 It was originally described as "Acanthorhodeus atremius" by Jordan & Thompson in 1914.The fish reaches a size of up to , and is native to freshwater habitats with a pH of 6.8 to 7.8, a hardness of 20 DH, and a temperature of .When spawning, the females deposit their eggs inside bivalves, where they hatch and the young remain until they can swim.