Taxonomy & naming
Pseudeutropius moolenburghae was described by Max Weber and Lieven de Beaufort in 1913 from the Batang Hari River at Djambi (Jambi), Sumatra. The Catalog of Fishes places it in the family Horabagridae, a small Asian catfish family separated from the older Schilbeidae. Stores list it under its scientific name.
The genus name means false Eutropius, after the African-Asian catfish genus it resembles, and the epithet is a Latinised surname.
Morphology
A slim, laterally compressed catfish with a long anal fin and forked tail, typical of the glassy sheatfish look. FishBase gives a maximum of 4 in TL.
Habitat
FishBase records it from Sumatra and western Borneo, in rivers and lakes, living close to the bottom in tropical water. Its pH range is given as 6.5 to 7.5 and its hardness as 10 to 25 dH, with a minimum temperature of 72 °F.
Feeding
FishBase says it feeds on insect larvae and small invertebrates. In the aquarium, live and frozen small foods such as bloodworm, daphnia and brine shrimp suit it.
Mating
FishBase notes distinct pairing, so spawning happens in pairs rather than in a mass of fish.
Breeding
The species is an oviparous egg-layer whose eggs are unguarded, according to FishBase. No captive breeding is recorded.
In the aquarium
A small, peaceful fish for a tank of its own size class, kept best in a group in tropical water at 72 °F or warmer, with clean, well-filtered water and open swimming space. Hardness tolerates the range FishBase gives, which is a fairly broad one. Keep it with small, calm tankmates and avoid boisterous fish that compete for its small live foods.
Conservation
The IUCN Red List assessed Pseudeutropius moolenburghae as Least Concern in 2018. The sources the atlas uses record no specific threats.