long timers….( no, not us )

Magnum Man · Tuesday at 5:47 AM

so, what is your oldest fish??? I’ve only been back into aquariums for the last 4-5 years, so obviously if I wasn’t gifted an old fish from someone my oldest is that age… I have a pair of sterbai cory’s that have been with me since the restart… they’ve been through bad water, and several tank rebuilds… one no longer still has it’s barbels , and one amazingly still does so these guys are my oldest right now, at between 4 and 5 years old…

how about you???

GaryE · Tuesday at 6:51 AM

I gave away and bartered a lot of my fish when I moved here 5 years ago. I didn't think the older fish would survive a wintertime move, 800 km in a cold truck and straight into newly set up tanks. So my oldest fish is a wanamensis rainbow that's now in the fade range at around 12.
I had a number of fish in the 10 plus range prior to the move, and if they're thriving with the people I gave them to, they'll be 15 now.

Fishmanic · Tuesday at 7:25 AM

I have a Peppered cory that I believe is about 6 years old, possibly more. He is very fat as he gobbles up anything on the substrate including the algae wafers that I feed to my BN Plecos.
From AI, I found this information.
The lifespan of a peppered cory (Corydoras paleatus) is typically 5 to 10 years with proper care, though some captive specimens live up to 15 to 20 years in optimal conditions

Back in the fold · Tuesday at 9:51 AM

Fishmanic said:
From AI, I found this information.

Al who ? Prince Albert ?

Fishmanic · Tuesday at 9:54 AM

@Back in the fold
no it wasn't Prince Albert...he's in the can

It was Google intelligence :lol:

Uberhoust · Tuesday at 10:46 AM

I had a single 14 year old Angel fish that I kept with my African Cichlids when I kept those. My father kept 5 or 6 clown loaches that he moved from LA to Calgary for 18 years before he sold them because he started having issues maintaining large tanks. My oldest Angel I have now is only 8 years old.

bgarthe · Tuesday at 10:58 AM

My current oldest is a Bronze Corydorus that is around 6. Just last year I gave away my truly oldest fish…..a few Koi that I had for 26 years.

Back in the fold · Tuesday at 11:36 AM

Fishmanic said:
no it wasn't Prince Albert...he's in the can

Better let him out , the Queen’s looking for him !

Boundava · Tuesday at 11:56 AM

I had a albino BN male that lived to a ripe 17, I also had a pepper cory female that lived to 12.

Not a fish, but I have a 3-toed box turtle that is +/- 37years old, got her as a baby.

Innesfan · 2026-11-04T11:03:35-0600

I've referenced this before in other threads; I have a quintet of Hoplisoma CW21 (that were Corydoras CW21 when I got them) that are the remnants of a larger shoal that I bought before 9/11--I think it was early 2001-- so that makes them 25 years old at least. When I fed them last night I noticed they very much look geriatric, but they are still agile and active. They are by far the oldest fish I've ever had, the runner-ups being some wild Tefe Green Discus and a Jack Dempsey that made it to their mid teens.

WhistlingBadger · 2026-11-04T11:35:02-0600

I have a few angelfish that are 6-7 years old. My problem isn't fish longevity, it's attention span. I usually keep a setup going for about 4-5 years before I get bored with it, give the fish to new homes, and start something new.

Tomsfish · 2026-11-04T21:58:01-0600

I re stocked my tank this Spring due to aging out but I have 1 hold over from the old stock.
One clown loach out of the original 8 I had that is aprox. 25 years old.
I added new clowns and one I found that is the same size as my oldest but oddly the two are never together still this far into this arrangement.
I have a bunch of Denison barbs also that are in the 5-6 year age that are nearing replacement time but seem spry and active still.

CassCats · 2026-11-04T23:43:36-0600

9 year old cherry barb

And then this guy is some age over 10-12+ years old. Coworker said she had him 5-7 years, I have had him 5 years now, and then however old he was before my old coworker got him. She couldn't remember exactly how long she had him prior to rehoming to me, so