Tropical Fish: Corydoras
Bronze Corydoras
Corydoras aeneus species
In the wild, most Corydoras swim in schools of several dozen or more, and similar conditions should be duplicated in the home aquarium. Corydoras aeneus should be kept in groups of six or more with other community tank fishes, such as small characins, livebearers and rasboras.
Kept as single specimens, they are shy and easily frightened, while keeping them in groups will give them a sense of security and allow the aquarist the opportunity to observe their comical behaviors. Avoid large, aggressive fishes, such as cichlids and large barbs, as tankmates.
These fishes should be housed in tanks with a substrate of dark-colored fine gravel or coarse sand to protect their barbels. A shallow tank is preferred because the fish will occasionally come to the surface for a gulp of air. The tank should be heavily planted with bunch plants (live or artificial), such as Elodea and Cabomba, as well as root plants like swordplants and Vallisneria, which will also act as hiding places. Decorate with driftwood and smooth rocks, leaving plenty of room in the center for swimming.
Corys will accept a wide variety of live, frozen and freeze-dried meaty foods. Live foods, such as Tubifex worms, earthworms, bloodworms, glass worms and brine shrimp are especially preferred. Supplement their diets with vegetable-based flake and pelleted foods. Although it is possible to differentiate between the sexes, to ensure spawning success it is best to purchase a group. Condition on small feedings of a high-protein diet that consists of small live foods, several times per day.
Spawning is preceded by a long courtship ritual consisting of chasing bouts interrupted by cleaning of potential spawning sites. Once courtship is finished, the corys lock together in the "T" position the female with her head nudged into the side of the male near his vent, the male clasping her barbels to his sides with his pectoral spines. The eggs are fertilized, the pair unclasps and the female deposits the eggs.
Corydoras aeneus often uses the sides of the aquarium, the plastic filter box, the sponge media of an inside or sponge or individual plant leaves, on which to deposit clusters of eggs. (Most other species of Corydoras deposit only two to four eggs per leaf, repeating the process for an hour or two until 100 or more eggs have been deposited.) The spawning bouts are repeated over and over until the female is depleted of eggs. Once spawning is completed, the eggs should be transferred to another tank where they will hatch in two to 10 days.
Source: aquarium fish magazine
Compatibility: Livebearers, Tetras, Barbs, Danios, Discus, Angelfish, Rasboras, Gouramis, Rainbowfish, Plecos, and peaceful scavengers.
Corydoras Care:
Corys require a well-planted aquarium with plenty of hiding places that provide relief from the light. A smooth sand or gravel substrate is needed because of the easily damaged barbells.
They enjoy being in numbers, so a small school of six or more is ideal for these cats.
Corydoras Related Articles:
Kuhli Loach. The real kuhli loach, Acanthophthalmus kuhlii, is a 3½-inch fish from Indonesia, Sumatra, Java, Malaya and Thailand. It has 15 to 20 dark bars on its flanks that almost circle the body, but stop at the belly.
The Orange Finned Loach. Like many of the botias, the orange finned or also call red-tail botia has switchblade-like eye spines that can cause problems when trying to net them. It is better to capture them in some type of container instead.
The Clown Loach is an active schooling fish that is best kept in small groups (three to six fish). It will tolerate tankmates of other species, although docile species may become agitated by the constant activity of this fish.