Taxonomy & naming
Leptodoras myersi was described by the American ichthyologist James E. Böhlke in 1970. It belongs to the family Doradidae, the thorny or talking catfishes, a large South American group known for locking pectoral spines that can be rasped to produce audible sounds. The genus Leptodoras comprises a few dozen slender, deep-channel species scattered across Amazonian and Orinoco drainages, many of them poorly documented outside museum collections.
The genus name Leptodoras combines the Greek leptos, "slender" or "thin", with Doras, the type genus of the family — describing the notably elongate, narrow-bodied build that distinguishes Leptodoras from the deeper-bodied thorny catfishes. The species epithet myersi honours the American ichthyologist George S. Myers, a major figure in the study of Neotropical fishes. Data on this species remains sparse, and its life history is inferred largely from its close relatives within Leptodoras and the wider Doradidae.
Morphology
Leptodoras myersi is a small, slender doradid, reaching a maximum recorded size of only about 3 in standard length — modest for the family, whose larger relatives can exceed 19.5 in. Like other members of the genus it has an elongated, laterally compressed body suited to life along the bottom of deep river channels, rather than the stockier build of many other Doradidae.
As in all thorny catfishes, the skin is naked — Leptodoras myersi has no scales, instead relying on rows of bony lateral scutes typical of the family for protection along the flanks. It carries the stiff, serrated, locking spines at the leading edge of the dorsal and pectoral fins that give the family its "thorny catfish" name; these spines can be locked erect for defence and lock the fish firmly in a net, so it should always be moved in a container rather than netted. Detailed descriptions of barbel arrangement and fin counts specific to this species are not covered in the available sources.
Habitat
Leptodoras myersi is native to South America, recorded from the Upper Amazon River basin. Within that range it favours deep river channels rather than shallow margins, a habitat preference shared with several of its Leptodoras relatives, which are more often encountered in trawl or gillnet surveys of the main river channel than in typical shoreline collecting.
It is a nocturnal, benthic species that forages over sand and soft substrate. Reported temperature tolerance runs on the cooler side for an Amazonian fish, with a lower range around 64–72 °F, and the species is not thought to tolerate prolonged high temperatures well — worth noting for anyone attempting to house it, since many Amazon basin catfish are kept warmer than this. Specific pH and hardness data for this species were not found in the available sources.
Feeding
Leptodoras myersi is presumed to feed on invertebrates buried shallowly in the substrate, taken by suction-feeding through a specialised oral hood — a foraging method documented in the genus Leptodoras more broadly. It forages mostly after dark, in keeping with the nocturnal, benthic habits typical of thorny catfishes.
In the rare event it is kept, sinking foods offered after lights-out — small live or frozen invertebrates, and prepared sinking foods that can be taken from the substrate — would suit its natural foraging style better than food offered in open water during the day. No specific aquarium feeding reports for this species were found.
Mating
Wild spawning in Leptodoras myersi has been recorded as seasonal, occurring roughly once a year around June and July, consistent with a rainy-season spawning pattern seen in many Amazonian fishes. Beyond the timing, no details of courtship or pairing behaviour for this species were found in the available sources.
Breeding appears to be tied to substrate conditions rather than open-water broadcast spawning: the species is described as substrate-dependent, with medium-grade rounded river gravel offering refuge for developing fry. This points to a bottom-associated spawning strategy rather than the free-scattering habit sometimes assumed for catfish in general.
Breeding
Leptodoras myersi is described as a substrate spawner in the wild, laying eggs in or around mature gravel beds that give the resulting fry cover. This is a different strategy from the bubble-nesting of armoured callichthyid catfish or the internal fertilisation of driftwood cats, and it should not be assumed to match either.
No reliable reports of this species being bred in captivity are known. Like many deep-channel Leptodoras, it is essentially unbred in the aquarium hobby — the handful of specimens that reach collections are wild-caught, and its reproduction is understood only from limited field observation rather than any aquarium spawning record.
In the aquarium
Leptodoras myersi tops out at a modest 3 in, but it is a demanding, specialised fish rather than an easy community catfish, and it is very rarely available in the trade. Suggested housing follows its deep-channel habits: a sand substrate with branches or rockwork for cover, dim overhead lighting, and dark retreat areas to mimic the low-light river-bottom environment it prefers. Keep temperatures on the cooler side of the Amazonian range, roughly 64–72 °F — this species is reported not to tolerate prolonged heat well, unlike many warmer-water Amazon catfish.
As with all thorny catfish, the skin is scaleless, so it is more sensitive than a scaled fish to copper and many medications — dose conservatively. It also carries locking, serrated dorsal and pectoral spines that snag readily in a net and can jab the keeper, so it should always be moved in a container rather than netted. Because it is nocturnal, offer sinking foods after lights-out and provide ample cover for daytime hiding. Given how little is documented about its long-term husbandry, this is a species best left to specialist keepers with deep-channel Amazonian catfish experience.
Conservation
The IUCN Red List assesses Leptodoras myersi as Least Concern, with the assessment dated April 25, 2014. As a wide-ranging Upper Amazon basin species, it does not currently face known elevated extinction risk.
That said, data on population trends and specific threats to this species are sparse, and its reliance on deep river-channel habitat means it is not a fish regularly encountered or monitored by hobbyist or citizen-science observation. Broader pressures on Amazon basin rivers — damming, sedimentation and habitat disturbance — are the general long-term concerns for deep-channel species like this one, even without species-specific data confirming an effect.