Taxonomy & naming
Described by Francis Day in 1870 and later moved to Erethistes, hence the parentheses. The type locality is Sylhet District, Bangladesh. It is a valid species in the Catalog of Fishes. The epithet is a Latinised surname, probably honouring the naturalist T. C. Jerdon, though the sources available to the atlas do not state the dedication.
Morphology
A tiny sisorid with a rough skin, spined dorsal and pectoral fins and four barbel pairs. FishBase gives a maximum of 1.5 in TL.
Habitat
FishBase lists India and Bangladesh. It occurs in slow-moving hill streams with a sandy bottom, and also in rivers and beels (floodplain lakes), and is described as a very sluggish fish. FishBase gives 64–75 °F and a hardness of 8 to 15 dH.
Feeding
A small benthic insectivore by family default; no species-specific data.
Mating
Mating behaviour is not documented for Erethistes jerdoni in the sources available to the atlas. Sexes cannot be separated reliably from the information available.
Breeding
No spawning or breeding record is known to the atlas.
In the aquarium
Rarely seen. Keep it as a shy, sluggish catfish in clean, oxygenated water at 64–75 °F with rocks, caves and a sandy floor, and offer small sinking foods. FishBase gives a hardness of 8 to 15 dH.
Conservation
The IUCN Red List assessed Erethistes jerdoni as Least Concern in 2009. Hillstream fishes are sensitive to siltation, damming and altered flow.