Breeding Pygmy Corys

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Ok. :) 
 
This is random, but is there a way to get the white crusty stuff off of your filters and light case? :p 
 
I plan on getting some pygmys today. :) And hopefully I can get some java moss too before to long. 
 
congrats ... photo doesn't work though.
 
No idea what the white crusty stuff is so can't help there. As to easy to breed... you've bred them twice already without trying - think you've answered your own question!
 
Yeah, but this is a slightly different variety. 
 
How about this link? You may need to copy and paste it. :p http://www.fishlore.com/profile-corydoras-habrosus.htm
 
Before I had the pygmy with the one long black line from head to tail along their sides. The ones I have now have kind of a line there and then also spots. 
 
now I think I need to find me some of those!! They eat small snails ... hello little cory ... come and live with me and you can eat as many small trumpet snails as your little tummies can hold lol
 
Very cute.
 
Breeding shouldn't be an issue if you have a good male-female ratio. Maybe just put them in a tank and leave them to it... see what comes about :) 
 
That species is Corydoras habrosus.  I have kept them, but not spawned them (though they were in a community tank so likely spawned but eggs were eaten by other fish).  Their spawning will be near-identical to C. pygmaeus.  The eggs I have seen are easily spotted, they are white and maybe 2 mm or 1/16 inch diameter, placed singly here and there.  I have only seen eggs a couple times, so the fish obviously place them in hidden spots for the most part.  I would not remove them for this species, as they are unlikely to eat them.
 
If you have the corys in their own tank with no other fish, I very much doubt they will eat the eggs or fry.  Mine have not.  The wood with Java Fern attached will be ideal to put in this tank.  Some Java Moss on the wood should be OK.  And floating plants are helpful to reduce the light.  Forest fish do not appreciate overhead lighting.
 
Leaves can be most any from hardwood trees.  I use oak, but beech, maple will work.  In NA you may find it difficult to find any now, depending where you live, but some fish stores sell almond leaves which will work.  Any leaf that is safe will, submerged, slowly decompose and this is what you want.  Infusoria as Akasha explained will appear and fry will eat it.  The liquifry is another method.  The sponge filter another.
 
I wouldn't recommend a bare bottom though; a layer of fine smooth sand like play sand is better.  This will encourage more food for the fry, and the substrate will be healthier than a bare bottom which will need to be kept very clean.  I am only changing half the tank water once a week, same as always in every tank, and vacuuming the open sand areas during this.
 
Byron.
 
Akasha72 said:
now I think I need to find me some of those!! They eat small snails ... hello little cory ... come and live with me and you can eat as many small trumpet snails as your little tummies can hold lol
 
 
haha :) Don't you have any around your area? 
 
Yes, I think I'll probably leave the 2 filters going for now, and once they get old enough to breed I may switch to my sponge filter (which I chopped down). 
 
I've found bare tank bottoms can cause little fry (in my case green corys) to fungus. At least that happened when I was feeding them messier food, like crushed flakes and the sort. 
 
How do you attach java moss or keep it from floating away? I use fishing line for my java ferns... 
 
What's a good breeding ratio? I have 7 young ones right now, so it could be a bit before I can sex them. Is 2-3 males per female good? 
 
When I kept mine with a bare bottom I had the time to get in with some airline tubing each day and clean up any mess. I found it easier but each to their own.
 
To attach the moss ... I got myself a flat piece of rock, got a good clump of moss and got some clear sewing thread and just wound it round and round in various directions. I've also read of some people using a hair net of all things! The moss will grow through the gaps. Java moss is pretty indistructable
 
Breeding ratio's ... well I had 4 panda's - two males to 2 females and they still bred and now I have 6 ... looks like I have 4 males now but it's a bit early to tell. The extra two just turned up one day about 6 weeks apart. They'd clearly survived hidden in the plants with no help from me. I think so long as you have a male and a female amongst the 7 they'll breed. We all talk about breeding ratios and what's best but the fish don't care how many males and females there are!
 
Ok, sounds good! :)
 
How old do pygmys have to be to breed? I'm guessing mine are... oh, at least 3 or 4 months old. Also, do you know how long they live? 
 
Let's say I have my 7 pygmys as a breeding group, possibly a few others. About how many fry could I raise to selling size in the tank at one time? (I do plenty of water changes.)  
 
too young to breed just yet I'd say .. although it's always guess work how old they are when we get them. I think the average life span for cories is about 5 years ...can't see how pygmys would be any different.
 
as for the next question ... impossible to answer. What will be will be with how many survive
 
We're talking Corydoras habrosus now, not C. pygmaeus, though again both are fairly similar in most respects.  I have seen the lifespan of C. habrosus given as 2-3 years, and elsewhere up to five years.  I don't know when they start spawning.
 
Provided the food is plentiful, I would leave the fry in the tank until they are roughly the size of those you can usually purchase in stores, which is somewhere around half an inch.
 
Byron.
 
Ok. :) Thanks so much guys for all the help! I'm actually out of questions at the moment. ^.^ 
 
Anything else I should know? 
 
no problem :)
 
All question answered out lol
 
haha I bet! :D 
 
Here's some more! hehe Do you have any pygmys right now? Also, do you breed and sell any of your fish? 
 
no, my stock is in my signature below. I'm currently taking a break from breeding my fish. I have a young pair of angels though and hopefully they will breed successfully at some point but I don't really mind if they don't. I don't really have the space for a serious breeding programme
 

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