The Final Piece of the Puzzle

At long last! I have acquired the corydoras species that seemed so impossible to get, the elusive yet oh so beautifully coloured Corydoras eques! A large splotch of orange on the gill area that contrasts so classily against its dark emerald body, with orange outlines, this is one of the most eye catching species of them all, when one flips though Ian Fuller's seminal book, Identifying Corydoradinae Catfish, this stands out among the less colourful of the genus. Next to the unbelievably coloured gold lasers, you can't get much more contrast than this.

So again, more pictures and less words. Here we go, until I get sharper pictures:

Corydoras aren't a waste (of) money if they're....

...Weitzmanis!

Corydoras weitzmani © Sam Lee

Blinded by Lasers

Simply the most eye-catching corydoras species ever! Words lose me when I try to describe them, so more pictures than words here. :)

CW10 Corydoras sp. "Gold Laser" © Sam Lee

CW09 Corydoras sp. "Green Laser" and CW10 © Sam Lee

Tank Comm © Sam Lee







Corydoras concolor

I always thought of the latin name of this species to be an oxymoron. Concolor = of one colour, and C. concolor is anything but just one colour! Head is bluish with green sheen, while the rest of the body is coloured in a rusty brown, making it one of the most distinctive and (IMHO) beautiful species around. They are also easy to sex, with males possessing high dorsal fins when mature, and females looking more rounded.

Corydoras concolor © Sam Lee

There is a video of C. concolor breeding on the internet, with the following details posted as well on the successful parameters: pH 6.0, KH 1.0, GH 1.0, 24 deg C, food is Tetra Tabimin, white worms, live daphnia, frozen bloodworm. Here are some links for this fish:

Fair City Aquarist Society Breeding Article
Scotcat Breeding Article

C. concolor is certainly a beautiful and underrated species, and I hope to post a breeding video on this species soon!

The Day After Tomorrow

Another picture, one day after the first picture :) :-



My babies are out of their hiding places!

New Tank Setup!

Finally came down to the moment to relocate the cories out of my planted tank, into a more basic concept type of tank. Top of my list of priorities in finding them a new home is good filtration, as well as a temperature low enough for miracles to happen. Well here is my solution!


Tank specs: 

Volume: 3' by 1.5' by 1' (4.5 cubic ft = 127litres = 33 gallons)

Temperature: 21.6 - 23.2 deg C (70.88 - 74.12 deg F)

Filtration: Drip filtration @ 1 drop per second, 3" HMF filter with strong powerhead

Aeration: 2" long air stone

pH: 6.7

Tank Comm Idea One - Rio Negro Rednecks

In the corydoras world there are many similar looking species, among which the most striking bunch come from the Rio Negro. This group of corydoras all have very similar patterns, namely a white body with a black saddle, and most prominently, a spot of orange on the forehead, in between the eyes and the dorsal fin.  

C. adolfoi and C. duplicareus are the most famous in the group, not least because they have the strongest colours, but also because they have been known in the aquarium trade for much longer and have already been successfully bred in the aquarium. Here's a list of these fascinating fellas:

1. Corydoras adolfoi
2. Corydoras duplicareus
3. Corydoras imitator
4. Corydoras nijsseni
5. Corydoras burgessi
6. C121

Corydoras duplicareus © Sam Lee

Since they originate from the same river, you can almost guess that their husbandry requirements are more or less the same. Granted that you do not need to replicate the coffee coloured waters of the Rio Negro, here are the water parameters noted on the habitat:

| Location | pH..... | Hardness(ppm) | temperature.... |
|Rio Negro | 4.5-7.0 | 2-8 ppm...... | 24-28°C/75-82°F |

Here are some articles on breeding Corydoras duplicareus, both spawns chronicled were accidental but there are certain similarities in the water conditions provided.
Planet Catfish Breeding Article
Petfrd Breeding Article