Corydoras/Otocinclus questions

[FalconStorm]

Okay, I've got a couple of questions on corys and otos. First, how imperative is it that these guys have others of their kind to school with? Will they totally freak out without others of their kind like neons, or can they get on okay by themselves? Will corys school okay with others that aren't exactly like them? (example: peppered with julii)

Does anyone know what level of waste they produce? (example: neons produce little waste, goldfish produce a lot of waste)

On oto's, if I don't have a lot of algae in my tank, what do you guys recommend to supplement their diet with? My oto ignores algae pellets.

 

[LoachLover]

If they don't have others of their own kind they might be ok, but they might stress out and die, it just really depends on the fish but it's always better to keep them in groups. They will generally school together if they are different like panda and albino or something, they don't really care

I don't think they produce much waste

You could try Cucumber, just weigh it down so it sinks to the bottom

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

You should realy give corys groups of at least 4 to shoal in as they can get very stressed on their own or in too smaller groups making them more suspectable to to illness and death, the majority of corys are small waste producers.
You should be able to buy algae wafers/tablets from your lfs for your otto and also catfish pelets for your corys as these fish also need their diets suplimented to be healthy.

 

[FalconStorm]

Hmm...I have one of each and I was planning to get a couple more otos and at least one more cory. I may just start collecting the different types of corys. Mine is so cute and much more endearing than I had expected. She's some kind of spotted, but not a peppered, and I've had my eye on a Julii, so I may go ahead and get her a companion. I'm concerned about their waste production, because the tank they're in is pretty stocked, but it's all neons who are low waste producers and I do a lot of water changes, so I think it'll be okay. I always seem to want to do something with the tank, so water changes it is. Certainly can't hurt, I'm sure.

My oto ignores algae wafers, so I'll probably try the cucumber, especially when I get more of them. I'll see about getting some catfish pellets too.

Thanks for your answers, guys. They were very helpful.

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

I was just looking at your profile, is that information on it up to date and correct? If so you have seriously overtstocked your 5gal, you should only have the betta in it and thats all, 3guppys and 1 male swordtail is realy bad news- swordtails need at least 15gals as they need alot of swimming space and the guppys are overtstocking the tank as it is with the betta.
I could go on about the 10gal...But is your profile correct first of all?

 

[FalconStorm]

No, there's been a lot of changes made, although I was not aware of that fact about the swordtail. Thanks. I'll have to work on getting him a more appropriate tank. Since I want a lot of swords, I guess my next tank to save up for should be a 30 gal at least. Right now, the 5 gal betta is in his own 1 gal bowl and the 5 gal is just the guppies and swordtail.

For the 10 gallon, the bala, loach and common pleco were returned to my lfs. Currently, that tank has the betta, a school of 10 neons, one cory and one oto. I've been told that the neons and betta can be a problem, but they've been together for several weeks with no problems whatsoever. The neons never bother the betta and he doesn't even flare at them.

I realize the 5 gal is overstocked. That will change when I get the 30 gal. I figure I'll put the guppies and sword in there and put the betta back in the 5 gal. Does that sound good?

Also, I do a lot of water changes, and my 10 gal may seem overstocked, but all fish in there except the betta are low waste producers and I tend to balance the 1 inch per gallon rule with the 1 inch per 10 square inches of surface area rule, which allows around 15 inches of small fish in that tank.

Any other suggestions? Oh yeah...both tanks are heavily planted. From what I understand, that helps.

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

I mostly agree with you but what i'd do is;

5gal
betta

10gal
betta
4corys

30gal
13neons
5 swordtails(1male 4 females)
4 corys
4 guppys(1male 3 females)

 

[FalconStorm]

Hmm...that sounds good, except that I really want to keep the betta with the neons in the 10 gal. They get along really well and I think my betta would miss the neons if I moved them, and he really can't handle the turbulence that a filter for a 30 gal tank would cause.

Thanks for the advice, though. I will keep it in mind.