Odontocharacidium

Odontocharacidium is a genus with 2 species in this atlas, catalogued in the Piranhas & Pacus section, recorded from Venezuela, Brazil, Colombia and Peru. 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
4 countries

About the genus

Odontocharacidium is a genus of tiny characiform fish from blackwater and clearwater streams across the Amazon and Orinoco basins, found in Venezuela, Brazil, Colombia, and Peru. Its species are among the smallest characiforms in the atlas, at only around 0.5–1 in as adults - diminutive fish adapted to life among leaf litter and fine submerged vegetation in soft, often acidic water. The atlas covers 2 species, Odontocharacidium aphanes and O. varii.

O. aphanes, the green dwarf tetra, occasionally reaches specialist aquarium circles as a nano-tank fish for keepers set up to replicate soft, tannin-stained blackwater conditions, though it is not a mainstream trade species; O. varii is essentially unknown outside the scientific literature. Given the genus's tiny size and specialised habitat needs, data on captive care are sparse. One species is assessed as Least Concern and the other has not yet been formally evaluated.

IUCN Red List: Least Concern · 1 Not Evaluated · 1

The 2 species

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

(Weitzman & Kanazawa, 1977)

Green dwarf tetra

0.5 in SL · NE

Queiroz Rodrigues & Netto-Ferreira, 2020

1 in TL · LC

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How to cite

Aquarist Atlas (2026). Genus Odontocharacidium. Aquarist Atlas. https://www.aquaristatlas.com/odontocharacidium/

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