''Aspidoras'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

catfish Catfish (or catfishes; order Siluriformes or Nematognathi) are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Named for their prominent barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, catfish range in size and behavior from the three largest species alive ...

es of the

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

Callichthyidae Callichthyidae is a family of catfishes (order Siluriformes), called armored catfishes due to the two rows of bony plates (or scutes) along the lengths of their bodies. It contains some of the most popular freshwater aquarium fish, such as many ...

from Brazil.

Taxonomy

The type species for this genus is '' Aspidoras rochai''. The name ''Aspidoras'' is derived from the

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

''aspis'' (shield) and ''dora'' (skin). ''Aspidoras'' is easily distinguished from the other genera of the subfamily

Corydoradinae Callichthyidae is a family of catfishes (order Siluriformes), called armored catfishes due to the two rows of bony plates (or scutes) along the lengths of their bodies. It contains some of the most popular freshwater aquarium fish, such as many s ...

by the presence of a

supraoccipital The occipital bone () is a cranial dermal bone and the main bone of the occiput (back and lower part of the skull). It is trapezoidal in shape and curved on itself like a shallow dish. The occipital bone overlies the occipital lobes of the cereb ...

fontanel A fontanelle (or fontanel) (colloquially, soft spot) is an anatomical feature of the infant human skull comprising soft membranous gaps ( sutures) between the cranial bones that make up the calvaria of a fetus or an infant. Fontanelles allow f ...

; this character is an

autapomorphy In phylogenetics, an autapomorphy is a distinctive feature, known as a derived trait, that is unique to a given taxon. That is, it is found only in one taxon, but not found in any others or outgroup taxa, not even those most closely related to ...

for the genus. Many of the species of ''Aspidoras'' are similar and often hard to distinguish. Without specimens, it is often very difficult to positively identify a species from photographs alone. They are all small species. ''A. taurus'' is exceptional in that it just surpasses 5 cm in length. The

monophyly In cladistics for a group of organisms, monophyly is the condition of being a clade—that is, a group of taxa composed only of a common ancestor (or more precisely an ancestral population) and all of its lineal descendants. Monophyletic gro ...

of the genus has been demonstrated.

Species

There are currently 23 recognized species in this genus: * ''

Aspidoras albater ''Aspidoras'' is a genus of catfishes of the family Callichthyidae from Brazil. Taxonomy The type species for this genus is '' Aspidoras rochai''. The name ''Aspidoras'' is derived from the Greek ''aspis'' (shield) and ''dora'' (skin). ''Aspido ...

'' Nijssen & Isbrücker, 1976 (False macropterus) * ''

Aspidoras belenos ''Aspidoras'' is a genus of catfishes of the family Callichthyidae from Brazil. Taxonomy The type species for this genus is '' Aspidoras rochai''. The name ''Aspidoras'' is derived from the Greek ''aspis'' (shield) and ''dora'' (skin). ''Aspido ...

'' M. R. Britto, 1998 * ''

Aspidoras brunneus ''Aspidoras'' is a genus of catfishes of the family Callichthyidae from Brazil. Taxonomy The type species for this genus is '' Aspidoras rochai''. The name ''Aspidoras'' is derived from the Greek ''aspis'' (shield) and ''dora'' (skin). ''Aspido ...

'' Nijssen & Isbrücker, 1976 * '' Aspidoras carvalhoi'' Nijssen & Isbrücker, 1976 * '' Aspidoras depinnai'' M. R. Britto, 2000 * ''

Aspidoras eurycephalus ''Aspidoras'' is a genus of catfishes of the family Callichthyidae from Brazil. Taxonomy The type species for this genus is '' Aspidoras rochai''. The name ''Aspidoras'' is derived from the Greek ''aspis'' (shield) and ''dora'' (skin). ''Aspido ...

'' Nijssen & Isbrücker, 1976 * '' Aspidoras fuscoguttatus'' Nijssen & Isbrücker, 1976 * '' Aspidoras gabrieli'' Wosiacki, T. G. Pereira & R. E. dos Reis, 2014 * '' Aspidoras lakoi'' P. Miranda-Ribeiro, 1949 * '' Aspidoras maculosus'' Nijssen & Isbrücker, 1976 * '' Aspidoras marianae'' M. D. V. Leão, M. R. Britto & Wosiacki, 2015 * '' Aspidoras menezesi'' Nijssen & Isbrücker, 1976 * '' Aspidoras mephisto'' Tencatt & Bichuette, 2017 * '' Aspidoras microgalaeus'' M. R. Britto, 1998 * '' Aspidoras pauciradiatus'' ( S. H. Weitzman & Nijssen, 1970) (Sixray corydoras) * '' Aspidoras poecilus'' Nijssen & Isbrücker, 1976 * '' Aspidoras psammatides'' M. R. Britto, F. C. T. Lima & A. C. A. Santos, 2005 * '' Aspidoras raimundi'' ( Steindachner, 1907) * '' Aspidoras rochai'' R. Ihering, 1907 * '' Aspidoras spilotus'' Nijssen & Isbrücker, 1976 * '' Aspidoras taurus'' F. C. T. Lima & M. R. Britto, 2001 * '' Aspidoras velites'' M. R. Britto, F. C. T. Lima & C. L. R. Moreira, 2002 * '' Aspidoras virgulatus'' Nijssen & Isbrücker, 1980

