Burnt tail fish

Balantiocheilos ambusticauda

Possibly extinct in Thai rivers

Tropical
Lower river
Regional distribution
Freshwater fish
Southeast Asia
Fusiform
Small
Tropical fish

The burnt-tailed barb (Balantiocheilos ambusticauda), also known as Siamese bala-shark, is a possibly extinct freshwater fish species from the family Cyprinidae. It is or was endemic to the Mae Klong and Chao Phraya River basins in Thailand.

Class: Teleosts
Order: Minnows, Carps, and Loaches
Family: Cyprinidae
Genus: Balantiocheilos
Maximum length: 10.5 cm
Water: Freshwater
Body shape: fusiform
Distribution: Southeast Asia: Lower and middle Mekong and Chao Phraya river drainages in mainland Southeast Asia. The original distribution of this species included the Chao Phraya River drainage from Bangkok upriver to the lower Nan River (Smith, 1945) and in the Mekong from Viet Nam and the Great Lake (Tonle Sap) to the lower Nam Ngum River (Taki, 1968). The specimen identified as Balantiocheilus from Chiengmai by Fowler (1934: 127) is actually a juvenile Poropuntius .
Conservation status: CRCritically Endangered

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