Hi everyone!

I'm interested in getting some Corys. At first when I saw them, I didn't much care for them, but they're growing on me I have a ten gallon tank and am wondering if it's big enough to house a few Corys, along with my four platys and a little plec (whom I'm hoping not to have for much longer).

Corys I like:
Dainty Cory (Salt & Pepper Catfish)
Panda Cory
Jullii Catfish/Cory
Dwarf Cory
Leopard Cory
Albino Cory

Obviously I can't have all of those in a ten gallon, but I'm wondering if certain spp. would be better than other spp. Are there ones I should avoid? Ones I don't have listed that you would suggest?

Thanks!

Pamela
aka Lizard

I just gotta say that I'm excited you're going to get corys - they're wonderful fish!!! I was much like you, and didn't like them much originally, but now that I have them I just want more more! They're so great. I wanted to let you know I'm excited for you, you'll love them. I have 2 pandas (hopefully soon to be 3), and 2 albinos. They're both wonderful, but I do have to say that the albinos are more active. I really like the looks of pandas the best of any cory, but it's sooooo cute to watch the albinos racing up and down the front of the tank.

This post has been edited by juliethegr8t: Oct 18 2003, 01:34 AM

I say go for it. Get at a minimum of 4. 6 is best but 4 will work. I recently aquired 4 pandas and I love them. My lfs got another delivery of them. As soon their time in quarintene is done 2 more will come home with me. Maybe Ill use my now empty 10g to get another 6. See if theyll breed for me.

So, my neighbor, whom I don't necessarily have a lot of respect for ('cause he's not really a decent person sometimes, but that's beside the point) but who does know something about at least some fish says that I can't have Cory cats in a 10 gallon, unless I have sand, 'cause otherwise they'll get too stressed out. Now, you people here said the Corys would be fine in my 10 gallon, the lfs's keep their Corys in 10 gallons w/gravel, and my Corys seem jsut fine. I'm assuming that my neighbor doesn't know what he's talking about, but thinks he does since he's an RA. Comments?

Thanks!

Pamela
aka Lizard

Cory cats are lovely fish and I'm glad you've taken a liking to them. Still, I must agree with your neighbor, at least partly. As KnuckleHead already mentioned, cory cats like to be in a group and I'd recommend at least 6 of them. However, 6 cories do not fit in a 10 gallon tank. They can be kept in a 10 gallon in the LFS because that's just a temporary home for them, but I wouldn't keep them in a tank that small permanently.

As for the gravel/sand matter, it's true that cories prefer sand (the finer sand is better for their barbels, which they use to look for eatable things), but it's not necessary. My Bronze cories are just doing fine with gravel.

By the way, what's an RA?

This post has been edited by Morrgan: Oct 19 2003, 10:52 AM

Real Assh*le?

i have noticed that bronze, albino and peppered grow to around quite big. was wondering if panda and julii do too... aren't julii and leopard same?

LOL Harry!!! RA technically stands for Resident Assistant, but I think Harry's explanation better suits this particular neighbor.

Pamela
aka Lizard

*grins at Harry's reply* Thanks for the answer.

Bronze and albino are, as far as I know, the same species. According to the books I have, they and the peppered cory grow to 2.8" (which is about the size my largest bronze has reached). The leopard and panda grow to 2.4". And yes, I think julii and leopard are the same.

corys are great there sooooo cute

yeap i just got 3 panda ones.. they certainly look adorable esp now they are quite young..

It's important to remember, when adding corys or other fish to a crowded tank, is that corys live at the bottom where all the waste products of the fish fall. If you make a committment to keep the bottom clean by syphoning out this stuff it will be better for the corys and the rest of the fish, too.

Thanks for the reminder, Inchworm! I clean the top of the gravel quite frequently, and do a little bit of a deeper clean each time I vacuum. I don't want to clean all the gravel at once, 'cause of the bacteria and stuff, correct?

Pamela
aka Lizard

I don't think you have to worry about the bacteria when you vacume, Lizard.

When you do that, you are mainly siphoning out debris, but the bacteria, which is clinging to the gravel, is not too disturbed. Even if some are removed, the ones remaining will quickly reproduce and restore their numbers. Don't forget that they live in the filter, on the glass, plants and decorations, too. It is not likely that a manual cleaning will reduce their numbers enough to cause any shortage.

IMHO, it is better for the fish to clean out the dirt than to worry about removing a few bacteria from the gravel.