Cory Information Needed

[Sasha]

Since my 46 gallon tank doesn't have any bottom feeders, I originally wanted to get some Clown Loaches, but realized that they would soon outgrow the tank. I decided that I wanted to get a small group of cories instead. I haven't done a population count of my fish lately, since I have to remove the fish to be able to count them so I can see how much room I have available. ) I'm totally new to cories, since my main interest is livebearers. I heard that they like to be kept in groups, so is four a good number? I have a lot of questions I want answered before I get any. Can anyone provide some information about cories?

 

[lizard]

Since my 46 gallon tank doesn't have any bottom feeders, I originally wanted to get some Clown Loaches, but realized that they would soon outgrow the tank. I decided that I wanted to get a small group of cories instead. I haven't done a population count of my fish lately, since I have to remove the fish to be able to count them so I can see how much room I have available. ) I'm totally new to cories, since my main interest is livebearers. I heard that they like to be kept in groups, so is four a good number? I have a lot of questions I want answered before I get any. Can anyone provide some information about cories?

Yay, Corys! I highly recommend that every fish keeper have some Corys They're great little fish! I just love mine!

A little info:
They prefer to be in groups. Four would be a fine number to get. I've heard people say that different varieties of Corys will school together, but I don't see that much with mine - they tend to hang around with those of the same variety. They intermingle a little, but not a lot.

There are many varieties commonly found at pet stores: Julii, Pepper, Bronze, Albino, Panda, Skunk, and I forget the others right now. Pandas are my favorite I'm rather fond of my Pepper Corys though, too. Had an Albino Cory at one time and I like him too. Really, I like any corys

They like sand substrate better than gravel, but will do okay with gravel. Their little barbels are used to dig through stuff, and it's harder for them to dig through gravel. Their barbels also help them find food. I just put sand in my tank yesterday (or was it the day before?), after having had gravel in there forever, and the Corys love it!

Most of the time, I feed mine sinking wafers - currently they get Tetra's Variety Wafers, but algae wafers work fine. They also eat any of the Neons' food that drops to the bottom. On occasion, I feed them freeze-dried tubifix worms and bloodworms.

They like to have places to hide and escape the light, so provide plants for them to hide under or flower pots to hide in or PVC caves, etc. You probably get the idea.

Does that help you out some? I hope so!

Pamela
aka Married Lizard

 

[Inchworm]

Hi Sasha

It's hard not to fall in love with corys once you have them.

Four is a good number, but six is even better if you can accommodate them. Once you have them in your tank, it's just a matter of time until you will want to breed them. Since it's usually hard to tell the sexes when they are still young, with 6 you can usually be sure to have some of each sex. If you have ever thought about trying to raise egg layer fry, corys are great fish to start with.

If you have gravel instead of sand, just make sure it is fine gravel, not big pebbles. Be sure too that it has no sharp edges.

Please let us know what kind you decide to get.

 

[Sasha]

Thanks for the detailed information! Both my tanks had small, rounded gravel and a place to hide, which I would want if I was a fish with no eyelids and being under a bright light all day. My tank also has tons of plants, which provide a light shade from above. I think I could get away with six cories! Can I get three of each kind? I saw panda cories at a fish store once and absolutely loved them! They looked so cute!

The only thing I'm concerned about are the algae wafers! Whenever I drop them into the tank, my fish swarm around them! I want the cories to eat, but I'm afraid the fish would consume before the cories get a chance. This would be my first try with cories, so hoepfully everything would go smoothly!

 

[clutterydrawer]

Cories do have eyelids! They can wink at you! Go watch some in your lfs for a bit, they will wink at some point. It's neat.

 

[kevin007]

they are not eye lids, they look like they wink but they dont, they can only move thir eye balls, so when it looks down or ur it looks like they are blinking

 

[Inchworm]

Hi Sasha

If your fish like them, give them some during the day and feed your corys when you turn the lights out at night. Corys are actually nocturnal and they will have no trouble finding them in the dark while the others cannot see them.

If there is any left in the morning, the other fish will probably eat it then, or you can remove it. I know the Spirulina discs I feed mine can be left in the tank without deteriorating for a period of 12 hours. You can also do the same with Shrimp Pellets, which the corys love. Just be sure that they get a balanced diet with some live or frozen worms too.

