Ricefish

The ricefishes are a family (Adrianichthyidae) of small ray-finned fish that are found in fresh and brackish waters from India to Japan and out into the Malay Archipelago, most notably Sulawesi (where the Lake Poso and Lore Lindu species are known as buntingi). The common name ricefish derives from the fact that some species are found in rice paddies. This family consists of about 37 species in two genera (some recognize a third, Xenopoecilus). Several species are rare and threatened, and some 2–4 may already be extinct.

The fossil genus †Lithopoecilus de Beaufort, 1934 from the Miocene of Sulawesi may potentially represent a prehistoric member of the family, although it is only tentatively placed within it. It appears to be intermediate in size between Oryzias and Adrianichthys.