Should I Get Them?

[Alex1110]

I am having doubts about getting them in my tank. So far i have 5 Rosy Barbs (will be 6) and 6 Odessa Barbs. I am planning to get a RTBS, and either paradise fish, or banded gouramis or some three spot gouramis. Do you think 6 cories will be a good addition? Im looking at them as a cleaning team, am i being nasty to them?

 

[Breeze7050]

Hello. We are going ot need some more information in order to tell you what we think! Tank Size, temp, substrate, what kind of cory's ect, ect, ect...
I don't think you are being nasty by getting them as a cleaning crew, as that's what they love to do. But, don't expect to just have them live off old bottom food as they wont do that! You have to feed them as well. Sinking catfish pellets, flakes, live/frozen bloodworms, brine ect. But, they do a great job of eating of the bottom. Hope this helps, but let us know some more info so we can be more helpful!!

 

[Alex1110]

thanks for the reply

My tank is 3 foot by 18 inches by 18 inches. Its a black gravel, bout 2-3mm grain size. The temp is about 25C (77F), but i want the try lower it a bit. Theres a heap of plants, and 2 rocks that form caves. I have some wood in there aswell. The pH is about 7.8, but the LFS told me it would go down on its own.

Right now i have 5 Rosy barbs (will be 6) and 6 Odessa Barbs. The plans are to get a RTBS and some types of gouramis (banded, three spot or paradise).

I want small cories. Ive done a bit of research and I went around 2 LFS today and seen these types.

Albino Cory
Bronze Cory
Skunk Cory
Paleatus Cory
Sterba's Cory
Small Leopard Cory
Panda Cory
Corydoras Metae
Corydoras Arcuatus
Corydoras Habrosis
Corydoras Pygmaeus

I didnt realise how expensive some of them are! I am not a fan of the albino cory, they look good when they are young, but i think they are pretty ugly when they are big. So i guess im after the smaller varieties. Can i mix the types? I was thinking i could get a couple of corydoras pygmaeus, and 4 bronze cories. Would this work?

Alex

 

[Squid]

I have Panda cory's great little characters.

 

[jollysue]

That would be a pretty rough tank for pandas.

I have reservations about the shark. I have reservations about gravel.

C.sterbai are stunning on black substrate. They like their temp above 75 F.

 

[Breeze7050]

Alex -
Its great that you went out and did some research and looked around.
I think JollySue knows a bit more about corys than me, so def. listen to her. The bronze are fairly hardy and a bit bigger than the pandas (Ive heard from others that they are harder to keep). What is the size of your gravel? My guys do have a gravel substrate, but it is very small they have not had any problems with it thus far. I think your size sounds good.
If I were you, instead of "mixing the types" I would go with 6 of just 1 type - the bronze or one of the other hardier types. Hope this helps. And see what Jolly says!

 

[Alex1110]

C.sterbai are the most expensive! 2 for $38 Australian. I ended up with 4 bronze cories, cost me $12 and i think they look alright. They are quite amusing, they chase the barbs around!! i thought it would be the other way around.

I got some algea wafers for them. I put one in, but all the barbs were playing with it. Maybe trying to eat it, but they couldnt. Im not sure where it ended up, but the cories didnt seem interested for the first 10 minutes.

I dont think they realise they are bottom dwellers - they spend more time in the middle of the tank! They are very active.

 

[jollysue]

Good choice, Alex.

I just got some C. sterbai and am very taken with them , so I was biased. Also I was thinking of a smaller cory for you. But the bronze will probably spawn for you and make you a breeder. They are a hardy, active species. Bronze/C. aeneus are a great choice.

They are doing the Cory reunion dance. They will settle down and eat.

 

[Alex1110]

Yeh i would have prefered the smaller ones, but these will be okay. Its a very entertaining tank at the moment. I did notice that they bred easily, bit worried about that. What would i do with all the fry?! I dont have another tank. Ill worry about that when it happens, although i hear it couldnt be soon.

 

[insanityseeker]

my stupis lfs sold me 3 largeish cories at £4.50 each, as sterbai, but they are not. i was damn sure of that in the shop, but when i got home i researched and found they are schwartzi... still super cute though. is there a reason they are less active than my peppereds???

 

[Inchworm]

Hi Alex1110

A red tailed black shark wouldn't be a good addition to a tank with corys, since they tend to become territorial and it will have to share its space with the corys. It's the corys that will suffer in this combination.

Paradise fish and male gouramis can also become quite territorial and aggressive, so you might want to rethink them too. Female gouramis are much more sedate and will rarely cause a problem for the corys.

One of the requirements for a satisfactory cory tank is that the substrate be kept clean. Regular bottom vacuuming is called for when you do water changes. This will do much to keep them healthy and free from bacterial infections. While corys do eat food that falls to the bottom, provided tit doesn't get caught between large pieces of substrate, they do not eat fish waste. You must vacuum it out yourself.

Since corys are omnivorous, they require a balanced diet that contains some meaty food such as blackworms or bloodworms, some veggies such as algae wafers, and some good quality flake food. The algae wafers will be hard when you first put them in the tank, but will soften up in a little while.

Corys are very social fish and they often spend their time playing and interacting with others of their own kind. I'm sure you will enjoy having them.

 

[jollysue]

In that tank, unless you give care to the eggs and fry, the bronze will probably spawn, but the eggs and fry will not servive.

Honey gouramis will not probably bother your cories.

But the shark is a deal breaker.