Corydora tank?

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neosilee

Aquarium Advice Apprentice
Joined
Nov 11, 2016
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Location
South Carolina
I am relatively new to the hobby. I set up a 29g community tank over the summer. I have danios, tetras, and platies, but I have fallen in love with the corydoras. I now have a 55g tank, and was thinking of getting a few species of corys, with maybe a couple bigger fish to fill the top a bit.

My question is, how many corys can go in a 55, and any suggestions for other fish. I'll be doing some more research, as I just got the tank and it doesn't even have water yet, so I have plenty of time to plan before fish even come into the picture. Figured I'd ask people who are much more knowledgeable than me. :)
 
If you do the tiny Cory species like habrosus or pygmaeus you could have lots of those. Brochis splendens on the other hand are hefty as adults.

My C habrosus. They are about 1.25" as adults
This is my 10g
https://youtu.be/JrLx1mKDObY

Planet Catfish is a great resource. Don't get rare expensive species tho. I'd rather have one large impressive group of one species or two decent sized groups of two species. Having a mishmash of catfish to me doesn't look nearly as good and I don't think the school as well.

You can always get a group of Otos or other types of catfish instead of multiple Cory species.
 
Wow, I can only dream right now of having tanks that beautiful, and with shrimp and snails and beautiful Cories... Wow.

Back to the actual question. Theoretically, you could fit 22 Cories into a 55 gallon, with no tank mates. Cories range from 1-2.5 inches, so 1 inch of fish per gallon. 55/2.5 = 22. But, I would start with a lower number so they can have some tank mates. Probably like 10.

For tank mates you can have fish that are about the size of the Cory. Like Guppies, Danios, Platies, etc. But it's okay (in my experience) having bigger fish with these guys because they are peaceful fish at heart. For instance, my Pleco will let only them eat his algae pellet, and he's 5 inches now. Basically, just make sure (if you want bigger fish or have some already) that they aren't too aggressive and you'll be fine.

I'm excited to see that Cory tank!

I got a lot of useful information from this webpage, and the whole website in general. It's very easy to read and it helped me.

http://www.aquariumcarebasics.com/freshwater-aquarium-fish/cory-catfish/

Hope this helps! -
Jono
 
I have a 55 gallon and i have 5 corys (the bronze/emerald kind; Aeneus) but i could fit a lot more. to get the most out their behavior i would say get ten. I plan on getting ten total at least. I wouldn't give you advice i wouldn't follow. I have five and they do school against the glass from time to time but from all the research i have done the more you have the stronger their schooling behavior will be.
As for getting different types just like tetras different corys are different species. They much prefer their own species and only really "school" with others if they don't have another choice. However you could cheat with this by getting the albino variety of the same species. they would look like different kinds but they would be the same species and then would school together. I did this. I originally had 7 corys, 3 of which were albinos. 2 albinos have since died on me. Though with albinos you should do your research because they can be less hardy then the regular kind. They might also have poor eyesight and as a result won't see other corys when swimming so they won't school with them. Corys are docile and non aggressive and they shouldn't hurt other things in the tank. But their barbels (whiskers) are very sensitive so if you want corydoras make sure you have a sand or something similar substrate.
From what i have heard different species have different personalities.....some are super skittish while others are gregarious. so research what kinds you want in your tank

I also have kuhli loaches in my 55 which I LOVE! if you haven't heard or seen these guys before look them up. They are like little drunken eels when they get comfortable in your tank. They are also docile and non aggressive. but they are soft bodies fish so they like a sand or other soft substrate.

I also have guppies in mine, but learn from my mistake and only get one gender....you DO NOT want to deal with a population explosion.

I also keep a regular bristlenose pleco (every attempt at adding an albino variety failed), cherry shrimp and one amano shrimp, and mystery snails.

One risky thing i did, that i was lucky enough to have work out, was adding a betta to my community tank. I wrote an article in the general discussion section about it if you want to read it.
 
JonoDatInvento said:
Wow, I can only dream right now of having tanks that beautiful, and with shrimp and snails and beautiful Cories... Wow.

Back to the actual question. Theoretically, you could fit 22 Cories into a 55 gallon, with no tank mates. Cories range from 1-2.5 inches, so 1 inch of fish per gallon. 55/2.5 = 22. -
Jono
Click to expand...


Thank you.

FYI the 1 inch of fish per Gallon is no longer used. There are too many variables like temperament, swimming behavior and bioload.

Plus whether the tank has floor space or is a tall narrow tank. But thank you for using max adult size for your calculation [emoji1360]

That being said, Corydoras are awesome.

If you get C pygmaeus or C hastatus, they are more fish shaped and tend to swim mid water and perch on plants. So a group of one of those would be good to have with a group of regular Cories on the bottom.

Otos are a good mix with Cories and are Catfish too...

The easy to find species are typically the best for beginner's. Pandas can be sensitive tho.

C trilineatis are often mislabeled and sold as C julii. C trilineatus are very nice and easy keepers if you like spots.

Understand that most Cories in stores are not full grown. And aren't showing best colors. My C sterbai have started showing a sheen to their scales and adding a black background has encouraged all my fish to be more confident.
 
No problem! Oh okay, I see. Right, there's way too many thing we have to look at now in order to just say Rule Of Thumb = calculation.

Yeah, I decided to do max amount of fish because if you think about it, it's more sensible.

I didn't know Cories regularly perched on plants. My Cories sometimes do that on my fake plants just to get some of the algae that's built up on them. Cool!

Wow, I didn't know that adding a black background could make fish more confident. Does it have to do with colors and pecking order?

Okay, thanks for all the cool Cory Catfish species. Ottos also would look awesome with Cories and they would cooperate and it would be cool. ?
 
Coursair said:
If you get C pygmaeus or C hastatus, they are more fish shaped and tend to swim mid water and perch on plants. So a group of one of those would be good to have with a group of regular Cories on the bottom.

Otos are a good mix with Cories and are Catfish too...

Understand that most Cories in stores are not full grown. And aren't showing best colors. My C sterbai have started showing a sheen to their scales and adding a black background has encouraged all my fish to be more confident.
Click to expand...


I had no idea there were mid-dwelling cories. I like that. And my peppered cories have started with that pretty sheen, too. It's very pretty.

I like the look of the otos, though after looking at kuhlis as suggested, I really like them, too.

So many decisions. I hate decisions. :)
 
JonoDatInvento said:
I didn't know Cories regularly perched on plants. My Cories sometimes do that on my fake plants just to get some of the algae that's built up on them. Cool!

Wow, I didn't know that adding a black background could make fish more confident. Does it have to do with colors and pecking order?

Okay, thanks for all the cool Cory Catfish species. Ottos also would look awesome with Cories and they would cooperate and it would be cool. [emoji106]
Click to expand...


The tiny Cory species perch on leaves because they can. They don't eat algae, but they are always checking for food.

In my tanks, I think a dark background gives them the feeling of more cover. My fish seem to like it and it shows them off better.

I can't post pics right now. The site won't let me.
 
Thank you guys for introducing me to kuhlis! Picked up six yesterday and they are so much fun to watch. I've got them in a little at tank, can't wait to move them into the big tank.

My Cory tank just didn't happen. At least not in this tank. I've got my original peppered cories and black neon tetras. I traded the platies for some otos, which are adorable, and a pair of pearl gouramis. Really enjoying this tank. Problem now is that I haven't sold my 29g yet, and it's just sitting there, tempting me to fill it again.
 
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