Real photoREAL PHOTO
Cyprinidae
Bala shark
Balantiocheilos melanopterus
A silver shark shape with no shark ancestry
- Black
- Tropical
- Regional distribution
- Freshwater fish
- Asia (unspecified)
- Elongated
- Medium
- Tropical fish
Black
Tropical
Regional distribution
Elongated
MediumThe bala shark (Balantiocheilos melanopterus), also known as the tricolor shark, tricolor sharkminnow, silver shark, or silver sharkminnow, is a fish of the family Cyprinidae, and is one of the two species in the genus Balantiocheilos. This species is not a true shark, but is commonly referred to as one because of its torpedo-shaped body and large fins.
- Class
- Teleosts
- Family
- Cyprinidae
- Genus
- Balantiocheilos
- Maximum length
- 35 cm
- Water
- Freshwater
- Body shape
- elongated
- Distribution
- Asia: Mekong and Chao Phraya basins, Malay Peninsula, Sumatra and Borneo. Becoming rare or extinct in many river basins.
- Conservation status
- VUVulnerable
Class
Family
Conservation status
