Pseudogastromyzon · Public domain — Wikimedia Commons (cropped)
White Cloud Mountain Minnow
Tanichthys albonubes
Cold-tolerant minnow for unheated tanksBeginner
- Lifespan
- 3-5 years
- Size
- 3-4 cm / 1.2-1.5 in
- Social needs
- Shoaler; keep 6+ together
- Time
- Low; daily feeding, weekly water change
- Cost
- Low
- Diet
- Omnivore; flakes, micro pellets, frozen foods
Overview
What is this animal?
- The white cloud mountain minnow is a small, hardy fish from cool mountain streams near Guangzhou in southern China, marked with a red-and-iridescent stripe.
- It is now rare in its native range but breeds readily and thrives in aquariums.
- It is one of the few common community fish that needs no heater, tolerating cool room temperatures with ease.
- Forgiving and beginner-friendly, it is a good first shoaling fish, though it dislikes prolonged tropical warmth.
Temperament
- Peaceful, active and confident, white clouds shoal loosely and look best in good numbers, where males flare their fins at one another harmlessly.
- They are too gentle to bother any reasonable tankmate.
- They suit calm, cool-water communities and pair well with other temperate species.
- Avoid housing them with warmth-loving tropicals whose needs conflict, or with large fish that may eat them.
A good fit for
- Beginners and first aquariums
- Unheated, cool-room or temperate setups
- Outdoor ponds in mild climates
- Peaceful cool-water community tanks
Common mistakes to avoid
- Keeping them in warm tropical tanks long term
- Keeping too few, dulling colour and behaviour
- Open tanks they can jump from
- Pairing with warmth-loving or large fish
Enclosure
Minimum 40 litres (11 US gallons) — for a group of 6
Cannot be kept alone. The minimum is 6, and the space above is for that group.
- A shoal of six or more does well in 40 litres (10 gallons) or more, filtered, with no heater required.
- They thrive at 16-22C and suffer at sustained tropical temperatures, making them well suited to unheated rooms and some outdoor ponds in mild climates.
- They are active swimmers that appreciate length, gentle current and planted edges.
- Tolerant of a wide range of water chemistry, they need only a stable, well-cycled tank and a secure lid, as they can jump.
Supplies
Setup
- Tank and stand
- Filter
- Heater and thermometer
- Substrate, plants and decor
- Liquid test kit
- Dechlorinator and starter supplies
Ongoing
- Quality tropical flake or micro-pellet
- Frozen daphnia
- Frozen brine shrimp
- Frozen or freeze-dried bloodworm
- Spirulina or vegetable flake
- Small feeding spoon for measured pinches
- Fine net for removing leftovers
Safe substrate: Inert aquarium gravel · Fine, smooth sand · Aquasoil for planted tanks
Care routine
Daily
- Check temperature and equipment
- Feed
- Head-count and look everyone over
Weekly
- Top up evaporationevery 3 days
- Check the lid
- Clean glass and clear algae
- Test the water
- Water change and gravel vacuum
Monthly
- Trim and thin the plantsevery 2 weeks
- Check supplies and reagent dates
- Rinse the filter media
Less often
- Replace chemical filter media (Carbon/Purigen)every 2 months
Vet: Quarterly temperature and stocking review — every 3 months
Top resources for more info
Independent creators and organisations we would send a friend to. We have no affiliation with any of them, and nothing here is sponsored. Links checked 2026-09-19.
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Diet
- White clouds are easy-going omnivores that feed at the surface and in midwater.
- A quality flake or micro-pellet serves as a reliable staple, rotated with frozen or live daphnia, brine shrimp and bloodworm to support their colours.
- Feed small amounts once or twice daily, only what is eaten quickly.
- They forage actively and rarely refuse food, so measured portions and the occasional fasting day keep the water clean and the fish in good condition.
Health
- Among the hardiest aquarium fish, white clouds suffer few ailments when kept cool and clean.
- Most problems, such as ich or fin rot, follow overheating, poor water quality or stress rather than inherent fragility.
- Keeping them at tropical temperatures long term shortens their lives and dulls their colour, so avoid heating the tank.
- Quarantine new stock, maintain weekly partial water changes, and fit a lid to prevent jumps.
Is your enclosure big enough?
Is this urgent?
In a fish tank the patient is usually the water. Test before you treat — dosing a healthy tank for a disease it does not have makes things worse.
Go now
Today
Soon
Never add a new fish to a tank that is not fully cycled, and never treat blind. A test kit is cheaper than the fish.
This is general guidance for a healthy adult, not a diagnosis. An exotics vet who knows your animal always overrides it — and the time to find one is before you need one.
What it really costs
Setup, monthly, first year and across a whole life, itemised and with the electricity worked out from the actual wattage. Published figures for the same animal disagree by a factor of four, so the calculator shows ranges rather than picking one.
Bedding and substrate
Substrate in an aquarium is a filter as much as a floor. Most of the biology lives in and on it.
Safe
With a caveat
Never
This is our general list for freshwater fish. We have not built one specific to Danios & Minnows yet.
My kit says 0.25 ppm. Is that dangerous?
A liquid kit measures total ammonia, but only the un-ionised fraction is really toxic, and that fraction is governed by pH and temperature — each whole pH unit multiplies it roughly tenfold. So the same reading can be nearly harmless in one tank and lethal in another; this works out which one you are in.
Compare with other animals
The same axes for every animal, side by side — the way the guides are written makes that a fair comparison rather than two articles.
Danios & Minnows, side by side
Same axes, same care guides — the honest way to choose between types.
See all Danios & Minnows side by side →