Distribution

''Aspidoras'' species are

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

to small and shallow streams draining the Brazilian Shield. The species of ''Aspidoras'' are distributed in eastern and central Brazil. Most species are narrowly endemic, occurring in restricted areas of some major river drainages: ''A. fuscoguttatus'' and ''A. lakoi'' from the Paraná River system. ''A. albater'', ''A. eurycephalus'' and ''A. gabrieli'' from the

Tocantins River The Tocantins River ( pt, Rio Tocantins, link=no , , Parkatêjê: ''Pyti'' ɨˈti is a river in Brazil, the central fluvial artery of the country. In the Tupi language, its name means " toucan's beak" (''Tukã'' for "toucan" and ''Ti'' for "beak ...

system. ''A. brunneus'', ''A. marianae'' and ''A. microgalaeus'' from the

Xingu River The Xingu River ( ; pt, Rio Xingu, ; Mẽbêngôkre: ''Byti'', ) is a river in north Brazil. It is a southeast tributary of the Amazon River and one of the largest clearwater rivers in the Amazon basin, accounting for about 5% of its water. ...

system. ''A. belenos'', ''A. pauciradiatus'' and ''A. velites'' from Araguaia River system. ''A. rochai'' from rivers around Fortaleza. ''A. raimundi'' from the

Parnaíba River The Parnaíba River ( pt, Rio Parnaíba) is a river in Brazil, which forms the border between the states of Maranhão and Piauí. Its main course is long and the Parnaíba River Basin covers .Ramos, T.P.A.; Ramos, R.T.C.; and Ramos, S.A.Q.A. (2 ...

. ''A. carvalhoi'' from rivers around

Guaramiranga Guaramiranga is one of the smallest towns of the Northeastern state of Ceará in Brazil. It is located at an altitude of 865 m in the Serra de Baturité hills 110 km from the state capital of Fortaleza. Guaramiranga is known locally for its ...

, Ceará State. ''A. maculosus'' from the

Itapicuru River The Itapicuru River is a river in Bahia state of eastern Brazil. The Itapicuru rises in the northern part of the state, and flows east to empty into the Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, w ...

. ''A. menezesi'' from the Jaguaribe River. ''A. spilotus'' from the Acaráu River. ''A. poecilus'' from the

, Araguaia River, and

systems. ''A. psammatides'' from the

Paraguaçu River The Paraguaçu River () is a river in Bahia state of eastern Brazil. It runs from the Chapada Diamantina highlands of central Bahia to its mouth at the Baía de Todos os Santos. The Paraguaçu is the largest river entirely within Bahia. Its banks ...

. ''A. virgulatus'' from the coastal rivers in

Espírito Santo Espírito Santo (, , ; ) is a state in southeastern Brazil. Its capital is Vitória, and its largest city is Serra. With an extensive coastline, the state hosts some of the country's main ports, and its beaches are significant tourist attra ...

. ''A. depinnai'' is from the

Ipojuca River The Ipojuca River is a river of Pernambuco state in eastern Brazil. See also *List of rivers of Pernambuco List of rivers in Pernambuco (Brazilian State). The list is arranged by drainage basin from north to south, with respective tributaries ...

basin, Pernambuco State. ''A. taurus'' is known from the upper Itiquira River and upper

Taquari River The Taquari River ( pt, Rio Taquari) is a river in the states of Mato Grosso and Mato Grosso do Sul in Brazil. It is a left tributary of the Paraguay River. The town of Coxim is situated on the Taquari. The Taquari River is considered the most de ...

, both tributaries of the

Paraguay River The Paraguay River (Río Paraguay in Spanish, Rio Paraguai in Portuguese, Ysyry Paraguái in Guarani) is a major river in south-central South America, running through Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay and Argentina. It flows about from its headwaters i ...

, Mato Grosso State, Brazil.

In the aquarium

''Aspidoras'' do fairly well in aquaria under similar conditions as for most ''Corydoras'' species. The water conditions that seem best are a pH of 6.8 to 7.0 and a temperature of about 22 °C to 26 °C. The species that is most likely to be found in an aquarium is the sixray corydoras, '' Aspidoras pauciradiatus''.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q136190 Callichthyidae Taxa named by Rodolpho von Ihering Fish of South America Catfish genera Freshwater fish genera