Questions About Julii Cories

[GouramiFanatic]

I was just wondering a few things about Cories, Julii Cories mainly as I just LOVE these guys!

1) Do they produce a lot of waste? I have 4 right now, but would love to add more. I'm just concerned on what their bio load is. Don't worry, I'm not planning on adding any more to my (10) gallon, I'm looking for info for my 46 gallon.

2) I know that these guys like to be in a school, but is it possible to have *TO* many in a school? I'm not planning on any crazy number like 50 or anything, but I'm thinking maybe about 10 or 15 (again for my 46 gallon).

3) If I did get 10 (this will be a gradual thing not all at once) for my 46 gallon can I still get some Yo-Yo Loaches? Will they get along or will they fight?

4) Once my tank at work is straightened out (fighting w/green water right now due to high Phosphates in the tap water - have a diatom filter on order) I would love to add a school of Cories (10ish gradually), a school of Yo-Yo Loaches (probably 4 or 5), and 3 more Zebra Danios (to get back up to 5). They'd be joining the fish in my signature (minus the snail as I know the Loaches will kill him). Would that be overstocking my 46 gallon?

I think that's about it for now!

[QTOFFER]

I agree, GouramiFanatic - corys are very neat.
I just bought six C. anaeus for my 29 gal, and 2 C. melanistius for my 58.

As far as bioload, I consider them just as I would any other fish their size. I think that their impact on the bioload is lessened a bit by the fact that they root out uneaten flake food from the substrate (which would otherwise decompose).

My only concern with your 46 gal stocking plan is that you're going to have ALOT of bottomdwellers. The pleco, corys, and loaches are generally peaceful, but the numbers you are thinking of getting might make the tank bottom look like a midtown Manhattan sidewalk at rush hour! The tank would not be overstocked, but the bottom real estate would be pretty cramped for two species that like room to explore. Maybe if you scaled the plan back to six corys and three loaches, or chose one over the other...

How big is the sailfin pleco now? You probably already know that the it's gonna get pretty big, and will eventually outgrow the 46 gal.

[bosk1]

I had the same immediate thoughts as Qtoffer. I don't think cories or yo-yo's fight with any other fish (other than perhaps some minor dominance struggles within their species). But you would have a LOT of bottomdwellers with that plan.

I also considered a school of cories in my tank, but I think I would face the same problem, even though I have a bit more space. My loaches and pleco are all fairly small right now. But once the loaches get to about 6 inches, it will start to crowd if I have half a dozen or so cories as well. I also thought about adding some y0-yo's, but same problem. For myself, I think I'll just add another pleco down the road (a rubberlip if I can find one that is somewhat mature, or a bristelnose, perhaps?), but I don't know.

I think the loaches and cories, given their temperment, wouldn't mind a little crowding. But your pleco might not like it one bit. And since dwarf gouramis are generally lower mid-level fish, I would think they might get a bit stressed from all the movement if you had a school of cories that big and some loaches.

[GouramiFanatic]

QTOFFER - I thought about it being to many bottom dwellers, but wasn't sure since Cories are pretty small. It's just that the Cories and YoYo Loaches are so cute that I'm having a heck of a time choosing one over the other. I suppose I could just get the YoYo's for my office tank and keep my Cories for home. Decisions decisions....

My Pleco (named 'Count' by a co-worker for the way he glides around the tank) is 6" now. I do know that he'll outgrow the 46 gallon and I'm planning on moving him to a bigger tank when the time comes. While I don't have it yet, I'm hoping to purchase a 75 (or bigger) gallon aquarium for my home. That's going to be Count's new home when his time has come.

For kicks, lets say I decide on 4 or 5 YoYo's and the 3 Zebra Danios to add. What other fish are out there that would fit in ok with the rest of the tankmates that would kind of balance out the tank as a whole? I'd like to add some 'pretty' fish with nice markings. Any suggestions?

bosk1 - Thanks for your input as well. Don't you feel like there's just so many fish and to little space to give them all a proper home.

[bosk1]

Originally Posted by GouramiFanatic

bosk1 - Thanks for your input as well. Don't you feel like there's just so many fish and to little space to give them all a proper home.

Man, ain't it the truth? I guess that's why there's MTS!

[QTOFFER]

Decisions, indeed! How do you choose between corys and loaches, or even between all the different kinds of corys and loaches?

I've never heard of a rule-of-thumb regarding bottomdwellers, so lets make one up!

At standard 45 gal has a 36 x 12 inch footprint = 432 sq inches. If you got 10 corys and 5 yo-yos, that's about 30 inches of adult bottomdwellers. You'd have about 14 sq inches (3.75 x 3.75 inches) of substrate per inch of bottomdweller - not counting the Count. That just seems cramped to me, even though I know that corys and yo-yos like to swim together in tight groups. I don't see why you couldn't have both; I just wouldn't heve such large schools of them so long as the Count is going to be in there too.

You also want some pretty fish to balance things out. Well, your tank is definitely very South Asian already. How about some Harlequin Rasboras?

[GouramiFanatic]

After some serious thinking, I've decided that I'd really like to give Anglefish a shot. From the research that I've done, they're compatible with all of the fish that I currently own and the tank is certainly big enough for them. The only thing that kind of concerns me is their recommended water parameters - mainly the higher temp. I've read that that they should be kept in 80° or higher on most of the website I looked at. Would it be ok to keep them at 75°? I'm just a litter weary about keeping the temp up in the 80's for some reason. The other question is how many can I get for my 46 gallon? The only remaining additions that I have my heart set on are the YoYo Loaches (I'm looking to get 4 or 5). I was thinking maybe a pair or trio of angles. Would that work? I'd love to hear your thoughts!

[rich311k]

3 angels would work fine. Just watch them in case two of them pair off, then you could have a problem. I keep mine at 76. I think they look great. You can look in My Gallery if you want to see how they are doing. 5 yoyo should work depending on what other bottom fish you have.