Zebrafish
Danio rerio (Hamilton, 1822)
The zebrafish (Danio rerio) is a bony fish in the family Cyprinidae, subfamily Danioninae. It belongs to the order Cypriniformes and the class Teleostei, and is also called the zebra danio.
Quick facts about the zebrafish
The species name is credited to (Hamilton, 1822). On the IUCN Red List it is assessed globally as Least Concern, which is not a threatened category.
- Weight
- Not recorded
- Length
- 1.8 cm – 3.7 cmsrc for Length
- Lifespan
- Not recorded
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- freshwater, riverinesrc for Habitat
- Young per litter or clutch
- Not recorded
- Reproduction
- Eggssrc for Reproduction
- Conservation status
- Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
How big is the zebrafish?
Photos of the zebrafish
Only freely licensed photos are shown. Each carries its creator and licence.
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1 more photo exists under a licence we cannot display: view at source.
Where does the zebrafish live?
Not recorded
Where has it been introduced?
The Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species lists the zebrafish as introduced in 6 countries, and flagged as invasive in 1 of them.
Also listed for parts of: France (Martinique).
Introduced means brought by people and now present; invasive means the country's checklist records an impact. A species can be native to one part of a country and introduced in another. Source: Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species (CC BY 4.0).
What is the zebrafish?
The zebrafish (Danio rerio) is a species of danionin belonging to the genus Danio in the suborder Cyprinoidei. Native to South Asia, it is a popular, hardy aquarium fish, frequently sold under the trade name zebra danio (thus often mislabeled as a "tropical fish", even though they also inhabit subtropical and temperate waters).
The zebrafish is extensively used as a vertebrate model organism in scientific research, particularly developmental biology, but also gene function, oncology, teratology, and drug development, in particular pre-clinical development, due to its scalability from high numbers of offspring and ease of drug delivery through water into the gills. It is also notable for its regenerative abilities, and has been modified by researchers to produce many transgenic strains.
From the Wikipedia article “Zebrafish” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Zebrafish&oldid=1380373470), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
What does the zebrafish sound like?
Is the zebrafish endangered?
The zebrafish is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species. What the categories mean.
How is the zebrafish classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classTeleostei
- orderCypriniformes
- familyCyprinidae
- genusDanio
- SpeciesDanio rerio (Hamilton, 1822)
Synonyms Barilius rerio, Brachydanio frankei, Brachydanio rerio, Cyprinus chapalio, Cyprinus rerio, Danio frankei, Danio lineatus, Danio rerio, Nuria rerio, Perilampus striatus
Other names and names in other languages (3)
- Zebra danioEnglish
- Zebra danioEnglish
- Poisson zèbreFrench
Catalogue of LifeWikipediaITISTAXREFWikidataWoRMSIUCN Red List
Relatives of the zebrafish
Other species in the same genus Danio.
Pearl danio
Danio albolineatus
Galaxy rasbora
Danio margaritatus
Blue danio
Danio kerri
Spotted danio
Danio nigrofasciatus
Glowlight danio
Danio choprae
Emerald dwarf danio
Danio erythromicron
CompareZebrafish vs Pearl danioZebrafish vs Galaxy rasboraZebrafish vs Blue danioZebrafish vs Spotted danio
Common questions
Each answer is written from the sourced facts on this page, and only where they hold the answer.
What kind of animal is a zebrafish?
The zebrafish is a bony fish. It belongs to the family Cyprinidae in the order Cypriniformes.
What is the scientific name of the zebrafish?
The scientific name of the zebrafish is Danio rerio, placed in the genus Danio.
Is the zebrafish endangered?
No. The zebrafish is assessed globally as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, which is not a threatened category.
Who named the zebrafish and when?
The zebrafish was named by Hamilton in 1822, written as (Hamilton, 1822).
What is another name for the zebrafish?
The zebrafish is also called the zebra danio.
What subfamily does the zebrafish belong to?
The zebrafish belongs to the subfamily Danioninae within the family Cyprinidae.
Is the zebrafish an invasive species?
In some places. The Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species flags the zebrafish as invasive in 1 country: Mexico. It lists it as introduced in 6 in all.
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-14. How this page is put together.
- Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-10-16 XR
Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - Wikimedia Commons · per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed) · 2026-11-11
Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence). - Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species (GRIIS) · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-11-13
Pagad, S., Genovesi, P., Carnevali, L., Schigel, D. & McGeoch, M.A. (2018) Introducing the Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species. Scientific Data 5: 170202. https://doi.org/10.1038/sdata.2017.202. Country checklists published through GBIF by the IUCN SSC Invasive Species Specialist Group. - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).
Embed a card for this animal on your own site
Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Zebrafish (Danio rerio). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/danio-rerio
“Zebrafish (Danio rerio).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/danio-rerio.
@misc{danio_rerio_2026,
title = {Zebrafish (Danio rerio)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/danio-rerio},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-14}
}