🪐 View in 3D Galaxy 📏 View on 3D Scale Stage

🧬 Biological Classification (Kingdom to Species)Rhynchocypris kumgangensis

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Actinopteri

Order

Cypriniformes

Family

Cyprinidae

Genus

Rhynchocypris

Species

Rhynchocypris kumgangensis

Actinopteri🥩 Carnivore

Kumgang fat minnow

Rhynchocypris kumgangensis (Kumgang fat minnow · コンゴウハヤ)

🛡️ Conservation Status (IUCN Red List)NE (Not Evaluated)

Not Evaluated (NE) on the IUCN Red List yet.

Geological Era

Extant

Diet

Carnivore

Length · Height

7~8cm · No data

Mass · Top Speed

No data · No data

Habitat & Fossil Locality

Pools and rapid riffles of clear, cold deep-mountain streams with bedrock and boulder bottoms

💡 Everyday Comparisons for Size, Mass & Speed

💡 Its maximum total length of 8 cm is slightly shorter than the width of a credit card (about 8.6 cm) (Comparison).
💡 It grows to 5 cm in body length in 1 year and 7–8 cm in 2 years (National List of Species of Korea).
💡 It can only be seen in clear mountain valleys such as the uppermost Han River and Muju Gucheondong (National List of Species of Korea).

Reference standards: coach bus ~12 m, mid-size car ~4.9 m, compact car ~1 t, basketball hoop 3.05 m, credit card 8.56 cm.

#금강모치#Rhynchocypris kumgangensis

📖 1. Overview

The Kumgang fat minnow is a small fish endemic to the Korean Peninsula that lives in schools in clear, cold mountain streams. It inhabits waters that stay at or below 25 °C even in midsummer.

🦴 2. Anatomy & Morphology

Its body is long and laterally flattened, with the mouth positioned under the front of the snout. The back is yellowish-brown, the belly is silvery-white, there is a black spot on the dorsal fin, and spawning males develop two bright orange stripes along the middle of the body.

🔍 3. Ecology & Behavior

It preys on aquatic insects and small crustaceans. In April and May, hundreds gather and burrow into gravel beds to spawn, and fertilized eggs hatch after 5 days at 16 °C.

🇰🇷 4. Connection to Korea

It is an endemic species on the National List of Species of Korea, recorded in Gyeonggi-do, Gangwon-do, and Jeollabuk-do (the uppermost reaches of the Han River and Muju Gucheondong of the Geum River).