Close-up photos of the underside of a hillstream l

Close-up photos of the underside of a hillstream loach (family Balitoridae) as it clings to the inside of the glass in my aquarium—you can clearly see internal structures such as the heart and skeleton. These fish live by clinging to the surface of rocks and submerged objects, grazing on algae and other microorganisms. Normally I would hate an aquarium photo that didn’t have utterly clean glass. But in this case, I think the scattering of algae adds to the photo by providing context: it shows that the specimen is on glass while showcasing the food it is grazing on.

Cheers,
EC
www.macrocritters.wordpress.com


loach 2 copyright ernie cooper 2012 jpg by ernie.cooper, on Flickr


loach belly copyright ernie cooper 2012 jpg by ernie.cooper, on Flickr