Misgurnus dabryanus, the large-scale loach is a species of true loach that is native to Mainland China, Hainan, Taiwan, Korea, and the Russian Far East. It can be found in water bodies such as the Yangtze Basin, Pearl River, Amur River, and various other drainages. There are several known invasive populations in places such as Barcelona, the San Joaquin River in California, and the majority of Japan. The large-scale loach is typically brown, grey, or golden in color with mottled or speckled black dots, which leads to it sometimes called a "peppered loach" when sold at pet stores. It is a small loach, growing between 7.3 to 15.4 cm TL.