Gossei cory

Corydoras gossei

FreshwaterFish

Care at a glance

Temperature: 72–79°F (22–26°C)
pH: 6.0–7.5
Adult size: 2.4 in (6 cm)
Minimum tank: 20 gal (75 L)
Temperament: Peaceful
Social behavior: Schooling
Swim level: Bottom
Difficulty: Easy
Breeding: Medium
Rarity: Common
Origin: Rio Mamoré / upper Rio Madeira basin, Rondônia, northwestern Brazil (likely also northern Bolivia)
Family: Callichthyidae

Overview

Keep them in a shoal of at least five or six, and more is better, in a tank of 75 liters or larger. They are peaceful and spend their time foraging along the bottom, and a group that is too small gets stressed and hides. Soft fine sand is not optional here, since these corys use delicate barbels to sift the substrate and sharp gravel wears them down and invites infection. If you cannot use sand, only very smooth rounded gravel kept scrupulously clean will do. Hold the water at 22 to 26 C with a pH of 6 to 7.5, soft to moderately hard. Feed sinking pellets, wafers, and frozen foods like bloodworms or daphnia, and make sure food reaches the bottom. Never release unwanted fish into local waters, and check your local rules before rehoming.

In the wild

Gossei cory comes from the Rio Mamoré and the upper Rio Madeira basin in Rondônia, northwestern Brazil, and likely northern Bolivia as well. These are warm lowland Amazon waters with soft sand and leaf litter on the bottom, where the fish root around for food. Give them a tank of at least 75 liters with a long footprint, since floor space matters more than height. A base of about 90 by 30 cm suits a group. Use soft fine sand for the substrate, keep the water from 22 to 26 C, and aim for a pH of 6 to 7.5 on the soft, slightly acidic to neutral side.

Good to know

This is a bottom-dwelling catfish in the family Callichthyidae, reaching about 6 cm as an adult. It is a facultative air breather, so it sometimes darts up to the surface for a quick gulp of air, which is normal behavior. The pectoral fin spines can lock out and pierce skin, so net and handle the fish carefully rather than scooping it by hand.

Did you know

Breeding takes some work and copies a seasonal trigger from the wild. A large water change with noticeably cooler water, paired with stronger flow, mimics the rainy season and prompts the group to spawn. The catch is the fry, which need pristine water to grow, so raising a batch means staying on top of clean conditions until they are sturdy.