Taxonomy & naming
Rama chandramara was described by Francis Hamilton in 1822 and is the valid name in the Catalog of Fishes, where it sits in the genus Rama. Wet Spot sold it as Chandramara chandramara, a later genus name that is a synonym, so searches under that name should lead here. It is a member of the Bagridae.
Morphology
FishBase gives a maximum length of 2 in SL for males or unsexed fish, which is small for a bagrid. It has the family's four pairs of barbels and a spine at the front of the dorsal and pectoral fins.
Habitat
FishBase records the species from India and Bangladesh as a freshwater, demersal, tropical fish that inhabits beels, ditches, streams and canals. The type locality is the Atrai River in North Bengal. No temperature, pH or hardness figures are recorded.
Feeding
No diet is recorded for this species. Small bagrids generally eat insect larvae, crustaceans and other small invertebrates from the bottom.
Mating
Courtship has not been described.
Breeding
No spawning or egg information is recorded, and aquarium breeding is not documented.
In the aquarium
A 2 in bagrid from slow, shallow waters suits a small to medium tank with soft substrate, plants and hiding places, and peaceful tankmates. Offer small live and frozen foods. No water-chemistry targets are published for it.
Conservation
IUCN assessed Rama chandramara as Least Concern on 5 October 2009. No specific threat is recorded.