Blacktop cory

Corydoras acutus

FreshwaterFish

Care at a glance

Temperature: 72–82°F (22–28°C)
pH: 6.0–7.5
Adult size: 1.7 in (4.4 cm)
Minimum tank: 13 gal (50 L)
Temperament: Peaceful
Social behavior: Schooling
Swim level: Bottom
Difficulty: Medium
Breeding: No record
Rarity: Rare
Origin: Brazil, Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia
Family: Callichthyidae

Overview

This is a small, easygoing shoaling cory, happiest in a group of six or more out on open sand. It stays down on the bottom, combing the substrate with its barbels, and gets along with any peaceful community fish that will not outpace it at dinner. Feed a mix of sinking pellets, frozen foods like bloodworm and brine shrimp, and a little vegetable matter, making sure it all sinks. Even though it is small, give it floor space: a tank of around 50 liters or more suits a modest group.

In the wild

Corydoras acutus ranges widely across the upper Amazon in Brazil, Peru, Ecuador, and Bolivia, living over sand in warm, soft, slightly acidic water. Recreate that with a soft sand bed, driftwood, leaf litter, and dappled shade from plants. It tolerates a fairly wide warm range, from about 22 to 28 C, with pH between 6.0 and 7.5. Keep the water clean and the current gentle.

Good to know

A member of the armored catfish family Callichthyidae, the blacktop cory reaches only about 4.4 cm. Its name acutus is Latin for pointed, a reference to its sharply angled snout and tall dorsal fin. The black upper edge of that dorsal fin gives the fish its common name. Bony plates armor the flanks in two rows. Home spawning of this species is not widely reported, though cories of its kind lay sticky eggs held briefly between the female's pelvic fins.

Did you know

The species name acutus, Latin for pointed, fits both the fish's tapered snout and its high, sharp dorsal fin, the black tip of which gives the blacktop cory its everyday name.