Cory Perfection Surprise...

Is there anything more adorable than Cory fry...

Recently I removed some eggs from two different aquariums. The first houses Galaxy Rasboras, along with Harborus Corys. The second has one of my favourite, a group of Aldolfo Corys who I always hoped would breed. It has been an interesting journey of surprises. So far, this is what I know...

Three of the eggs are now free swimming so are obviously Galaxy Rasboras.

I had two, now one very small fry, now believed to be Harborus Cory. So small, I often struggle to see him/her.

Finally I have three delightful, tiny Aldolfo Cory, awesomeness, they are so cute.

Currently they are fed a mixture of Banana/Microworms and Liquifry, 3-4 times a day. Occasionally, some crushed flake, yet I do not wish to foul the water, so prefer feeding the live food.

I have just bought some Artemia eggs, and am awaiting the arrival of one of these (could not find an English version)
http/youtu.be/5eCQ1iDpJno

So as not to shock them, I aim to do a 50-75% water change daily, and take the water from the Harborus adults tank. They are kept in a fry tank, on a fine layer of sand, which I read was better for them than a "bare bottom", on which they started. It also contains a few small pebbles, a moss ball cave, a bog wood cave and broken up Almond Leaves. It is powered by two pumps, one to a sponge filter and one to a bubble wand. It also contains three small Ramshorn snails and some plants.

I spend too long watching them, but they are a delight, how can I not, especially as they are my first born Cory fry, not forgetting the Rasboras fry too . Pictures, as I know you love them, to follow when I get chance to sort and upload to photo bucket. Any questions, fire away and I will do my best to answer them.

That's amazing news! I would love for my Cory's to breed but no such luck
 
You'll have to share some pictures when they get big enough to see on camera

I have the hobby artemia hatchery, they're great, I'd advise getting two so you have a constant supply.

I set one up one day and the other the next day as they usually take 24 hours to hatch, enough for a good batch anyway.

I mix mine a little different too, I use 1litre of water with three teaspoons of table salt. And it always produces fantastic batches, my mystery babies love them, I also pop some in my main tank every now and again, they go mad for them! It's so funny to watch, my bentosi tetras are especially funny to watch.

Can't wait to see pics of these little Cory babies, the adults are super cute never mind Cory fry!!

For your viewing pleasure, enjoy...


Good idea to have two hatchery's. Mine has just arrived. I bought the Hobby Artemia and Salt Mix, and will let you know how I get on. Which do you use?

Oh my word, they are just too much!!! How cute!


And I just use good old table salt and I got some eggs of eBay, be sure to look for one's with a 90% hatch rate, they fair a lot better than the cheaper ones, I get fantastic batches for up-to 5 days but I always redo them every three days just to make sure I get the best of them.

Usually day two yields the best batches. If you'd like I can send you info via pm of the seller I get mine from, or just have a look on eBay I'm sure you'll find him!

It is indeed exciting when fry appear, and they survive and grow.  I will only add a suggestion, and that is to increase the dry leaves.  I have had success raising pygmy cory fry, Farlowella fry, and others solely with lots of dry oak leaves.  Past this stage, they eat prepared foods, so I never bother with artemia and such, but then I have fewer fish resulting.  The leaves produce infusoria which is the best initial food for all fry, and several articles in periodicals have mentioned that fry do grow faster with dry leaves.  You mentioned almond leaves and they are fine; oak, beech, maple leaves also work.  I add a couple leaves every week at the water change, and I usually leave the leaves until they have basically decomposed completely or nearly so.
 
Just make sure the leaves are completely dead/dry, having fallen from the trees and then totally dried out.  I have an oak tree in the back garden that I collect bags of leaves from every autumn.  The leaves are useful in aquascaping too.
 
Byron.

guppiegirlie said:

Oh my word, they are just too much!!! How cute!
...If you'd like I can send you info via pm of the seller I get mine from...

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Indeed they are, cuteness personified, especially when foraging. Now you know why I watch them when I can . Do you want to see them on video? I have some footage which I want my nephew to do for me, but if you wish I can upload a snippet?

Yes please re: the seller you use, as I located a few, so would be good to know. I got the Hobby one as it was all combined, yet I noted that it did not seem well mixed, will see how it goes...
Hobby Artemix, eggs + salt http/www.amazon.co.uk/Hobby-21100-Artemix-eggs-salt/dp/B0043B6B4Q

Byron said:

It is indeed exciting when fry appear, and they survive and grow. I will only add a suggestion, and that is to increase the dry leaves...

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Thanks for that will see if I can source some and will add more of the Almond Leaves. Interestingly as I needed the leaves swiftly and thought I had run out of my usual supply I got some from my LFS. These were commercially produced and package, yet it is the first time I have ever seen mould appear on IAL. Any eggs on top also went mouldy, so I will learn from this.

I went for the Artemia as I had read that nutritionally they are great for fry. Great to learn from others experiences too.

Byron, How many cory fry have you managed to raise? I have had others, but these are my first cory fry. How long did you find they took to reach a decent size?

