Midwater corys

[Tempestuousfury]

I've got two albino corys that stay near the top of the tank. They don't seem to be gasping for O2, especially since my goldfish didn't have that problem in there when the tank was at around 80 degrees! Is this detrimental for the fish at all? One of them definitely goes down to the bottom to eat, but the other seems to stay up. Would adding more corys placate them?

 

[JobySp]

I noticed today in the LFS that some of the albino cories where always at the top, and swimming upside down along the surface of the water.

 

[Cheese Specialist]

My albino corys stay at the bottom, ccasionally darting to the top. Just like my other corys.

Do you have any other bottom feeders acting weird? With your tempature being 80F perhaps there is not much oxygen and this woud affect the bootom feeders more. The bottom of the tank has oxygen less anyway, this could account for you not seeing your other fish act strange.

 

[Tempestuousfury]

My ghost shrimp and ADF seem to be fine.

I thought that it might be the O2, pH, or temp, so I changed the water and added colder water. It didn't make any difference. They don't seem to be sick, though. But they are swimming around the perimeter of the tank at the top really fast. They come down to the bottom to eat, so I don't think that'll be a problem.

 

[Cheese Specialist]

Have they always done it or is it a new thing? If they have always done it, you shouldn't worry (I don't think), corys are pretty strange. Do they have something to hide under. Maybe they are scared of your ADF?

 

[Billsjunkie]

My little spotted cory scared the crap out of my ADF. I think he thought he was a piece of meat because he started to suck on the back of the ADF. Frog swam off pretty fast lol.

 

[panboy]

my catfish was doing that for a couple weeks before he died, he just died 2 days ago.... i dont think its a good thing. he never did it before, but all of sudden he started swimming upside down alot at the top.
my water is perfect and the only thing i can think is he didnt get enough food and starved....

 

[Tempestuousfury]

They were both eating an algae disk this morning. They're new fish and I've had them for about a week.

 

[Inchworm]

Hi temp

I'm just now getting caught up on my posting here. How are your corys doing? I hope they have started to act like normal corys.

If your water temperature is 80 degrees, it's a bit on the warm side. However, it's not a good idea to reduce the temperature by adding cold water. This could stress your fish and leave them vulnerable to ich. When it becomes necessary to do this, it is usually better to turn the thermostat on the heater down and monitor it until it gets to be the desired temperature.

Changing water is a good thing to do, however, when your corys have any kind of problem. It is the first thing I would recommend.

Corys frequently dart up to the surface to gulp air, and I've seen them try to eat food from the surface of the water. This is not, however, normal behavior if it continues.

 

[Tempestuousfury]

They're staying at the bottom for long periods of time, now. I do water changes at least once a week, but I do more on my smaller and "newer" tanks (I cleaned out the 10 and changesd gravel).

I noticed last night that the temperature had dropped five or more degrees, from around 78 to 70. I kept the lights on because they are the only source of light, and the temp went up to 75. Since higher temps increase the metabolism and my room temperature is apparently lower than what I have them at, I'll slowly change the temperature over the week so I can get them to the lower 70's. That should be better for all of the fish I've got in there right now, and I know that the temp definitely won't go below 68.

I'll tell you guys how it turns out on tuesday, when I'm able to get back on the computer.

 

[Inchworm]

Hi temp

You really should make getting a heater a high priority. Temperature fluctuations can cause some very serious problems in a tank.

The stress caused by quick lowering of temperature can result in ich; raising the temperature quickly makes the fish candidates for bacterial infections.

I have been using Radiant heaters when I have to replace a broken thermometer or are setting up a new tank. They are made by Hagen and while they are not as fancy as some heaters, they work well.

I recently bought an 8" 100 watt heater for $6.99 at my lfs. I did, however, see the same item for $8.99 at another lfs, so it pays to shop around.

Here's a link:


http/hagen.com/usa/aquatic/sub_category_...0&PSUBCAT=11002

 

[Tempestuousfury]

Unfortunately, I'm already fully aware of the fact that temp changes cause stress and therefore diseases.

I'm tappe dout of cash right now. However, I could get two five-gallon heaters and place them in. That'd prevent a stew and might be more cost-effective. However, I still need that job, and I've only got 10 bucks right now, which I need to use for flake food.

I'll see if I can get my aunt to help me out though. I'm going to set up her 50 gallon tank in a few weeks (too long to wait) if she decides to buy it. I hope she does, because that means I'll have five tanks to care for. Don't worry, I know what I'm doing and I won't kill the fish in her two tanks. It's just money that's the main issue. But don't worry, I'll get a heater soon, hopefully.