Lepidocephalus is a genus of loaches in family Cobitidae, found across Indonesia, Thailand, and Malaysia in Southeast Asia. The 4 species in the atlas are small, 3–3.5 in, elongate and eel-like, with the reduced scaling, mobile eye, and sensory barbels around a downturned mouth that let cobitid loaches root through sand and soft substrate for small invertebrates.
Two species carry the trade name spirit loach - the Spirit Loach (Lepidocephalus spectrum) and Thai Spirit Loach (L. nanensis) - a reference to their pale, near-translucent bodies, which have made them a curiosity among specialist loach keepers even though husbandry information stays limited. L. macrochir and L. weberi are rarely if ever seen in the hobby. As bottom-dwelling burrowers from soft, slow-flowing or blackwater habitats, the genus is best suited to a fine sand substrate with subdued lighting rather than a bare or brightly lit tank. Of the 4 species, 1 is Least Concern, 2 are Not Evaluated, and 1 is Vulnerable, pointing to at least localized habitat concern within an otherwise data-poor genus.