Jae Barb

The jae barb is a small fish which grows to 4 cm (1.6 in) in length. They have red fins brighter in the males than in the females, while the body is predominantly beige-brown in colour. In addition the females are larger and bulkier than the males. Fish collected from different locations are known to vary in both colour and patterning, for example male fish from the River Nyong basin close to Sombo in Cameroon turn uniform blood red in colour when in breeding while fish collected around Awae, which is also in the Nyong but further upstream, only turn red on the rear half of the body. Individuals collected from other places within Cameroon such as the River Sanaga, River Ntem and River Dja exhibit similar, often subtle, differences. Further south in Gabon individuals have been recorded which have an almost completely grey body colour counterpointed with deep red to black dorsal and ventral fins in mature male fish.

The jae barb lives in slow-moving, shallow, shaded rainforest streams and swamps with dense emergent vegetation.