'' species are restricted to [[South Asia]] (including [[Burma]]).

The fish in these genera possess a pair of razor-sharp spines under their eye sockets. These spines normally lie flat, but may be extended when the loach feels threatened. This behavior is rarely observed when the fish is swimming, but care must be taken when catching botia in fishnets — the projecting spines may become entangled, causing injury to the fish and/or damage to the net.  Care must also be taken when transporting the larger botia, as their subocular spines may puncture the enclosing [[polyethylene]] bags that are normally used for this purpose.

One special characteristic of this loach group is the ability to produce a loud "clicking" noise, which is commonly heard during feeding time. This noise stems from a special type of [[pharyngeal teeth]] that are used to extract snails from their shells. For aquarists, this gives the botia a practical application, as they can be used to fight a snail infestation.

Another peculiarity of botia is that they are often seen resting on their side or in other strange positions.  While this can be normal, healthy behaviour for botia, it is rarely observed in other types of fish.  The unusual habit often causes needless panic for the inexperienced aquarist, who mistakenly assumes their fish is ill.

==Species==
There are currently nine recognized species in this genus:<ref name=Kottelat2012>Kottelat, M. (2012): [http://rmbr.nus.edu.sg/rbz/biblio/s26/Conspectus_cobitidum.pdf Conspectus cobitidum: an inventory of the loaches of the world (Teleostei: Cypriniformes: Cobitoidei).] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130211134858/http://rmbr.nus.edu.sg/rbz/biblio/s26/Conspectus_cobitidum.pdf |date=February 11, 2013 }}  ''The Raffles Bulletin of Zoology, Suppl. No. 26: 1-199.''</ref>
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Image !! Scientific name !! Common Name!! Distribution
|-
|[[File:Botia_lohachata.jpg|120px]] || ''[[Botia almorhae]]'' <small>[[John Edward Gray|J. E. Gray]], 1831</small> || Almorha loach, Yo-yo loach, Pakistani loach||  Ganges basin in northern India and possibly Nepal
|-
| || ''[[Birdi loach|Botia birdi]]'' <small>[[Banawari Lal Chaudhuri|B. L. Chaudhuri]], 1909</small> || Birdi loach||  India and Pakistan
|-
|[[File:Botia dario.jpg|120px]] || ''[[Botia dario]]'' <small>([[Francis Buchanan-Hamilton|F. Hamilton]], 1822)</small>  || Bengal loach, Queen loach|| the Brahmaputra and Ganges basins in Bangladesh, Bhutan and north India
|-
|[[File:Botia histrionica.jpg|120px]] || ''[[Botia histrionica]]'' <small>[[Edward Blyth|Blyth]], 1860</small>  ||Golden zebra loach||  India and Myanmar. Found in Salween basin
|-
|[[File:Botia kubotai3.jpg|120px]] || ''[[Botia kubotai]]'' <small>[[Maurice Kottelat|Kottelat]], 2004</small> || Burmese Border loach|| Myanmar
|-
| || ''[[Botia lohachata]]'' <small>B. L. Chaudhuri, 1912</small> || Reticulate loach||  Pakistan, India, Bangladesh and Nepal.
|-
|||''[[Botia rostrata]]'' <small>[[Albert Günther|Günther]], 1868</small> || Gangetic loach, Sergeant major loach|| Bangladesh and north India
|-
|[[File:Botia striata.jpg|120px]] || ''[[Botia striata]]'' <small>[[C. R. Narayan Rao|Narayan Rao]], 1920</small> || Zebra loach||  Western Ghats of India
|-
|[[File:Botia sp Tenasserim.jpg|120px]] ||''[[Botia udomritthiruji]]'' <small>[[Ng Heok Hee|H. H. Ng]], 2007</small>  || Emperor loach|| south Burma. 
|-
|}

== References ==
{{Commons category|Botia}}
* Turner, Emma. 2007. "An Introduction To Keeping Botia" ''Loaches Online'' [http://www.loaches.com/articles/an-introduction-to-keeping-botia]
* Kottelat, M. 2004. ''Botia kubotai'', a new species of loach (Teleostei: Cobitidae) from the Ataran River basin (Myanmar), with comments on botiine nomenclature and diagnosis of a new genus. Zootaxa, 401: 1-18.
* "Botia." ''ITIS Standard Report''. ([[Integrated Taxonomic Information System]]: National Museum of Natural History, Washington, D.C., 2004-10-11). [https://archive.today/20070523205300/http://www.itis.usda.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=638919 ITIS 638919]
* Ophir, M. 2009. "Keeping Loaches in Home Aquaria: General Tips and Recommendations". ''www.loachworld.com'' [https://web.archive.org/web/20090718113140/http://www.loachworld.com/]
{{Reflist}}

{{Taxonbar|from=Q134261}}

[[Category:Botiidae]]
[[Category:Botia| ]]
[[Category:Freshwater fish genera]]
[[Category:Taxa named by John Edward Gray]]