Change In Cory Behavior

[walker001]

Hi, I have 5 cory cats in my tank and when it was just a laterite and black sand substrate the were always out during the day snuffling around the bottom in a little group. Since then, my plants have taken hold and are growning rather well. The dwarf grass especially.
My cories are now seldom seen and most of the time I have to poke around and hunt for them to do a head count. Could the plants be having a negative effect on my little buddies?

I also should say that 3 are fairly old and decent sized and 2 are very old and gigantic relative to other cories I have seen in pics. Is old age setting in?

Thanks,
Walker

 

[AlexAndCarmen]

Younger corys are active little happy chappies, where as the bigger older ones are more reserved, unless of course, it's spawning season. We also have a heavily planted tank, and they seem to love hiding amongs plants and rooting around the plants looking for food. Greedy buggers. As long as they are eating, and their barbles and bodies look to be in good condition, I wouldn't worry. Keep well.

 

[emma12321]

Hi,

There's a report somewhere on the net about a bronze cory that lived 36 years so i doubt old age is the problem. Would it be possible for you to clear just a small area of the tank to feed them in then they could root around in that bit.

Emma

 

[Barracuda518]

I have 2 almost full grown Brochis splendens, bascially the same thing as a Bronze C. Aeneus, and they stay in the corner of the back of the tank with the loaches a lot. At feeding time they zoom out with the loaches and stay out for the rest of the night. I have 5 Bronze C. Aeneus that are still quite young that are out and about all the time. I agree that the hiding has something to do with the age and is normal.

 

[Captain Retardo]

Yep, my large corys (older) usually just sit on the bottom (unless its feeding time!) but my small one (less than 1 inch) is always swimming around looking for food!

 

[Qays]

how old do they get before getting less active?

 

[Captain Retardo]

Mine are about 2 inches long, I dont know how old...

Some of the bigger ones are still really active, just not as much as the younger ones.

 

[justahbi]

Hi, I have 5 cory cats in my tank and when it was just a laterite and black sand substrate the were always out during the day snuffling around the bottom in a little group. Since then, my plants have taken hold and are growning rather well. The dwarf grass especially.
My cories are now seldom seen and most of the time I have to poke around and hunt for them to do a head count. Could the plants be having a negative effect on my little buddies?

I also should say that 3 are fairly old and decent sized and 2 are very old and gigantic relative to other cories I have seen in pics. Is old age setting in?

Thanks,
Walker

cory fish are naturally going to hide. since your plants just recently took off in there growth it is very possible that they simply didnt have hiding places before. as long as you still see them eating on a mostly regular basis and they don't have any visible alignments i wouldn't worry about them. i have three smaller cory's and one larger one. although they aren't very old there still is a large difference in behavior just in my four. the three little ones are constantly swimming around and "playing" while the bigger one is happy just to sit and watch.

if you are worried about them, i suggest watching them at night which is when they are most active. generally you can expect them to sleep all day and hunt more for food in the evening.