Serpae Nipping My Corys

[wolfwolf]

Hi all. This is my first post. I have had a 20 gallon tank for 60 days. I did not do a fishless cycle because I had never heard of it. Sorry... Anyway I cycled with three corys and now my tank is ammonia 0, nitrite 0, nitrate 10, pH 7.5. I went to the LFS yesterday and got 5 serpae tetras. I read quite a bit about their tendency to fin nip but I thought it would be okay since my corys tend to stay on the bottom. This afternoon I noticed that all three of my corys have fin damage. The two that stay together are not bad but my "loner" cory is pretty beat up. I just got done feeding sinking tablet and flake food. The Serpae did seem to like the sinking tablets but I did not see them nip the corys at all. Should I give the fish a while to settle in or should I move the corys immediately?

The serpae almost ate the food right out of my hand. They were hungry little devils

 

[rdd1952]

Hello and welcome to the forum.

Are you sure the fin damage is from nipping? Corys are not considered good fish to cycle with and the fin damage could be from stress from the high ammonia and nitrite levels during the cycling process. And keep in mind that when you cycled it with the 3 corys, it was only cycled for those 3 fish. Adding the 5 serpaes would have started a new cycle so if you haven't been checking the levels, you could have had high ammonia and nitrite again. How long have the serpaes been in the tank?

 

[wolfwolf]

Hello and welcome to the forum.

Are you sure the fin damage is from nipping? Corys are not considered good fish to cycle with and the fin damage could be from stress from the high ammonia and nitrite levels during the cycling process. And keep in mind that when you cycled it with the 3 corys, it was only cycled for those 3 fish. Adding the 5 serpaes would have started a new cycle so if you haven't been checking the levels, you could have had high ammonia and nitrite again. How long have the serpaes been in the tank?

I am not sure that it is from nipping but I can tell you that the Serpaes all had fin damage when I saw them at the LFS. The corys were in perfect shape until they shared the tank with the serpae for less than 1 day. I did just check and my ammonia level is up from 0 but it is still less than .25. Based on my API liquid test.

Serpae were added 9/8/07 at 2:30pm. Noticed fin damage on all three corys on 9/9/07 at 11:30 am. I have been keeping a close watch today and the fins on the corys do not seem to be getting any worse. Could fin rot develop this fast?

Trust me these corys have been through heck. It is amazing that they are still alive. That is why I do not want the Serpae to cause them harm.

 

[rdd1952]

I've had serpaes and corys together before without any problems. As you said, they generally inhabit different areas of the tank. Hae you got plenty of hiding places for the corys? They need some cover and love laying under broad leaf plants. And I don't think you would see fin rot that quick and really, that isn't quick enough for the serpaes to nip the corys to the point that they have noticeable fin damage either (at least in my opinion). Is there anything in the tank that they could be tearing their fins on? Plastic plants are notorious for that.

 

[Biulu]

It is quite normal for serpaes to have fin damage, as they like to have a go at each other, until the pecking order is established. I am also surprised about the cories though! I have been keeping serpaes and cories together for almost a year now, and never had a problem with them.