Size and growth in schooling botia

[andyroo]

A thought:
in a school of botia-style loaches, particularly larger spp one often sees some growing quickly, some less so and some only a little bit though all are healthy and eating well.
This may be an adaptation to reduce intra-school competition for food: a larger animal may not be efficient at eating smaller foods (snails particularly, as they often require a tight-fit to the lips) and visa versa.
The question might then be, are these smaller fish still reaching sexual maturity?
A