Luzon ricefish (Oryzias luzonensis): where does it come from?

Oryzias luzonensis is a small ricefish of northern Luzon in the Philippines, described by Herre and Ablan in 1934 from Ilocos Norte. FishBase gives a maximum of 1.5 in TL, and the IUCN lists it as Endangered. It is used in genetic studies of the Philippine medaka but is rarely seen in the aquarium.

Taxonomy & naming

Herre and Ablan described the species in 1934 from Solsona, Ilocos Norte, and it now sits in Oryzias; the authority is therefore in parentheses.

Morphology

A small ricefish with the typical Oryzias profile; FishBase gives a maximum of 1.5 in TL.

Habitat

Rice paddies, ditches and streams in northern Luzon, Philippines. FishBase describes it as a freshwater, benthopelagic, non-migratory fish.

Feeding

Small invertebrates and algae.

Mating

Courtship has not been described in detail.

Breeding

Breeding has not been documented in detail.

In the aquarium

Not widely kept. FishBase describes it as difficult to maintain in aquaria and notes it is a non-annual breeder.

Conservation

The IUCN Red List classes Oryzias luzonensis as Endangered, meaning it faces a very high risk of extinction in the wild. It is confined to northern Luzon.

Common questions

Luzon ricefish (Oryzias luzonensis): how big does it get?: Up to 1.5 in total length (TL).
Luzon ricefish (Oryzias luzonensis): where does it come from?: It is recorded from Philippines.

On a list: Nano fish

Related species compared · Oryzias

Species	Adult size	Temperature	pH	Hardness	IUCN
Luzon ricefishOryzias luzonensisthis species	1.5 in TL	—	—	—	EN
Hainan medakaOryzias curvinotus	1.5 in TL	—	—	—	DD
Masapi ricefishOryzias hadiatyae	1.5 in SL	—	—	—	VU
Japanese medakaOryzias latipes	1.5 in SL	64–75 °F	pH 7–8	161–339 ppm	LC
Oryzias loxolepis	1.5 in SL	—	—	—	NE
Timor ricefishOryzias timorensis	1.5 in TL	—	—	—	CR
Marmorated medakaOryzias marmoratus	1.5 in SL	72–77 °F	pH 7.5–8.5	—	NT
Northern medakaOryzias sakaizumii	1.5 in SL	—	—	—	LC
Oryzias dopingdopingensis	1.5 in SL	—	—	—	NE
Evers' ricefishOryzias eversi	1.5 in SL	—	—	—	NT
Celebes medakaOryzias celebensis	2 in TL	72–86 °F	pH 8–9	—	LC
Javanese ricefishOryzias javanicus	2 in TL	72–77 °F	pH 7.5–8.5	—	LC

Recorded ranges from each species’ own page; hardness is the tolerance its sources give, not a measurement of the water it lives in. See all 40 Oryzias species →

Sources

Naming authority: Oryzias luzonensis in Eschmeyer’s Catalog of Fishes ↗

Last reviewed 2026-10-05.

How to cite

Aquarist Atlas (2026). Oryzias luzonensis. Aquarist Atlas.https://www.aquaristatlas.com/ricefish/oryzias-luzonensis/

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Where it has been recorded

1 georeferenced record (GBIF). Each point is a field observation or museum specimen — pan and zoom to explore where this species turns up. The coordinates come straight from GBIF and are often rounded or tied to the nearest town or river landing, so a dot can sit just beside the actual water rather than in it.

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