Spawning Behavior of Hemibarbus barbus (Cyprinidae)

Abstract

Hemibarbus barbus is an endemic Japanese cyprinid whose spawning behavior has not been described. The fish is the largest among endemic Japanese cyprinids, reaching a maximum total length of 60 cm. Spawning occurs during a short period after floods in the April to June rainy season (Okada and Nakamura, 1947; Kubo et al., 1953; Takeshita and Kimura, 1991). It is in the subfamily Gobioninae (Banarescu and Nalbant, 1973; Hosoya, 1986) whose breeding habits are not well known. In this paper, the breeding habits of H. barbus are described and compared with those of four other species of Gobioninae.