Which cory...? First fish

[houndour]

Hi,

I have a 25 gallon tank (well thats approx what it'll be by the time the sand is in and eveything. It's not set up yet. I want to do a fishless cycle and I plan on having just corys and tetras (maybe neons...not sure yet).

I keep reading not to put neons in a new tank, so I'm going to start with corys.

Can anybody recommend a hardier cory? Seen Sterbai mentioned. I admit I haven't done my research yet on sizes so don't know how many i can have in total. (all my fish books are at my parents in the shed). I think I'll get all the same species of cory, I'd imagine if all I'm having is neons or similar then I could prob have 10 neons, and 6 corys with no probs?

My main question is, when introducing first fish, how many do I get? And how long approx should i leave it till getting the final 6th fish?

Thanks,
Sam

 

[northpaul]

i have found the bronze cory quite hardy

 

[TwoTankAmin]

One of the benefits and reasons for doing a fishless cycle is it allows you to stock a tank fully when it is ready. Put all the fish in together right after the cycle is done and you have performed a 50% or larger water change. Faliure to stock fully will cause the bacterial colonies to die back to the approriate level for whatever fish load is in the tank and then you are back to adding new fish in small numbers.

For some great thumbnail info and great pics of corys try looking here: Cory info

 

[breezer40]

One of the benefits and reasons for doing a fishless cycle is it allows you to stock a tank fully when it is ready. Put all the fish in together right after the cycle is done and you have performed a 50% or larger water change. Faliure to stock fully will cause the bacterial colonies to die back to the approriate level for whatever fish load is in the tank and then you are back to adding new fish in small numbers.

For some great thumbnail info and great pics of corys try looking here: Cory info

Have to disagree The new tank may be cycled but each new fish you put in takes its toll of the bacteria which needs to build up to an appropriate level over time. Stocking the tank in one swoop may (and this has happened to me) put the ammonia and nitrite levels sky high.

 

[houndour]

great cory site...wow there are loads of them!!!!!!! I guess I will have to see what I have available locally first and do my research from there.

I'm not convinced about stocking the tank fully either. From reading the stickys in the beginners section I thought the idea of a fishless cycle is to avoid killing fish really. I also thought it said to gradually increase stock.

I know corys like to be in groups. but i didn't think getting 6 straight away would be a good idea. I thought maybe 3 and 3. over a month?

Thanks
Sam

 

[Inchworm]

Hi houndour

When you say that you are looking for a hardy fish, do you mean one tolerant of poor water conditions? If so, do not get corys. They require clean water that is cycled or kept to the 0 ammonia 0 nitrite levels by frequent water changes.

I like to recommend the bronze or albino C. aeneus to beginners. It is an active and easy to care for cory that will keep you entertained. If you have given any thought to the possibility of breeding an egg laying fish, at some time in the future, this is a good one to start with.

The C. sterbai is a beautiful fish, but does need water in the warmer ranges. The C. paleatus is one to consider if your other fish like water that is on the cool side.

The only fish that is frequently available in many lfs. that I would not recommend for beginners is the C. panda. They are small, but rather shy compared to their larger relatives and are very fussy about water conditions. They are much harder to keep alive and healthy than the others.

 

[ronin]

Yeah from what I read cories should be avoided until your tank is cycled. I have 6 bronze cories that have been doing great in my planted 12 gallon tank for ages now. Panda cories are probably a bit more finicky. I bought one for my mom's tank awhile back and it died instantly. Didn't even last a night. No idea what happened. Must've already been sick cause I recently got 2 pandas for her and they're doing quite well, same tank.

The cories I'm currently infatuated with are the dwarf cories. Corydoras pygmaeus, habrosus, or hastatus. They're tiny compared to the more traditional cories and have a less pronounced slopy head but they behave, ignore other fish, and school like regular cories and they don't spend all their time rooting around the bottom either. You could probably double the number of dwarf cories in your tank when compared to regular cories and I bet it'd look pretty great.

 

[Inchworm]

Hi ronin

The miniature corys are indeed interesting. I've recently purchased two C. habrosus, and find them to be delightful additions to my collection. Unfortunately, they were the only two left at the lfs and I've been unable to find more.

They are currently housed in one of my 20 gallon long tanks with pandas and otos, and get along just fine despite the size difference. I can't wait to find more of any of the tiny corys so that I can watch them school in a more natural way.