What is the Smallest Fish?

_____________________

Juan Andrés, age 5, asked us: What is the smallest fish?

Drawing about the smallest fish

Aina and Anna, from Planet Tuna, answered: There’s fierce competition out there for being the smallest fish. According to the Australian Museum, there are three species vying for the World’s Smallest Fish title. One of them is Paedocypris progenetica, a little freshwater species from Sumatra that reaches a maximum length of 10.3 mm. The second contender, Photocorynus spiniceps, doesn’t count because only the male is tiny (6.2mm). He is parasitic on the much larger female (46mm). The third is Schindleria brevipinguis. Australian scientists claim this little fish from the Great Barrier Reef, growing to a maximum length of 10 mm, is the smallest. They base this statement on the fact that it’s not only the shortest, but also the lightest fish of all. That would make Schindleria brevipinguis the winner of the smallest fish category.