Genus · Killifish

Plesiolebias

Plesiolebias is a genus with 6 species in this atlas, catalogued in the Killifish section, recorded from Brazil. Adult sizes run from 0.5 in to 2 in. Every species below links to a full researched profile.

Species in atlas
6
Adult sizes
0.5–2 in
IUCN assessed
6 of 6 · 1 threatened
Recorded from
Brazil

About the genus

Plesiolebias is a genus of South American annual killifish restricted to Brazil, part of the seasonal-pool lineage that also includes Cynolebias and its many relatives. Atlas species are among the smallest killifish in the atlas, spanning just 0.5–2 in, and follow the classic annual-killifish life history: adults live in shallow, temporary pools that form with seasonal rains, and before the water dries up they bury eggs in the mud substrate, where embryos enter a diapause and wait out the dry season until the next rains hatch them.

This is a genus of specialist rather than mainstream aquarium interest - annual killifish keepers who work with peat-based substrate spawning and dry-storage incubation are the main audience for a genus this small and this tied to Brazil's temporary wetlands, and individual Plesiolebias species are rarely seen outside dedicated killifish circles. Conservation status is reassuring for now - five of the six atlas species are assessed Least Concern, with one Endangered - though as with other temporary-pool killifish, that status can shift quickly if the specific wetlands a species depends on are drained or developed.

IUCN Red List: Endangered · 1 Least Concern · 5

The 6 species

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

Costa & Nielsen in Costa, 2007

0.5 in SL · LC

(Lazara, 1991)

1 in TL · LC

Costa, 2007

1 in SL · LC

(Costa & Lacerda, 1989)

1 in TL · LC

Costa, 1989

1 in TL · LC

Costa, Lacerda & Tanizaki, 1988

2 in TL · EN

Explore further

How to cite

Aquarist Atlas (2026). Genus Plesiolebias. Aquarist Atlas. https://www.aquaristatlas.com/plesiolebias/

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