Schooling fish swim together for a feeling of security. They are, like corys, defenseless when attacked by hungry predators. It makes them feel better when they are just "one of the crowd," because the predator is just as apt to eat one of the others then them.

So fish like to school with their own kind, or with others of similar size. For example, bronze and albino corys school well together because the are actually color variations of the C. aeneus. Now, panda are a different matter. They are quite shy compared to those two and are much smaller then they are. If you want pandas, you could go with 9 of them in the same space as you could keep 6 of the larger corys, and I would suggest this rather than getting just 3 of them and 3 of another kind.

On the other hand, there are always exceptions to every rule and this is often one of them. There are certainly pandas that school with larger fish, so it's worth taking a chance.

Which other corys are you thinking about getting?

 

[Sasha]

Thank you Inchworm for the helpful information!

I haven't really looked at cories in the pet store, so I don't know what kind I really want. I want to get some panda cories for sure, and maybe some pepper or bronze cories. What kind of cories do you suggest for a beginner?

When I set up the tank, I bought small gravel since I intended to get Clown Loaches. I aslo got a hollow mountain which provides heavy shade for those looking to retreat from the light. In the back of the tank, I planted tall large-leafed plants that block the light a little. The tank is designed like Atlantis, so there's a large temple in the center and a bunch of columns as well as plants.

As you can see by my signature under the 46 gallon, I don't have too much space but I haven't done a population count lately either. It's hard to count how many fish there are when most of them swarm together and are the same color and size. Anyway, thank you all so much for the infomation!

 

[Inchworm]

Hi Sasha

I like to recommend either bronze or albino C. aeneus to beginners. I think of them as being "basic corys." They are easy to feed and can be prolific breeders when they are mature.

 

[tear-scar]

Most people think that worm foods are ideal, though cories will pick at just about anything. Although I have seen mine horde around wafers on occasion, they generally are herd-type feeders, pecking at food when they find it, then roaming somewhere else even if there was still food left. They'll get to everything eventually. If you feed live foods like brine shrimp and blood worms, the other fish will probably not find them all. The worms will hide in the gravel until they are devoured by the cories. In my 5 gal, some of the brine shrimp always escape into my java moss before the ram snaps them up. The c. sterbai always pick up the surviving shrimp there.

 

[Sasha]

Thanks! Now I know that I'm going to get some panda and brozne cories. How many of each kind should I get in order for them to feel secure? I feed my fish frozen brine shrimp and bloodworms, which they go absolutely love!

 

[Inchworm]

Hi Sasha

The Bronze corys are an excellent choice in all respects. Although they are not the most colorful, what they lack in appearance, they make up in personality. They are also prolific breeders if you would like to try your hand at egg layers.

The pandas are very lovely and popular corys, but they are a bit more difficult to keep and to breed.

I suggest that you start with a small school of 4 to 6 bronze corys, and in a couple of months add some pandas.

If there is any fish that is more likely than the others to give you a case of MTS, it's got to be corys.

 

[Sasha]

Thanks Inchworm! I'll get a small school of brozne cories. What do you know about Pygmy cories? My pet stores sells a lot of them and they're so tiny!

 

[teamfargo]

These guys here are the experts, but... when I bought my cories they were in an assorted cory tank. A few of this kind, a few of that. They all hung out together and didn't seem to care what breed they were. So, of course, I got one of each variety! lol They do just fine and I like the fact that I can tell them apart from one another.

By the way, my little fellas eat just about anything. They are very active and are always doing something. In fact I think they have become my favorite fishies.

 

[Inchworm]

Hi Sasha

There are three kinds of pygmy corys. They are:

C.pygmaeus:

http/www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/calli...ydora/283_f.php

C. habrosus:

http/www.plantedtank.net/saltandpeppercatfish.html

C. hastatus:

http/www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/calli...ydora/324_f.php

I have never had any of these, so I can't speak from personal experience, but I have never heard anyone say that they are any different from any other cory when it comes to their care. I do not think that their small size makes them any more delicate or fragile than any of the other corys.

I hope to get some of whichever of these I find. They look cute as can be.