Brochis is a genus of freshwater catfish in the Corydoradinae sub-family of the Callichthyidae family in order Siluriformes.^[1][2] The type species is the emerald catfish, Brochis splendens. The name Brochis is derived from the Greek word "brogchia", meaning "throat" or "trachea".

These fish are often confused with members of the Corydoras genus. In fact, the fish commonly identified as the "emerald cory" is usually actually Brochis splendens. They can be told apart from Corydoras by the fact that Brochis has a deeper body and a higher number of dorsal fin rays.

Species

There are currently three recognized species in this genus:

• Brochis britskii Nijssen & Isbrücker, 1983 (Britski's catfish)
• Brochis multiradiatus (Orcés-V. (es), 1960) (Hognosed brochis)
• Brochis splendens (Castelnau, 1855) (Emerald catfish)

In the aquarium

Brochis are peaceful and hardy fishes that live in schools on the bottom of the aquarium. They are undemanding aquarium fishes that attain a length of about 8 cm (3.2 in.). The tank should have only soft, fine bottom material. The tank should be heavily planted and decorated with driftwood or other objects to provide plenty of hiding places. Strong filtration and partial water changes (particularly from the bottom) are essential. They do well in community tanks and do not tear up the plants. They are considered more difficult to breed in captivity, with most reports happening in very low light.

References

• "Brochis". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 6 June 2006. 
• Froese, Rainer, and Daniel Pauly, eds. (2011). Species of Brochis in FishBase. December 2011 version.
• Burgess, Dr. Warren E. (1987). A Complete Introduction to Corydoras and Related Catfishes. Neptune City, NJ: T.F.H. Publications. ISBN 0-86622-264-2. 

1. ^ http://www.scotcat.com/factsheets/brochis_splendens.htm
2. ^ Encyclopedia of Aquarium and Pond Fish (2005) (David Alderton) (Page 121)