[panther685]

I have a cory in my tank and I don't know the type of it. Please look at the pic below and let me know. He is by himself and I am thinking of getting him some buddies.

I know he's a little fat but he is very old. My brother had him for a few years and then left him in a tank with a pleco for 6 months with no food. I guess he was surviving on the poop of the pleco. I've had him for almost a year now so I'm guessing he's about to croak from old age. I figured if I would get him some tank mates it might make his life better.

 

[Lymore]

Looks kind of like a Julii Cory...

or a Leopard Cory... (aka False Julii)

 

[rmc]

Going by the shape of the head and the markings my best guess would be corydoras leucomelas.

 

[captain_bu]

I figured if I would get him some tank mates it might make his life better.

Corys do best and are happiest kept in schools, six is a good amount.

 

[comet]

Here's a link for you. See if you can match it up by its markings. There are quite a few species! Some are very similar looking but with subtle differences.

http://www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/genus.php?genus_id=1#71

 

[lauraleellbp]

Going by the shape of the head and the markings my best guess would be corydoras leucomelas.

+1

I thought it was a C. schwartzi at first, but they don't have the black on the dorsal, plus the blunt nose is rather distinctive.

 

[Lymore]

what kind of substrate is that? its like a bunch of tiny spheres!

 

[panther685]

it's a material that my company makes called proppant, they are tiny ceramic balls. I have them in 2 of my tanks and it seems to be working fairly well.

I like it because you can still vacuum it without disturbing the plants.

 

[FSM]

Kind of like colorquartz?

 

[blackandyellow]

I think its corydoras melanistius. I have 4 of those and look pretty much identical, although looking at the link with all the cory species now I´m not sure if have melanistius or other species ...

 

[niko]

Could be C. agassizi. Here's an agassizi:

http://www.invertzfactory.com/images_orig/cory_decker/cory_decker.JPG

It's hard to tell though.

--Nikolay

 

[niko]

Panther,

You got to tell us more about this "proppant" material. It could be a good substitute for inert gravel:

Reading this:
http://www.glossary.oilfield.slb.com/Display.cfm?Term=proppant
... it looks like that the material is designed to allow for flow of fluids through it. It could be very beneficial to plant roots.

--Nikolay

 

[panther685]

that is exactly what it is for.

I don't know much about it because I work in the IT department. I just know that it is very hard and it comes in many different sizes. I also know that it is not cheap.

I would say that I could sell you guys some but honestly they only sell it by the 1000lb bag and by train car.

While we are on the subject, do you think that this material would make for a good bio filter material? I was about to buy some biofilter material but we sell proppant that is about the size of an m&m and it is very porous.

Which do you think would work better, large or small versions of the proppant? I see that there are atleast 2 different bio materials that use ceramics. tubes and the other looks like chunks. I figured if the bio filter was based on surface area it would work better if the bits were smaller.

 

[niko]

Panther,

The best bio filter materials:

- do not clog easily
- have a surface that allows for the organisms to attach easily
- provide "sheltered" areas where the flow can't wash away the organisms

So bottom line is - you need to try both sizes. Make sure you mechanically filter the incoming water. If you clog the proppant with large chunks of waste it can't really show you if it's a good place for biofiltration to take place.

--Nikolay

 

[jman]

I bought some they looked exactly like that a few years ago. The store called the "Punctuatus Cats". I never found out their scientific name.

 

[sewingalot]

Looks like a female Corydoras leucomelas. I love cories. I had one that lived in a 10 gallon for 12 years. Not the greatest life for a social animal, but not as bad as a 1 gallon fish bowl. I have heard some species can live 20+ years.