Corydoras
From Freepedia
| Corydoras | ||||||||||||
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| Image:Cory sterbai.jpg Corydoras sterbai or Sterba's Cory | ||||||||||||
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| Common Species | ||||||||||||
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Corydoras aeneus |
Members of the South American Corydoras genus are popular freshwater aquarium catfish, and are commonly referred to as cory catfish or simply corys. Corys typically measure around three to five centimeters in length. They are well suited to tropical freshwater community aquariums, as they get along well with other species and are not at all aggressive. It is recommended to keep Corys in groups of six or more, as they are shoaling fish. Corys are bottom feeders, so they should be offered flake foods (which do sink), sinking pellets, and supplements of live and frozen foods.
Many Corydoras species have been described by science; in addition, many variants exist. Several hundred Corydoras species are not yet classified by science, but kept by aquarists. These species are given C-Numbers, originally devised by German fishkeeping magazine DATZ. There are 131 C-Numbers currently.
Corydoras are native to the rivers of South America, and therefore most of them prefer soft, acidic water. However, they can tolerate a wide range of water conditions. They are very sensitive to aquarium salt, though, and do not do well in fish tanks with high nitrate levels. This ion leads to the infection of the barbels, which will shorten and become useless. Corydoras barbels will grow back though, as long as the nitrate levels in their tank have been reduced. These are easy fish to keep, being (as mentioned) peaceful, small, good at cleaning up leftover foods (though their keeper should ensure that they get their own food), hardy, active, and entertaining to watch.
Though all Corydoras species are diurnal, most exhibit some level of activity during the nighttime. All Corydoras love to interact with each other, and commonly 'play games', chasing each other around the tank, foraging for food with their tails in the air, and sitting on top of each other in groups. Corydoras catfish are very good choices for an aquarium, and are widely kept throughout the world.
