40 breeder cory ideas

[Zeaqua]

Hi all! Around march, I was gifted my first 40 breeder. It quickly became my favorite tank size; partially because it has the largest water volume of any tank I've owned, but mostly because of how wide it is, and how much more space bottom-dwellers can have. So far I've used it as a community tank with some beautiful Bolivian Rams as a centerpiece, but I've thought about changing this setup. I have a few different setups, especially breeding projects in mind, and I want to hear some of your thoughts!

- First, I thought of doing a species only tank of pygmy corydoras. I love these little guys, but I don't love how reclusive they are. My thoughts are that if I fully plant the back of the tank and have a colony of about 30-40, they will be out and about much more. 

- My second thoughts were to have some species of Scleromystax or Brochis (Kinda ironic how the cories I'm interested in are either the biggest or smallest of their group, isn't it?) I've heard that Brochis are pretty difficult to breed, but the ones Dean caught from his trip to Peru looked amazing, and the S. barbatus @Lowells Fish Lab showed off in his most recent video were especially beautiful, so either would make an excellent choice if I decide not to choose the C. pygmaeus. 

- Another idea I had was to choose a good amount of the more standard coriesk and I had a few in mind. First, I thought of Pandas or Adolfois, as both have amazing colors, and would likely sell pretty well (My main goal for these projects is to enjoy them over turning a profit, but it would be nice to cover some of the expenses of running the tanks). KeepingFishSimple recently uploaded a tour of his store to his youtube channel, and he had dozens of wondrous looking panda cories. I had also thought of trying out the gold laser cories. I'm not too in love with the colour, but I think if I see them coloured up in person, they might grow on me. 

- Lastly, I had thought of keeping a pair of Hoplos. When I first heard about it, I was fascinated with the bubble-nesting behaviour. This idea is probably the most unlikely for a few main reasons. A 40 might be a bit too small for a pair, and I don't have a ton of grow out room for fish that large. Plus, it would probably be hard to get rid of the babies, as I doubt they sell too well in my area. 

[nabokovfan87]

On 10/24/2023 at 6:01 PM, Zeaqua said:

First, I thought of doing a species only tank of pygmy corydoras. I love these little guys, but I don't love how reclusive they are. My thoughts are that if I fully plant the back of the tank and have a colony of about 30-40, they will be out and about much more. 

Definitely true!  Once you get ~20+ of a species the behavior really changes and they tend to not be nearly as timid.  Once they get to 30 in the group they really do just do their own thing.  I would start with 12-14+ and go from there.  Let them breed to the size they want and just enjoy that process. 

 

On 10/24/2023 at 6:01 PM, Zeaqua said:

- My second thoughts were to have some species of Scleromystax or Brochis (Kinda ironic how the cories I'm interested in are either the biggest or smallest of their group, isn't it?) I've heard that Brochis are pretty difficult to breed, but the ones Dean caught from his trip to Peru looked amazing, and the S. barbatus @Lowells Fish Lab showed off in his most recent video were especially beautiful, so either would make an excellent choice if I decide not to choose the C. pygmaeus. 

- Another idea I had was to choose a good amount of the more standard coriesk and I had a few in mind. First, I thought of Pandas or Adolfois, as both have amazing colors, and would likely sell pretty well (My main goal for these projects is to enjoy them over turning a profit, but it would be nice to cover some of the expenses of running the tanks). KeepingFishSimple recently uploaded a tour of his store to his youtube channel, and he had dozens of wondrous looking panda cories. I had also thought of trying out the gold laser cories. I'm not too in love with the colour, but I think if I see them coloured up in person, they might grow on me. 

The brochis always look a bit funky to me, I'm not sure why.  They are really, really big compared to other corydoras and so you just have to be aware of that.  Barbatus are one of the ones that I would love to have one day. Very unique and seem like they'd be great to watch and enjoy.  Pretty much all of the ones you mentioned I think you'd enjoy.  If you may not like the look of the lasers, maybe from the same lineage.... check out orange venezuela or the standard schultzei (non-black form).

Welcome to the forums.  Looking forward to seeing what you come up with! 🙂

[Zeaqua]

On 10/25/2023 at 2:37 AM, nabokovfan87 said:

Definitely true!  Once you get ~20+ of a species the behavior really changes and they tend to not be nearly as timid.  Once they get to 30 in the group they really do just do their own thing.  I would start with 12-14+ and go from there.  Let them breed to the size they want and just enjoy that process. 

 

The brochis always look a bit funky to me, I'm not sure why.  They are really, really big compared to other corydoras and so you just have to be aware of that.  Barbatus are one of the ones that I would love to have one day. Very unique and seem like they'd be great to watch and enjoy.  Pretty much all of the ones you mentioned I think you'd enjoy.  If you may not like the look of the lasers, maybe from the same lineage.... check out orange venezuela or the standard schultzei (non-black form).

Welcome to the forums.  Looking forward to seeing what you come up with! 🙂

Thanks for the advice! Right now I’m leaving towards the pygmies, and I might add other species with time. Totally get the brochis thing, they kinda do look like someone warped a picture of a normal cory. Thinking about it a bit more, the barbatus might be a bit big for my tank, but if I see any in my LFS, I’ll definitely consider it. As for the “normal” Cories, both of the ones you suggested look wonderful, especially the orange Venezuelans.

[Trish]

@Zeaqua My pygmy Cories aren't reclusive at all, just moved some to a 20 long with 6 Pepper Cories. Friendly as anything to each other, and like hanging out together!  I was pleased! 

[CorydorasEthan]

@Zeaqua A 40 breeder is perfect for an all Corydoras tank. Great idea! In my experience, pygmy cories will be timid at first but once they are used to the surroundings they will come out a lot more, especially when in a bigger group. It might also help to have a group of other small fish to make them feel a little more safe, and thus more active. Of course, you have to be make sure that the other fish won't eat the pygmy cory eggs - fish that come to mind would be any one of the Boraras species of rasbora (chili rasbora, least rasbora, etc.), or maybe dwarf pencilfish.

I hope this helps!