Aspidoras is a genus of small armored catfish in the family Callichthyidae, closely related to Corydoras and, like them, native to Brazil, where the atlas's records are concentrated. Species in the genus share the Corydoras body plan in miniature — two rows of bony lateral plates, a short snout, paired barbels, and a peaceful, bottom-grazing lifestyle — but run noticeably smaller, with the atlas's 23 species ranging from about 1–2 in as adults, among the tiniest catfish kept in the hobby. Several species are known only from restricted stream systems, and at least one from a cave habitat, underscoring how localized much of the genus's diversity is.
Among specialist dwarf-catfish keepers Aspidoras is valued for the same sociable, substrate-sifting behavior that makes Corydoras popular, kept in shoals in soft, gentle-flow setups, though it is harder to find in the trade than true Corydoras and several species still circulate only under provisional CW numbers pending formal description. The genus includes one genuinely unusual member, Aspidoras mephisto, a troglobitic species described from a Brazilian cave system and adapted to life without light. Conservation data are still catching up with the genus's diversity — roughly as many species are unevaluated as have been formally assessed Least Concern, with a few more rated Data Deficient.