I had cories before and they swam against the glass for maybe a day then they stopped. But , just 2 days ago I got 4 sterbai cories and they still haven't stopped swimming against this one wall. I vaguely remember reading about this on some other posts, but haven't been able to find any of the old posts. Any advice? anything to be worried about?

Thanks

This post has been edited by Alps: Oct 6 2007, 03:36 AM

No they're corys they do mad things.
They like to wriggle up and down the glass.

This post has been edited by Luketendo: Oct 6 2007, 06:23 AM

the worrying thing though is that they keep on going up and down the same wall without resting. They are literally on the wall 90% of the time. Usually my cories settle down after a day and do more foraging.

Make sure that your temperature is good. Other than that, Corys doing the happy dance is all good. Sterbai are especially happy cats.

Are any of them bigger than the others?

Yes, I guess they could be happy also. Their color seems to be darkening (more comfortable?) which is good. There is one that is bigger than the others, just overall bigger, and maybe slightly fatter. But even if they are happy, I've never seen them this extremely happy. Anyone with sterbai comment on this? ---- Any opinions on whether I should stick to the four I've got or should I add another one or two to make it five or six. I will be moving them to a 20 gallon long in the near future. I'll put some pics up within the next week also.

Hi alps,

I got your PM so I leave my 2 cents here.

I don't know which wall of glass they are swimming against, I bet that is the wall with most water movement. And as jollysue said the Sterbai is one of the most active Corydoras I have. Actually I think they are most excitable.
So I think they are just in the process of settling in. Maybe give them more plants and hiding place and driftwood may calm them down if you worry. And reduce the light intensity. But I think they are still try to get used to the new surrounding.

Here is what happened few months ago. I got some Cory in the mail and I put 5 C.Sterbai and 5 C.Similis in the tank themselves. And there were the powerhead with sponge attachment. And they swam in the current for day and night. I almost never see them on the ground. Only when I fed them, they come down to the ground to eat but rest of the time they swam in the mid water. It went at least 3~4 days. After that they calm down and start to spend more time on the ground.
So Just give them time and just keep eyes on them that they are eating. It should be nothing to worry about.

Unless of course, water parameter is off or the tank is set up too new or in the tank with some not so compatible tankmate or something. If not, I don't worry about it.

The larger one is most likely a female. If she is mature or nearly so, they could also be doing the happy sexy dance.

Sterbai are an active and gregarious Cory. They are one of the most active Corys I have. When they are in the best condition and lowest stress, the fins will brighten and the colors will brighten showing more of the orange. They seldom hide if at all secure and will dance constantly and spawn frequently once they start.

If they are not gasping for air or showing stress, then I would keep doing what you are doing. Happy, secure Corys dance.

Here is a shot of my C. sterbai dancing with their buds, the Brochis splendens (Emerald Copys), after a major tank maintenance and water change. And it is the first post of a pic from my new camera.



This post has been edited by jollysue: Oct 7 2007, 03:21 AM

Thanks guys. They don't look frantic at all. They look just like jollysue's cories. And I think NEON's right about them swimming against the wall with the most current.

- By the way Neon, renton fish gallery and pets has tons of sterbai for $4.
- Any opinions on keepin the number at 4, or increasing to 5 or 6?

thanks guys

Thanks for the tip. That is a good price. Although I don't think I need any. Then again, maybe good to put some new blood to my group to increase the gene pool.
Anyway, I will check them out. If they sell Sterbai for $4, they may sell something else for cheap also. I used to go there now and then until recently. Few times I went there, the store was empty and I thought they will go out of business.

They will do better in bigger number if the tank can handle IMO.
I saw the picture of school of Sterbai, yes they are formed school or shoal whatever you call it. Since the guy posted breed them and there must be 50 of them swimming in mid water in one direction. That is pretty neat view. If only I can have that big tank.

I think I'll up the number to 5 then.

The weak one died today. It had a problem that I only noticed a day after I got them. It's eyes were sunken in and its fins were misformed. Something genetic.

If you are planning to breed your sterbai, try to get some from another source. If it is genetic it could be from inbreeding. It could also be caused from poor nutrition either the mother's or the fry's, I would think..

I'm not really planning on going out my way to breed them. I believe I have a mix now of 3 males and 2 females.

- Odd Question: How long do Cardinals live? 2-3 years?

reason being that I just had one of my cardinals die, just an hour or two after feeding them. I am almost positive he didn't have any disease because I spend 5 minutes a night feeding them, then at least another 10 just watching the fish and he was eating well and everything (just 1.5-2 hours ago). I examined his body also and no sign of any problems whatsoever.

-nitrates, ammonia, everything are perfect. The only difference is that I've been dosing 1/2 the recommended amount of melafix just as preventative care for the cories. I've used the full dosage of melafix for over a month before without any side effects.

think he could have just died? if that's possible?