Classification / Names
Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes(genus, species) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa
Teleostei (teleosts) >
Siluriformes (Catfishes) >
Callichthyidae (Callichthyid armored catfishes) > Corydoradinae
Etymology: Aspidoras: Greek, aspis, -idos = shield + Greek, dora = skin (Ref. 45335); psammatides: Named after "Psammatos psammatides", the sand sorcerer, a characer of the J.R.R. Tolkien's book "Roverandom", from the Greek psammos, meaning sand, and ides, meaning son of. In allusion to the sand-dwelling behavior of the species.
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Freshwater; demersal. Tropical
South America: Brazil.
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm
Max length : 3.1 cm SL male/unsexed; (Ref. 57143)
Short description
Identification keys | Morphology | Morphometrics
Dorsal spines (total): 1; Dorsal soft rays (total): 8. This species is distinguished by the following characters: with extremely narrow frontal bone, its width conspicuously smaller than half of its entire length; anterior portion of infraorbital 1 with strongly reduced laminar expansion, not reaching or at same level as posterior margin of nasal capsule; presence of dorsal-fin spinelet (Ref. 129024).
Body shape (shape guide): elongated; Cross section: oval.
Facultative air-breathing (Ref. 126274); Inhabits highly transparent brownish water (tea colored), up to one meter depth, with moderate current, and substrate composed of sand, gravel and larger rocks (typical at the rio Capivara, a tributary to the rio Paraguaçu basin). Found in syntopy with Characidium clistenesi, and both species were observed to forage next to each other, with no conspicuous interactions (Ref. 129024).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Britto, M.R., F.C.T. Lima and A.C.A. Santos, 2005. A new Aspidoras (Siluriformes: Callichthyidae) from rio Paraguaçu basin, Chapada Diamantina, Bahia, Brazil. Neotrop. Ichthyol. 3(4):473-479. (Ref. 57143)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2025-2 (Global))
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
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Estimates based on models
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref.
82804): PD
50 = 0.5000 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00741 (0.00287 - 0.01912), b=3.14 (2.92 - 3.36), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this (Sub)family-body shape (Ref.
93245).
Trophic level (Ref.
69278): 3.0 ±0.3 se; based on size and trophs of closest relatives
Resilience (Ref.
120179): High, minimum population doubling time less than 15 months (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref.
59153): Low vulnerability (10 of 100).
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