Blackstripe cory

Corydoras bondi

FreshwaterFish

Care at a glance

Temperature: 70–79°F (21–26°C)
pH: 6.0–7.5
Adult size: 2 in (5 cm)
Minimum tank: 15 gal (55 L)
Temperament: Peaceful
Social behavior: Schooling
Swim level: Bottom
Difficulty: Medium
Breeding: No record
Rarity: Very rare
Origin: The Guianas
Family: Callichthyidae

Overview

The blackstripe cory is a peaceful, sociable little catfish that needs the company of its own kind, so keep at least six together. They forage across the bottom in a loose shoal, working the sand with their barbels for anything edible. House them with calm community fish that stay out of their way at feeding time. A varied diet of sinking pellets, frozen bloodworm, and occasional wafers keeps them in good shape, as long as food reaches the floor. A group settles well in a tank of around 55 liters or larger.

In the wild

Corydoras bondi is native to the Guianas, where it lives in soft, warm rivers and streams over sandy beds scattered with wood and leaves. Give it a fine sand substrate, driftwood, and some shady plant cover, with clean and gently moving water. Hold the temperature between 21 and 26 C and the pH around 6.0 to 7.5. Regular water changes keep this slender cory comfortable.

Good to know

This slim armored catfish of the family Callichthyidae grows to about 5 cm. It carries a narrow dark stripe running lengthwise along the body, a marking less common among the more spotted or blotched cories. Like all the group it wears two overlapping rows of bony plates along each flank rather than scales. Aquarium breeding of C. bondi is not well documented, though its close relatives spawn by depositing adhesive eggs onto firm surfaces after a brief pairing.

Did you know

Where many cories are speckled or masked, C. bondi wears a clean dark line drawn straight along the flank, which gives it the common name blackstripe cory. It belongs to a cluster of similar slender cories from the Guianas that can be tricky to tell apart.