Can I put a cory in with 3 week old guppy fry?

[phishphood]

Will a cory be ok with 3 week old guppy fry or will it eat them? I would put 2 corys in there so they didn't get lonely, but I need something to clean the gravel up a bit for me and I'm scared of using the gravel vac, in case it sucks up one of the little guys.

 

[colin5861]

cory's are fine with guppy fry, in fact a lot of the top writers like axelrod and whithern recommend them.

However they were not aware of the fact that salt is not good for cories, So if you have salt in your tank its best not to use corys as scavengers. I use corys in my tanks but if I need to add salt I move the corys out and put an apple snail in.

Note very well I used plural for the corys - I keep them in trios but only singular for the apple snails.

good luck

Colin

 

[Tanked]

I thought snails didn't deal to well with salt either...maybe I'm wrong

 

[canis_lupus]

my snails won't die!!!!!!!! and i have salt in my tanks

 

[colin5861]

Apple snails are salt tolerant in small amounts - ie no more than 0.3% So a couple of teaspoons in a typical tank will not hurt. However as in all things this concentration has to be built up slowly not suddenly thrown in. I keep all my snails in tanks with a little salt in the water and they are fine. Also the salt MUST be dissolved in water before addition - pure salt on the snail body will cause damage.

By the way I should state that all my apple snails are Pomacea bridgesi ( originally from the Amazon but now being bred and sometimes known as golden mystery snailsl) which do not eat live plants. Some of the others can cause havoc in a planted tank but not my little beauties.

One last note I hated snails until I got these - they are very attractive creatures.

Colin

 

[phishphood]

Thanx a lot, I'll move them in tonight.

 

[Inchworm]

Cory cats make great nannies, phishphood

They do not eat fry, neither their own nor any other fish's. Just make sure that they have enough food. The leftovers from the fry's meals will probably not be enough for two adult corys.