Depressed cories?

[Rsquared333]

This is my 10 gal tank:

Filter: Aquaclear 20

Heating: Tronic 50 watt

Lighting: Triton 18 watt

CO2: DIY

Decor: 1 piece of driftwood
2 honeycomb rocks

Plants: Rotala Indica
Moneywort
Wisteria

Fish: 8 Pygmy Corydoras
1 Guppy (accidentally caught with the shrimp)
4 guppy fry (the accidental guppy was pregnant)

Inverts: 3 Cherry Fire Shrimp
1 Vampire Srimp

My question is that my tank has been running for about a month now and the cories are not very active and always hiding and I was wondering what was wrong? I had heard that pygmy cories were very active and friendly but mine don't seem to be. All water levels are fine and they are fed well and have no loss in color (their stripe very bold) and look healthy. There are about 4 that will play around every once in a while but I rarely see all of them out at once. I did loose one about in the first week but other than that everyone in the tank is healthy and growing (guppy and fry growing by the day and each shrimp has molted at least once) so I don't think there is something wrong with the water. Could they be depressed because of the death? If so how long will it last? Any suggestions would help.

[Toirtis]

I doubt its anything like depression. Cory schools are pretty individual...give them time, and I am sure you will see them more.

[QTOFFER]

I don't know anything about FW shrimp, so this may be a silly question. Is the vampire shrimp in any way aggressive, or is the name misleading? Your other tankmates are very peaceful, so I doubt the problem lies there.

It's possible that your corys aren't too fond of the bright lighting. Perhaps you could stack up a few pieces of slate and build some shelf-like rock formations that would shade them from the glare.
My corys love a few clumps of Java moss - they play inside it and rest on top of it at night - they tend to congregate beneath it during the day when the light is on.

Other than that, it may just take more time for your corys to feel comfortable enough to venture out in the open.

[Rsquared333]

The name is extremely misleading vampire shrimp are actually filter feeders so they are no threat at all. They do hang out under the driftwood alot so maybe it is a little bright for them. I will try the shading, maybe even some java moss (I like it and think it might be a good addition). And if all else fails I will just be patient. Thanks

[TankGirl]

I would definitely provide them some kind of cover, in the form of a cave or stacked rocks or clumpy fake plants or whatever. Mine rarely hang out in the open, and they seem to prefer a little bit of cover, even when there are decent numbers like you have.

[Rsquared333]

thanks for the advice