Corys

[FishyYugi]

I have heard about fish called Corys that you can put in with you betta fish. I have a betta fish in a bowl and I would like to know how big these fish are so I can know if I will have to get a bigger bowl to get any. Also, what are these fish like and what do they look like?

[Betta MVP]

Here is a good link with info on corys (corydoras).

www.fishprofiles.com/profiles/fw/bottomfeeders/

[Emerson]

Wow, Bettamvp, that's a great site! I need to really check it out tonight when I get home from work.

Fishy Yugi, how big is your bowl? The petstore owner where I bought Horatio said that he would recommend pygmy cories in a small (5 gallon) tank, because they generally grow to just under an inch. Most other cories, he said, are too large.

A couple of things that I learned when I was considering adding cories to my tank, is that they prefer a stronger current (we have our filter set lower, to avoid hurting Horatio's fins), and they do better in groups rather than just a single or pair. I've heard that they are very docile, which is a plus, but also that they can be timid and easily intimidated by larger, more aggressive fish. I would think that hiding places would be a must, but someone can correct me on this if I am mistaken (I'm a newbie, too!).

sef

[Betta MVP]

I've kept corys with bettas before and my bettas always just ignored them. It's so funny because you would think that bettas would be aggressive to other fish, but they are actually kind of wimpy with other non-betta fish lol.

sef, you are right about corys doing better in groups than alone or in pairs. I'm no expert on corys other than I have owned them in the past. I don't know about the strong current, it may depend on the type of corys you keep. I don't recommend albino corys for anyone new to keeping them though, they are delicate and very inbred since albinos are hard to produce.

FishyYugi, do keep in mind that the rule of thumb on how many fish you should keep together is 1 inch of fish per gallon. Don't judge this on the current size of the fish either, judge it on how big the fish will become if they still have some growing to do. Most species of corys (excluding the pygmies) grow to about 2 inches.

[ana]

corys should also have oxygenated water, so that means at least an airstone in the tank, which many bettas dont like

they are though, incredibly docile