imported>Monkey22800 at 14:28, 19 October 2025

2025-10-19T14:28:55Z

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{{Short description|Species of fish}}
:''This species may be confused with:'' [[golden barb]]'' (''P. gelius'').''
{{Speciesbox
| name = Chinese barb
| status = LC
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| status_ref = <ref name="iucn status 18 November 2021">{{cite iucn |author=The Anh, B. |date=2012 |title=''Barbodes semifasciolatus'' |volume=2012 |article-number=e.T166936A1154475 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2012-1.RLTS.T166936A1154475.en |access-date=18 November 2021}}</ref>
| image =Puntius semifasciolatus.png
| taxon = Barbodes semifasciolatus
| authority = ([[Albert C. L. G. Günther|Günther]], 1868)
| synonyms =
''Barbus aureus'' Tirant, 1883 (Ambiguous) 
''Barbus hainani'' Lohberger, 1929 
''Barbus semifasciolatus'' Günther, 1868 
''Capoeta semifasciolata'' Günther, 1868 
''Puntius sachsii'' Ahl, 1923 
''Puntius semifasciolata'' Günther, 1868 
''Puntius semifasciolatus'' Günther, 1868
}}
'''''Barbodes semifasciolatus''''',<ref>Kottelat, M. (2013): [http://rmbr.nus.edu.sg/rbz/biblio/s27/rbz_S27.pdf The Fishes of the Inland Waters of Southeast Asia: A Catalogue and Core Bibliography of the Fishes Known to Occur in Freshwaters, Mangroves and Estuaries.] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131202225925/http://rmbr.nus.edu.sg/rbz/biblio/s27/rbz_S27.pdf |date=December 2, 2013 }} ''The Raffles Bulletin of Zoology, 2013, Supplement No. 27: 1–663.''</ref> the '''Chinese barb''', is a [[species]] of [[cyprinid]] [[fish]] native to the [[Red River (Vietnam)|Red River]] basin in southeast Asia where they occur in fresh waters at depths of {{convert|5|m|ft}} or less. The captive variant popularly known as the '''gold barb''' or '''Goldfinned barb''' or '''Schuberti barb''' is an extremely popular [[aquarium]] fish.<ref name=FishBase>{{FishBase species |genus= Puntius|species= semifasciolatus| month = October | year = 2013}}</ref>

==Description==
Adults of this species have highly arched backs and a short pair of barbels on the upper jaw at the corners of the mouth. The back is light to reddish brown, the sides are metallic green or yellow-green, with a brassy or golden sheen below. The belly is whitish, and yellow-green in males at mating time. Females can be distinguished by their dull colors and their overall bulk.

This species can reach a length of {{convert|7|cm|in}} [[fish measurement|TL]] though most do not exceed {{convert|3.5|cm|in}} SL.<ref name=FishBase/>

==Diet==
Their diet consists of [[invertebrates]] (such as [[insects]], [[crustaceans]] and [[worm]]s) and plant matter.<ref name=FishBase/>

== Breeding ==
An egg-scatter, adult barbs will usually [[Spawn (biology)|spawn]] around a hundred eggs, although up to 400 eggs have been observed from an exceptional female. This breeding occurs at the first light in the early morning.

==In the aquarium==
The popular gold strain ''P. semifasciolatus'' var. ''Schuberti'' (gold barb or Schuberti barb) was developed by hobbyist Thomas Schubert of [[Camden, New Jersey]] in the 1960s through [[selective breeding]]. For many years it was thought to be a distinct species but is in fact a selected sort of the indigenous (green) species which is rarely found in aquaria. The gold barb is an active, mildly aggressive schooling species that spends most of its time in the mid-level and bottom of the water. Its typical lifespan in captivity is around four to six years. This gold fish is often used in community tanks by fish keeping hobbyists. It breeds readily in outdoor pools and free-standing ponds during summer months, and withstands cooler temperatures better than other tropical fish. However, it does not stand the cold as well as its original plainer China barb counterparts.

[[Albinism|Albino]] variants of the gold barbs have been produced by Dennis Wilcox in the 1970s in the US. Gold barbs with no black markings have been observed by Stanislav Frank in Europe also around that time. Flesh colour (pink) specimens appeared by the 1990s. Tri-colour, i.e., black, yellow, and pink specimens appeared recently.
In an aquarium, the gold barb eats flake food readily, but benefits from the occasional feeding of live food such as mosquito larvae or daphnia.

== Nonindigenous Sightings ==
In 1940, the Chinese barb was introduced into the Nuʻuanu Reservoir on Oʻahu, Hawaiʻi, brought for both culinary use and ornamental purposes. However, the population did not persist, as a drought in 1984 led to its local extinction.<ref>{{Cite web |title=green barb (Puntius semifasciolatus) - Species Profile |url=https://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/factsheet.aspx?speciesid=634 |access-date=2025-07-28 |website=USGS Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database |language=en}}</ref>

==Gallery==

<gallery>
Image:Brokat.jpg
Image:Gold Barb 700.jpg
Image:Gold Barb Puntius semifasciolatus 4.png
Image:Gold Barb Puntius semifasciolatus 2.png
</gallery>

==See also==
*[[List of freshwater aquarium fish species]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}
* {{ITIS
| id = 163654
| taxon = Barbus semifasciolatus
| accessdate = April 28, 2004
}}
* {{cite book
| author = Lambert, Derek J
| title = Freshwater Aquarium Fish
| location = Edison, New Jersey
| publisher = Chartwell Books
| year = 1997
| pages = [https://archive.org/details/freshwateraquari00dere/page/17 17]
| isbn = 0-7858-0867-1
| url = https://archive.org/details/freshwateraquari00dere/page/17
}}
*{{cite book
| editor = Michael K. Oliver
| title = Simon & Schuster's Guide to Freshwater and Marine Aquarium Fishes
| location = New York, New York
| publisher = Simon & Schuster, Inc.
| year = 1977
| pages = [https://archive.org/details/simonschustersco00oliv/page/50 50]
| isbn = 0-671-22809-9
| url = https://archive.org/details/simonschustersco00oliv/page/50
}}
* {{cite web
| author = Sharpe, Shirlie
| title = Gold Barb
| work = Your Guide to Freshwater Aquariums
| url = http://freshaquarium.about.com/cs/cyprinids2/p/goldbarb.htm
| access-date = December 15, 2004
| archive-date = April 3, 2015
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150403195211/http://freshaquarium.about.com/cs/cyprinids2/p/goldbarb.htm
}}

==External links==
*[http://www.bettatrading.com.au/Gold-Barb-Fact-Sheet.php Gold Barb Fact Sheet]
{{Commons category|Puntius semifasciolatus}}

{{Taxonbar|from=Q771706}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gold Barb}}
[[Category:Barbodes]]
[[Category:Barbs (fish)]]
[[Category:Fish described in 1868]]
[[Category:Taxa named by Albert Günther]]
[[Category:Freshwater fish of Southeast Asia]]

Gold barb - Revision history

imported>Monkey22800 at 14:28, 19 October 2025