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). Aspidoras is easily distinguished from the other genera of the subfamily Corydoradinae by the presence of a supraoccipital fontanel; this character is an autapomorphy 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 of the genus has been demonstrated. Species There are currently 18 recognized species in this genus: Aspidoras albater Nijssen & Isbrücker, 1976 (False macropterus) Aspidoras aldebaran Tencatt, M. R. Britto, Isbrücker & Pavanelli, 2022 Aspidoras azaghal Tencatt, Muriel-Cunha, Zuanon, Ferreira & Britto, 2020 Aspidoras belenos M. R. Britto, 1998 Aspidoras brunneus Nijssen & Isbrücker, 1976 Aspidoras carvalhoi Nijssen & Isbrücker, 1976 Aspidoras depinnai M. R. Britto, 2000 Aspidoras fuscoguttatus Nijssen & Isbrücker, 1976 Aspidoras gabrieli Wosiacki, T. G. Pereira & R. E. dos Reis, 2014 Aspidoras kiriri Oliveira, Zanata, Tencatt & M. R. Britto Aspidoras lakoi P. Miranda-Ribeiro, 1949 Aspidoras maculosus Nijssen & Isbrücker, 1976 Aspidoras mephisto Tencatt & Bichuette, 2017 Aspidoras poecilus Nijssen & Isbrücker, 1976 Aspidoras psammatides M. R. Britto, F. C. T. Lima & A. C. A. Santos, 2005 Aspidoras raimundi Nijssen & Isbrücker, 1976 Aspidoras rochai R. Ihering, 1907 Aspidoras velites M. R. Britto, F. C. T. Lima & C. L. R. Moreira, 2002 Distribution Aspidoras species are endemic 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 system. A. brunneus, A. marianae and A. microgalaeus from the Xingu River system. A. belenos, A. pauciradiatus and A. velites from Araguaia River system. A. rochai from rivers around Fortaleza. A. raimundi from the Parnaíba River. A. carvalhoi from rivers around Guaramiranga, Ceará State. A. maculosus from the Itapicuru River. A. menezesi from the Jaguaribe River. A. spilotus from the Acaráu River. A. poecilus from the Xingu River, Araguaia River, and Tocantins