Thanks for that will see if I can source some and will add more of the Almond Leaves. Interestingly as I needed the leaves swiftly and thought I had run out of my usual supply I got some from my LFS. These were commercially produced and package, yet it is the first time I have ever seen mould appear on IAL. Any eggs on top also went mouldy, so I will learn from this.
 

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Interesting about the mould.  I have been adding my garden dry oak leaves for over two years now, to 2 or 3 tanks only for effect, and have never had mould or fungus appear.  The leaves usually decompose over several weeks, and sometimes I pick out the "skeleton" and sometimes not.  After I collect them, from the ground, I just let them dry; no washing or treatment.

 

I went for the Artemia as I had read that nutritionally they are great for fry. Great to learn from others experiences too.
 

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Artemia is an excellent first food (when the fry are large enough to eat them), and in the past I have hatched these when I have made the effort to save as many of the fry as possible.  Now days I tend more to just let nature takes its course, and what survives does.  Most eggs get eaten, but now and then I see a fry of various species in the tanks.
 

Byron, How many cory fry have you managed to raise? I have had others, but these are my first cory fry. How long did you find they took to reach a decent size?
 

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As I say, I am letting nature takes its course.  I'm certain only a few fry are surviving.  Yesterday I counted 12 smallish (I'd estimate just over 1 cm) pygmy corys, but there may be more.  The 10g they are in has two chunks of wood covered in moss reaching the surface, so I only ever see fish that come out front.  I have seen the odd newly-hatched fry, just a tiny black speck, on the sand.  Which reminds me, I agree that you should have sand in the fry rearing tank.  Corys have an instinctual need to sift sand through their gills.
 
I am also raising about 10 Farlowella fry in this tank at present; I had no success raising the fry of this species until I added the oak leaves.  The fry are on the leaves most of the time, so clearly they are getting nourishment.  I have five from a prior hatching now adults in another tank.

Indeed the mould was interesting. I too do what you do in the main tanks and just leave the leaves to break down. I located some from my original source and will add some to the fry tank and see what happens.

Thanks for confirmation re: sand. I also believe in many ways it is probably cleaner for them, than a bare tank bottom, in which they would just be sitting it whatever is on the bottom, whereas the sand would give some protection I guess. I only have a thin layer and add more when I syphon it out accidentally.

Farlowella look interesting, not kept those myself. Do you have a topic on your setup with your Pygmy's/fry? Great they are breeding in situ, that is the ideal and I am hoping in future that this will occur in my tanks. Currently though I would be surprised if any would survive due to other inhabitants.

The 10g is my "experimental" tank of sorts, having lived many lives.  After the original six pygmy corys were ready to leave quarantine, I wasn't sure whihc tank they should go in (had ideas for some re-aquascaping) so I put them in the 10g by themselves.  One day I noticed eggs, about four or five, among the moss and one on the glass.  Fry developed over time.  And aside from using this tank for growing out the Farlowella, the pygmies have it to themselves.  Which as you say is undoubtedly why some do survive, no predators.  And I doubt this species would eat their own fry.
 
Here's what this 10g looks like today, rather a hodge-podge but it is only for breeding/growing.  Some of the present Farlowella fry in photo 2, on the glass and one on the leaf; these are about 3 months old, they are very slow growing.  And a photo from a few months back showing the corys, an adult and two fry (different spawnings obviously by the size).

Byron, I am constantly in awe of your tanks!

It looks fantastic

Thanks Byron, the oak leaves look great. I have since added another Almond leaf to my fry tank from my original source.

Well it now appears that all the Cory fry are probably all Harborus. Three have grown well, with one of the three being a little smaller so it maybe male vs female. The little one shown in the pictures, is still, well little. Seems to eat and scurry around but is not growing very fast like the others are now, so may well be a runt?

Although the Aldolfo eggs were different colours, it was some of these that went mouldy, so I can only asume the males may well have been lazy and they were never fertile?

I had a tragedy with one of the Rasboras fry, as it sadly went up the airline tube I was using for cleaning, and was killed outright. Needless to say I was gutted at my error. The two remaining behaviours changed and they were not out and about as much, as if missing their third friend. I no longer use a siphon, unless it is a large syringe which I feel more in control of.

Surprise1, is mother Hasborus was laying again last night. I have removed some of the eggs, three of which she conveniently laid on a snail . I have had to place them in a net in the fry tank for fear of the now larger fry eating them. I feel that the current fry, apart from tiny, will soon be moved to their parents tank to enable these new eggs to be removed from the net and given a chance. I have also removed the snails to protect the eggs.

Surprise2, I spotted the tiniest of fry in a spawning mop. I managed to remove it and place it into the fry tank with the assistance of a turkey baster. I have a picture which I will upload for you, but it is likely to be a Rasboras fry and is smaller than snail poop! No idea where it is now in the fry tank.

Update:
Tiny the smallest cory fry eventually passed, never seemed to grow, whereas the others now live with adults.

The free swimming fry was indeed another Galaxy Rasboras.

The second batch of eggs, I believed three had hatched, however surprise, there are five. Great to see these cute babies mature, soon to be added into a larger tank with adults.