Hyper Corys?

Hey
So ive gotten 3 small albino corys to go in my 15gal with my male betta.
The largest of them is hanging out at the bottom munching on hikari wafer and shoot up for air every now and then.

The other 2 however , jesus there like missiles, shooting up and down, chasing each other and really totally the opposite of what I thought would be a Bottom dweller

As im typing this there racing each other across the top 4inchs of the tank and its almost like there trying to play with the betta. Swimming right up in his face and such.

Now hes not flared at them and its almost as if hes like "how boring" and floating off not paying any attention to them.

Should I be worried or are they just over excited and will calm down by moring??

Hi Johnlenham

When I say corys tend to be active fish, I mean it! They are probably just getting used to the tank and will soon calm down some.

A little while ago I responded to your post on the Bottom Feeders thread with some information about keeping corys and bettas together.

http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showto...p;#entry2244753

What you see the corys doing when they suddenly shoot up to the surface is getting air. Since their natural waters become muddy when they are churned up during the rainy season, they have developed another way to supplement the oxygen they get from the water. By gulping air from the surface they can swallow it and as it passes through their intestines the oxygen is absorbed into their bloodstreams. You might notice them making harmless little "fish farts" as the air leaves their bodies.

This behavior is normal if it is on an occasional basis. They do not have labyrinths like bettas and if it persists, you will need to increase the surface movement to add more oxygen to the water.

Good luck with your new corys!

Ah ok thanks for both responses.

About the filter current its set-up so it disturbs the water but isnt strong enough to affect the betta and he did swim right up and around the outlet so I imagine hes fine with it also to a lesser extent its planted so that should help right?

I think Hyperactive is more like it but there are really awesome fish and plan to get some more in the coming weeks are there any you can recommend?
off the top of my head I saw:

Schwartzi (sp)
Peppered
Panda
Albino
and some that looked about 4" in a unmarked tank so no idea on them.

ofc there may be others if I shop around.

Oh ive just googled "C. sterbai" and theres an albino one that is the spitting image of the lazier one of the 3 so maybe a mix up?
His Dorsal is more pointed and has a hint of red/orange in him. ill upload the pics and see what you have to say

There we go

They all look like aeneus to me. They don't seem to have the correct head shape that my sterbai have, nor the deep orange pectoral or pelvic fins. Also to note, aeneus is a very variable species, and colors can be from yellow to pink.

If you are adding more cories to your 15 gal, I would suggest staying away from Pandas and Paleatus (peppers), because they prefer cooler waters that Bettas wouldn't like. I personally would add more albinos.

Hi Johnlenham

It looks like you have a lovely trio of albino C. aeneus. They look nice and healthy too.

It's less a matter of body color with the albino C. sterbai, as it is their bright orange pectoral fins.

When it comes to buying another batch of corys, why not consider getting some bronze C. aeneus? Since they are the same species, just different colors, they would be the perfect companions for them.

Ok boss I did like the look of the Bronzes and if there the same type as my albinos then thats enough for me

Oh another question is how often should I be feeding them? I give them half a hikari wafer and break it into bits should that be enough to last the day with them? and is there any type of plants in particular they prefer or stuff in general really?

Theyve also calmed down abit and are not harassing the betta as much occasionally in a mad burst one will bump into him but he jst floats off.
Only thing ive seen him do atall is come right up to "fatso" on the bottom examine him then float off.

Thanks again

Hi Johnlenham

Feed your corys as much as they can eat but don't leave leftovers laying around. With a Hikari wafer that's easier said than done because it takes a little while for it to soften up enough for them to eat it all.
Keep an eye on them the first few times they eat, but if it stays around for more than an hour or so, feed less the next time.

If you can get live blackworms or frozen bloodworms it will do them good as well. Plus, your betta will like them too.

Boo
They gone the opposite now they've got comfortable they keep hideing away at the back of the tank amongst the camboa (sp) lol

Occasionally fatso comes out to have a rummage in the sand but the other two stay stay hidden.
Is this because theres only 3 of them? Hoping to get 3 more Bronzes on Saturday will this coax them out of hiding?

Oh yes and also I shall be doing a massive re-arange of the tank as ive had soem deliverys of plants throught the week and will be getting some bogwood on Friday so I want to do an overhaul. Is it going to be ok to keep the 3 corys and my betta in a 2.5gal of water while I do this or should I add my coconut bits for cover and such?

Hi Johnlenham

It's possible that your corys have just settled down. If they're active at least part of the day, don't worry. If not, there are a few things you might want to consider. Is the water and substrate clean and free from uneaten food and debris? This is the most important thing. Give the tank a good water change and see if that helps before you do anything else.

The temperature could be too high for them or the water too still. If you change either of these things, keep a close watch on the betta.

Watch the betta too for signs of aggression toward the corys. If they feel threatened they will hide.

Yup seems it was them calming down as there back to themselves.
I did pick up 3 bronze corys today, there alittle larger than my albinos but they are roaming the tank together doing the digging train and every now and then an albino joins in.

Going to re do my tank tomorrow so hopefully when its better planted and there re-introduced they will all travel together

Hi Johnlenham

I'm glad to see you got some more corys. Lots of luck with them.

Inchworm said:

Hi Johnlenham

I'm glad to see you got some more corys. Lots of luck with them.

Click to expand...

Yeah they are awesome. I sat there for a good 20mins just watching them rummage through the sand and going in and out of the coconut caves.
Not sure how much space ive got left in my 15 gal but I was pretty tempted to buy two Sterebis I think they where called

I can see why you have so many haha

Well had quite some drama today.

Well where to start, all day yesterday I was wondering where one of my albinos had got to, well today when I did a massive overhaul and found him dead at the bottom upon inspection one side near the head was very black underneath the skin. No signs of damage to the fins or anything so no idea what happened as the others are all fine.

Sorted the tank out and added bog wood, slate and plants and re filled/chlorinated etc etc and all was fine or atleast I thought.

Turns out my betta was being a little #### as I saw him sneak up on one of the new corys and chased him out of the cave then tried to bite him ,the sod.
Watched for a little while and he tried it on again so ive now nabbed him and setup his old tank and now hes stuck in there for being a little ####e

So now the corys are on there own, ive taken the current killer of the tank so now its flowing properly so better aeration and knocked the temp down a few degrees so hopefully this will be my last death for a long while.