My Cories Mostly Hide

[GoldfishAttentionSpan]

Hello all. I am having quite a time with my cories. At first I got 3 peppered and 3 emerald, but 2 of the peppered and one of the emerald died, so I got 2 more peppered but no more emerald. (no more emerald because they get bigger than what I wanted, and wasn't really what I wanted at all...)

The 2 emerald and 1 peppered almost always hid in the 26 gallon, but I thought that once I added the additional peppereds, they would come out more. The 2 new peppereds finally finished quarantine, and I put them in the 26 gallon yesterday. The 2 new ones swam around some, and I even saw the smaller (original) pepperd swim with them some, but today they are all mostly staying hidden. I rarely ever see the emeralds, even now.

Its a 26 gallon with 1 blue gourami, 2 emerald cories, 3 peppered cories, and 5 zebra danios. It has lots of fake plants and a bubble net in the back. Sand substrate.

I have noticed that they come out more when I turn the light off at night- even the emeralds sometimes venture from the plants. I don't think I read anything about cories being noctoural?

Are they being shy because there still aren't enough of them? Would adding 3 panda cories make them more comfortable?

I am getting tired of fish I never see. (My BN Pleco never ever ventures from under his rock... )

 

[jollysue]

Cories and Plecs can be shy. Why did your Cories die? Adult Cories, esp Emerald and peppers are quite hardy as a rule.

First I would guess that there is a fish or fishes that are upsetting the Cories and possibly the Plec. Plecs like to have friends too although they do not group together like Cories. Cories will often hide out at first also.

Watch in the background and see if there is a fish that is pestering or chasing them when you are not around.

I suggest that you take the Emeralds and the peppers back and get one species that you like--6 or more perhaps. Peppers, sterbai and bronze are good starter Cories. I would not expect pandas to do well in your tank, especially with the Emeralds. Once Cories are afraid it can take a bit for them to reemerge. Some of them dying would be upsetting to them. They are very communal.

Sterbai seem to like Emeralds in my bronze, sterbai, emerald tank.

Gourami and Cories prefer different water conditions. Gourami like calm water (pools); Cories like fast moving water (rivers).

 

[GoldfishAttentionSpan]

I have been watching my tank today, and there always seem to be one pepperd out, sometimes 2. None of the fish seem to be bothering them/it. The danios stay high in the water, and the gourami stays mid-water. The cories have the bottom all to themselves. Even when the one pepperd sometimes goes up the glass, all the other fish ignore him.

I am not sure what killed the cories. When I bought the pepperds (the original 3), apparently they were sick, and they died, along with my betta and one of my WCMMs. I was bad and did not quarantine, which is why I quarantined this time. (And this time they were fine- go figure...) They just went lethargic, pale, then died. The betta and WCMM acted perfectly fine until they died. I don't know what they had, to be honest.

You know, I asked tons of questions before I got fish for this tank, and everyone said that the gourami and cories would be fine, and that mixing cories would be ok (with some exceptions.) Its frustrating, I did my homework as best I could. (I think.) (Though I thought the emeralds were bronze cories, which was a mistake...)

I don't know if my tank would be considered calm or fast moving. Its a tall 26 gallon, and I think there are both calm and moving spots...

 

[jollysue]

Most of the comments I made had nothing to do with whether or not the fish could live together, they were more responding to things that could influence behavior.

Your fish can live together in a community tank to the best of my understanding.

I would not put the pandas with the Brochis splendens/emeralds. If you are not fully attached to them, you still might look into trading them for bronze or sterbai or a variant species of pepper: such as albino.

It is possible certainly to mix species of Cory, nevertheless they wil be more active in larger species only groups. I have taken to recommending mixing variants of species. For instance the peppers have regular, albino, longfin regular, and long fin albino. They themselves are not much concerned with fin differences and color within their species. Cories are very suseptible to stress from many sources. Stress is a major cause of desease along with water quality.

Good luck. In the long run you will become enamoured of Cories. They are very endearing, except for those who want aggressive Africans, etc.

 

[GoldfishAttentionSpan]

Most of the comments I made had nothing to do with whether or not the fish could live together, they were more responding to things that could influence behavior.

Your fish can live together in a community tank to the best of my understanding

Oh, ok. I was worried that even though I tried to make sure they were ok together, I would have to choose one or the other. My misunderstanding.



I would really like to keep the pepperds, if possible. I will get more pepperds if thats what I need to do. I don't think I have seen longfin at any of the lfs I have gone to, and I don't really like the look of albino. I will probably just get 3 (or 4) more regular pepperds.

As for the emeralds, I don't know. I would hate to trade them because I would always worry if they went to a good home or not, but I don't really want to get more of them. If they won't shoal with the pepperds, I guess I will trade them for more pepperds.

 

[jollysue]

It's really your choice. The emeralds will do with the peppers. Someday you may find you can increase their tribe. Cories have a good life span.

 

[GoldfishAttentionSpan]

It's really your choice. The emeralds will do with the peppers. Someday you may find you can increase their tribe. Cories have a good life span.

I see an emerald out right now, and I have seen the pepperds out some today. It looks like they might be trying to increase thier tribe without my help??

I think I will add 3 more pepperds, and see if by then, the emeralds are out more. If they are still stressed and hiding, I may give them back to the store and hope someone will buy them with some friends.

 

[jollysue]

My emeralds are quite friendly and were from the first--UNTIL a bad boy Betta decided to take exception to them and started to chase them when they came out to feed. I did not discover the culprit for quite some time, although I noticed the change in their behavior. It took them several months to reemerge. I did not see hide nor barbell for months. Now they sit at the glass with their buddies the sterbai and look longingly for dinner.

And I think there is a lady emerald that is becoming gravid.

I am sure if you have a lady and a gentleman pepper they will spawn for you. They are regular rabbits. You will have to collect the eggs and hatch them and grow the fry up until they are large enough for the community.