Genus · Barbs

Barboides

Barboides is a genus with 2 species in this atlas, catalogued in the Barbs section, recorded from Cameroon and Nigeria. Adult sizes run from 0.5 in to 1 in. Every species below links to a full researched profile.

Species in atlas
2
Adult sizes
0.5–1 in
IUCN assessed
2 of 2
Recorded from
2 countries

About the genus

Barboides is a genus of extremely small barb-relatives from West African rivers and streams - the atlas records it from Cameroon and Nigeria. It is among the smallest of all cyprinid-type fish on the site, with atlas species measuring just 0.5–1 in, small enough to rank alongside the world's tiniest freshwater fish. Like other diminutive barbs, they are slender and largely transparent, living in shoals among leaf litter and fine vegetation in shaded forest streams.

Data are sparse on either species reaching the aquarium trade in any consistent way - this appears to be mainly a genus of scientific rather than hobby interest, and neither B. britzi nor B. gracilis has an established common name or a documented aquarium-care record. Both atlas species carry a Not Evaluated IUCN status, reflecting how little targeted conservation assessment has reached fish at this scale.

IUCN Red List: Not Evaluated · 2

The 2 species

Every Barboides recorded in this atlas. Each card links to a full researched profile — distribution, water parameters, and aquarium care, cited to primary sources.

Conway & Moritz, 2006

0.5 in SL · NE

Brüning, 1929

1 in TL · NE

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How to cite

Aquarist Atlas (2026). Genus Barboides. Aquarist Atlas. https://www.aquaristatlas.com/barboides/

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