Barred-tail cory

Care at a glance

Overview

These are peaceful schooling cories, so keep at least six together; a lone one is stressed and inactive. They work the bottom of the tank all day looking for food. A 50 liter tank with soft sand, hiding spots, and gentle flow suits them. Keep water at 21 to 28 C and pH 6 to 7.5. Feed sinking pellets and wafers plus frozen bloodworms or brine shrimp, and make sure food actually reaches the bottom.

In the wild

Barred-tail cories come from clear, slow streams and small tributaries in the Rio Araguaia basin in Brazil, over sand and mud with plant cover. A soft sand bottom matters here because these cories sift the substrate constantly and sharp gravel wears down their barbels. Add plants and shade and keep gentle flow.

Good to know

This is a small armored catfish in the family Callichthyidae, one of the tiniest Corydoras at around 3.5 cm. The common name comes from the dark bars on its tail fin. It is an egg scatterer with no parental care, and the eggs hatch in roughly three to five days. Wild populations face pressure from deforestation and pollution but aren't formally listed as endangered.

Did you know

Their small size makes them one of the few cories that fit a nano tank. Like other cories they can gulp air from the surface and absorb oxygen through their gut, a backup breathing trick for the low-oxygen pools they sometimes live in.

Related species

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  Salt and pepper cory

  Corydoras habrosus

  1.4 in (3.5 cm)15 gal (55 L)68–79°F (20–26°C)
• Nano cory

  Corydoras gracilis

  1.4 in (3.5 cm)12 gal (45 L)72–79°F (22–26°C)
• Reynolds's cory

  Corydoras reynoldsi

  1.4 in (3.5 cm)12 gal (45 L)72–79°F (22–26°C)

• 

  Pygmy cory

  Corydoras pygmaeus

  1.3 in (3.3 cm)13 gal (50 L)72–79°F (22–26°C)

• 

  Dwarf cory

  Corydoras hastatus

  1.3 in (3.2 cm)12 gal (45 L)68–79°F (20–26°C)
• Evelyn's cory

  Corydoras evelynae

  1.6 in (4 cm)15 gal (55 L)72–79°F (22–26°C)