Genus · Barbs

Arabibarbus

Arabibarbus is a genus with 3 species in this atlas, catalogued in the Barbs section, recorded from Yemen, Iran, Iraq and 2 more countries. Adult sizes run from 8 in to 59 in. Every species below links to a full researched profile.

Species in atlas
3
Adult sizes
8–59 in
IUCN assessed
3 of 3 · 1 threatened
Recorded from
5 countries

About the genus

Arabibarbus is a genus of large riverine barbs from the Middle East, spanning the Tigris-Euphrates system and the wadis of the southern Arabian Peninsula. The three atlas species show an enormous size range - from the roughly 8 in Arabibarbus hadhrami up to Arabibarbus grypus, the shabout, which can reach 59 in and ranks among the largest cyprinids in the region. The genus turns up across Iraq, Syria, and Iran in the Tigris-Euphrates drainage, and separately in Yemen and Saudi Arabia in isolated Arabian wadi systems - a distribution that reflects how fragmented freshwater habitat is across this arid part of the world.

These are food and sport fish rather than aquarium subjects - Arabibarbus grypus in particular has long been an important catch in Tigris-Euphrates fisheries, and its size alone puts it well outside home-aquarium territory. Conservation status is mixed: one species is Least Concern, one is Vulnerable, and one is unassessed, which broadly tracks the pressure on Middle Eastern rivers from damming, water extraction, and drought across the region. For hobbyists, the genus is essentially of documentary interest rather than something to stock.

IUCN Red List: Vulnerable · 1 Least Concern · 1 Not Evaluated · 1

The 3 species

Every Arabibarbus recorded in this atlas. Each card links to a full researched profile — distribution, water parameters, and aquarium care, cited to primary sources.

(Trewavas, 1941)

Arabian shabout

10 in SL · LC

(Heckel, 1843)

Shabout, Rumi

59 in SL · VU

Borkenhagen, 2014

8 in SL · NE

Explore further

How to cite

Aquarist Atlas (2026). Genus Arabibarbus. Aquarist Atlas. https://www.aquaristatlas.com/arabibarbus/

← All Barbs