Is This Tank Ok To Try And Breed Corys?

[ulster exile]

Tank is 28Litres (just over 6 Imperial gallons) and has a footprint area of approx 30cm x 33cm.

Is this a big enough area for a group of corys (6)? They are gold lasers so they're not at the bigger end of the cory size spectrum.

If it's a dopey idea just say - I've never bred anything before but my tank is empty so I was wondering if it was possible.

Cheers

 

[jollysue]

It's certainly not a dopey idea. I would though be cautious of putting six moderate size Cories in 6 Imp gals. If you want to use it as a spawning tank, I would put a gravid female with maybe 2, possibly 3, males in it--if the tank is mature or you can quick cycle it.

Where will you hatch and grow out the eggs/fry?

 

[ulster exile]

It's certainly not a dopey idea. I would though be cautious of putting six moderate size Cories in 6 Imp gals. If you want to use it as a spawning tank, I would put a gravid female with maybe 2, possibly 3, males in it--if the tank is mature or you can quick cycle it.

Where will you hatch and grow out the eggs/fry?

Well, this was just the start of an idea so I haven't really researched it (little point until I knew it was valid) but I knew enough that I had to condition them to get them in the mood for some good luvin' before they would be ready to spawn.

I suppose my plan was to move all my corys into this tank so that I could condition them until the were in a position to spawn. If they did, I was planning on moving them back out of there into my main tank (185L) so that this then became the fry tank.

I do have an empty 16l tank which is (if I recall right) about 12inches x 8 inches which if absolutely necessary I could use for the fry but currently it's not in use and I am not supposed to use it or I may just face divorce !!! (of course if the fish spawned that might be another matter )

Thanks for your help

 

[jollysue]

Cory eggs are fairly easy to harvest and can be harvested in a community tank. I have regular pepper Cories in a 100 USG community tank. They are ready breeders--I would think that gold lazers might be too. When the lady is ready she sends a hormonal signal and the boys gather for the chase.

I just keep a breeders net hanging in the community tank. When I have time to harvest I scrape or pick them off the glass and plants and put them in the breeders net. They hatch and live there until they are big enough and past most danger of fungus, and they go to a grow out tank then. Actually I use that method in all the breeding Cory tanks. Some Cories require more stimulus than others with lots of live food and cool water changes. But some breed more easily usually at the least after a water change. If gold lazers are close relatives of bronze/Corydoras aeneus, they will spawn for you with very little extra encouragement.

There are probably gold lazer breeders on the forum who can tell you. But if she is gravid then just feed live or frozen worms often and keep an eye on her--especially after a water change. She may very well lead a chase without the extra tank work.

 

[ulster exile]

The gold lasers are (I understand) to be closer relatives of C Melanotaenia than aeneus and are known to be harder to breed from what I've read. Probably not the best corys to try breeding for my first attempt, but out of the fish I have, it was either them or the pencils, and I prefer the corys

I wanted to separate them so that I could give them the necessary attention in conditioning them all and observing the behaviour as it's hard in a community tank where there's so many hidey holes for them to go to. I wanted to be able to sit and watch any spawning behaviour as well.

I want the extra tank work in other words - but only if it wouldn't mean that I'm trying to put them in a tank that isn't suitable

Cheers for you help jollysue