Oryzias sarasinorum: what water temperature does it need?

The atlas records 24–29 °C for this species.

Ricefish · Sulawesi ricefish · Oryzias

Oryzias sarasinorum

(Popta, 1905)

Full synonymy (2)

Haplochilus sarasinorum Popta 1905 · original combination
Xenopoecilus sarasinorum (Popta 1905) · earlier combination

Source: Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes (Fricke, Eschmeyer & Van der Laan, eds.), California Academy of Sciences.

2 cited sourcesName checked against Eschmeyer’s Catalog of Fishes, update of 21 Sep 2026

IUCNCRITICALLY ENDANGERED

EXEWCRENVUNTLC

CARESNOT LISTED

EWCRENVUNTnot on the priority list

Type localityLake Lindu, Sulawesi, Indonesiaper Catalog of Fishes

Scientific size3 in8 cm total length

Temperature75–84 °F24–29 °C

pH7.5–8.5alkaline

Depth—not recorded

DietNot documented for this species; ricefishes in general take small invertebrates and algae at or near the surface

BreedingNot documented for this species

Sexual dimorphismNot documentedNot documented for this species

PhotographsSee photosGoogle Images →

Oryzias sarasinorum is a ricefish endemic to Lake Lindu, a highland lake in Central Sulawesi, described by Popta in 1905. FishBase gives a maximum of 3 in TL, large for the genus, and the IUCN lists it as Critically Endangered. It is named for the Sarasin cousins who explored Sulawesi.

Taxonomy & naming

Popta described the species in 1905 from Lake Lindu, from material collected on the Sarasin expeditions. The name honours the Swiss naturalists Paul and Fritz Sarasin, cousins who explored Sulawesi in the 1890s and 1900s.

Morphology

A large ricefish for the genus; FishBase gives a maximum of 3 in TL.

Habitat

Lake Lindu, a highland lake in the Lore Lindu region of Central Sulawesi. The lake is also the home of Oryzias bonneorum. FishBase describes a freshwater, pelagic fish and gives a pH range of 7.5 to 8.5 and a temperature range of 24 to 29 C.

Feeding

Diet is not documented in detail.

Mating

Courtship has not been described.

Breeding

FishBase calls it a pelvic-brooder. Spawned eggs hang from the urogenital pore on filaments, each attached to the body by 10 to 20 filaments, and the batch lies in a belly concavity between the pelvic fins until hatching. Clutch size and incubation time have not been published.

In the aquarium

Not known in culture.

Conservation

The IUCN Red List classes Oryzias sarasinorum as Critically Endangered, meaning it faces an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild. As a single-lake endemic it is exposed to introduced fishes and change in the lake and its catchment.

Common questions

Oryzias sarasinorum: how big does it get?: Up to 3 in total length (TL).
Oryzias sarasinorum: what water temperature does it need?: The atlas records 75–84 °F for this species.
Oryzias sarasinorum: what water chemistry suits it?: pH 7.5–8.5.
Oryzias sarasinorum: where does it come from?: It is recorded from Indonesia.

Related species compared · Oryzias

Species	Adult size	Temperature	pH	Hardness	IUCN
Oryzias sarasinorumthis species	3 in TL	75–84 °F	pH 7.5–8.5	—	CR
Oryzias bonneorum	—	—	—	—	NE
Oryzias kalimpaaensis	2 in SL	—	—	—	NE
Oryzias polylepis	2 in SL	—	—	—	NE
Soeroto's ricefishOryzias soerotoi	1 in SL	—	—	—	CR
Sharpjawed buntingiOryzias orthognathus	2.5 in TL	72–77 °F	pH 7.5–8.5	—	NT
Towuti ricefishOryzias profundicola	2.5 in TL	72–77 °F	pH 7.5–8.5	—	NT
Matano medakaOryzias matanensis	2 in TL	72–77 °F	pH 7.5–8.5	—	NT
Black buntingiOryzias nigrimas	2 in SL	72–77 °F	pH 7.5–8.5	—	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
Marmorated medakaOryzias marmoratus	1.5 in SL	72–77 °F	pH 7.5–8.5	—	NT

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 →

Also from Lake Lindu

Oryzias bonneorum

Sources

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

Last reviewed 2026-10-05.

How to cite

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

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Where it has been recorded

5 georeferenced records (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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