Phoxinus steindachneri
Amazing fact
Female aburahaya minnows plunge headfirst into the riverbed when laying eggs.
大阪府立環境農林水産総合研究所
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An illustration based on the real animal.
A little discovery to share.
Female aburahaya minnows plunge headfirst into the riverbed when laying eggs.
THE REAL WORLD
The real Phoxinus steindachneri
- Scientific name
- Phoxinus steindachneri
- Japanese name
- アブラハヤ
- Group
- Freshwater animals
- Order
- Cypriniformes
- Family
- Cyprinidae
- Genus
- Phoxinus
Where the name “Phoxinus steindachneri” comes from
Its name is said to come from its slippery body, which seems coated in oil.
神奈川県It is found in rivers on the Sea of Japan side from Aomori to Fukui, and on the Pacific side from Aomori to Okayama.
How the Phoxinus steindachneri lives
It stays near the bottom of pools and gently flowing river shallows. It eats bottom-dwelling animals, attached algae and insects that fall into the water. From spring to early summer, it gathers to lay eggs on sandy, muddy or gravelly riverbeds.
大阪府立環境農林水産総合研究所神奈川県Basic data
- Range
- Aomori to Fukui prefectures on the Sea of Japan side and Aomori to Okayama prefectures on the Pacific side
Where the Phoxinus steindachneri has been recorded
Records: GBIF.org (CC0 and CC BY 4.0 records, retrieved 2026-11-07). Map: Natural EarthSee the records on GBIF
Watch wild animals from a distance. Do not touch or feed them, and take care of the places where they live.
Names around the world
Names come from Wikidata and iNaturalist records. Where a language has no recorded name, we use the scientific name.
Sources and how we check
- 鳥羽水族館 — アブラハヤChecked: 2026-11-04
- 大阪府立環境農林水産総合研究所 — アブラハヤChecked: 2026-11-07
- 神奈川県 — 淡水魚類図鑑 アブラハヤChecked: 2026-11-07
We check each fact against its source. The illustrations simplify how the real animal looks.
The classification (class, order, family, genus) follows Wikidata records, checked against GBIF. Classifications can change as research goes on.
The basic data are the values given in each source. They vary with how the animal is measured, whether it is male or female, and whether it lives in the wild or in captivity.
This page was translated from the original Japanese with the help of AI.
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