Where have my Kuhli Loaches gone?

They are almost certainly buried or inside decor. They emerge more often when kept in groups of six or more.

Do Kuhli Loaches need sand?

Sand is strongly preferred; sharp gravel prevents burrowing and can injure them.

FreshwaterTropicalBeginner

Kuhli Loach

Pangio kuhlii

A slender, banded, eel-like loach that spends the day hidden and emerges at dusk to forage across the tank floor.

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Ideal Conditions

Temperature: 24 – 29 °C
pH range: 5.5 – 7
Hardness: 1 – 10 dGH
Adult size: 8 – 11 cm
Min. tank size: 70 litres+
Lifespan: 8 – 12 years
Diet: Omnivore — sinking foods and frozen invertebrates
Water flow: Low to moderate
Preferred setup: Soft sand, leaf litter, wood and plenty of hiding places

About the Kuhli Loach

Kuhli Loaches are peaceful, long-lived bottom dwellers that suit soft-water community tanks. They are social despite being nocturnal, and a single specimen will usually stay hidden permanently.

Find Kuhli Loach

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Is it right for your tank?

Check Kuhli Loach against a habitat you already keep. We compare water type, temperature, pH, adult size, group needs and everything living there.

Where Kuhli Loach comes from

Native range

South East Asia, Sunda Islands

Countries / regions

Indonesia, Malaysia

Habitat

Shaded forest streams with sandy bottoms, leaf litter and soft, acidic water.

Illustrative native range only, not an occurrence dataset.

Similar species

Panda Cory
Corydoras panda
Dwarf Chain Loach
Ambastaia sidthimunki

We’re adding more full species guides as the catalogue grows.

Compatible tank mates

Reviewed guidance based on this species' recorded traits.

View all compatibility

Harlequin Rasbora
Trigonostigma heteromorpha
Shares the same soft, warm South East Asian conditions and uses a completely different level of the tank.
Great
Cardinal Tetra
Paracheirodon axelrodi
Peaceful mid-water shoal with matching parameters.
Great
Pea Puffer
Carinotetraodon travancoricus
Puffers nip at slow bottom dwellers, and kuhlis cannot avoid them.
Not recommended

Current marketplace listings

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Public Wanted requests

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