Puntius stoliczkanus is silver-green with a vertically elongated black blotch behind the gill opening, and a vertically elongated black blotch on the caudal peduncle. The dorsal fin of a sexually active male is red with a black margin and two rows of black spots. It has no barbels and the last simple dorsal ray is serrated posteriorly. It grows to a maximum length of 2 inches (5 centimeters).
Puntius stoliczkanus is of commercial importance in the fish keeping industry and is used to create hybrid variants of tiger barbs and other barbs.
This fish is one of many barbs undergoing revisions in their taxonomic classification. This species has also been referred to as Barbus stoliczkanus, and is frequently confused with Puntius ticto, the Ticto Barb or Twospot Barb, a related and similar species from the same geographic region. The whimsical name "Tic-Tac-Toe Barb" is applied to either species.
