Could You Please Answer Some Cory Questions?

[honmol]

I'm getting a small school of cories for my new tank and have no experience so I thought I'd ask

Which cories are easiest to care for?

Which cories are hardiest? (They might all be equally hardy, I don't know)

Which cories are smallest?

Which cories are easiest to breed?

What's a good average temp that cories like?

If I do get them to spawn, do I need to do anything special for the babies?

Is there anything that I could add to the tank to make them feel more comfortable?

My tank is new but I already have the plants and the substrate in and the tank has finnished cycling. The cories will be the first fish (is this good, or should I put them in later?) and their tankmates will be:

Sparkling gouramis

Ottos

Either Cherry Barbs Or A Small School Of Tetras

Possibly An [acronym:1a9f9898ab="African Dwarf Frog"]ADF[/acronym:1a9f9898ab] but not likely

[Bubble_B0y]

Originally Posted by honmol

I'm getting a small school of cories for my new tank and have no experience so I thought I'd ask

Which cories are easiest to care for? bronze/albino

Which cories are hardiest? (They might all be equally hardy, I don't know)
bronze/albino

Which cories are smallest?
dwarf

Which cories are easiest to breed?
none in particular - they all breed the same way

What's a good average temp that cories like?
74-79 degrees F

If I do get them to spawn, do I need to do anything special for the babies?
no not really....just treat them like normal fry
remove the eggs etc...

Is there anything that I could add to the tank to make them feel more comfortable?

sand, plants


My tank is new but I already have the plants and the substrate in and the tank has finnished cycling. The cories will be the first fish (is this good, or should I put them in later?)
it doesn't matter - cories are the most friendly fish - they actually provide comfort for other fish
and their tankmates will be:

Sparkling gouramis

Ottos

Either Cherry Barbs Or A Small School Of Tetras
sounds good to mePossibly An [acronym:c96195a021="African Dwarf Frog"]ADF[/acronym:c96195a021] but not likely

[TankGirl]

How did you cycle the tank? I'd suggest you get some other fish first and put the cories in when the tank is stable and the bacterial colonies are well established.

Otherwise, I do not think any particular cory is easier/harder to care for, at least not the common ones available. Paleatus cory cats stay small as do pandas and the dwarfs. Their barbels are delicate and very important so a clean substrate is important, as well as a smooth, soft substrate, and that is why sand is preferred. Rough gravel is not the best for them. Keep debris from collecting on the bottom, as they will be rooting around constantly and be in contact with whatever collects down there. They like to be in groups, as you may already know.

Planetcatfish.com, specifically the cat-e-log, will provide a wealth of info about every catfish you can think of.

[Stuart]

For ease of breeding I'd go for bronzes - other corys are easy to spawn but hard to rear the fry.

Pygmy corys are smallest I think