Macropterus Cory

About

Found in coastal river drainages running from São Paulo down to Santa Catarina in southern Brazil, this obscure armored catfish, Scleromystax macropterus, belongs to the same family as the familiar corydoras and shares their characteristic bony-plate body armor in place of ordinary scales. It reaches around 2 to 3.5 inches and is a solid, purposeful-looking fish. One thing that immediately sets it apart from your typical community catfish is its temperament: males can be noticeably territorial with each other, so keeping groups in a spacious tank is important to spread that aggression out. Despite that edge, it's otherwise fairly peaceful and the care level is approachable for newer keepers willing to meet its cool water preferences. Like other callichthyids, it's a facultative air breather with a modified intestine that lets it gulp atmospheric oxygen at the surface, so you'll occasionally catch it making quick trips up and back. Worth flagging for anyone netting or handling this fish: the pectoral-fin spines are rigid enough to pierce skin, and the associated glands at their base may produce mildly toxic secretions, so a puncture can be genuinely painful. Handle with a soft cloth or cup, not bare hands. Breeding follows corydoras-style protocols and is achievable, though raising the fry requires careful attention to water quality.