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How to look after
Corydoras aeneus
Bronze corycat, Gold striped cory
Gill, 1858

The bronze cory is very common across South America, and in the aquarium trade
more images here

(Other members of the genus Corydoras)

ADULT SIZE: 7 cm

WATER CONDITIONS: Not critical

TEMPERATURE RANGE: 24-28 C

FOOD: Feed Corydoras aeneus small live-foods and fine grade dried foods

DISTRIBUTION: This species comes from Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, French Guiana, Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Surinam, Venezuela

SEXUAL DIFFERENCES: Females of this species are larger and more rounded than males.

AQUARIUM CARE: Like all corycats, does best in a small shoal of six plus individuals. An easy species ideal for a well planted community. This species has a wide distribution in southern America, and will fit well into an Amazonian tanks with swordplants, leaflitter and sunken bogwood.

This catfish will eat most live and dry foods, but is particularly fond of worms and small crustaceans.

C. aeneus does fine in a peaceful community tank with small shoalers fish: tetras, danios, killifish etc. Aggressive fish, cichlids for example are problematic in all but the largest aquariums at spawning time.

BREEDING: Breeding is triggered by the start of the rainy season in the wild; a situation easily replicated in captivity by a large water change of slightly cooler water. Eggs are typically laid on stones, plants, and often the aquarium glass.

Have you bred Corydoras aeneus? Why not fill in a breeding questionaire?, or examine existing Corydoras aeneus breeding reports

Corydoras aeneus
Bronze corycat, Gold striped cory

The bronze cory is very common across South America, and in the aquarium trade

Corydoras aeneus
Bronze corycat, Gold striped cory
breeding notes

BREEDING: Breeding is triggered by the start of the rainy season in the wild; a situation easily replicated in captivity by a large water change of slightly cooler water. Eggs are typically laid on stones, plants, and often the aquarium glass.

Have you bred Corydoras aeneus? Why not fill in a breeding questionaire?

This page summarises breeding reports provided by visitors to this site, along with some statistical analysis. Please feel free to contribute - whatever your experience! 1 breeder has filled in a breeding report, a summary of which is shown in the graphs below. You can read the full reports here. To add details of your experiences of Corydoras aeneus, why not fill in a Breeding and maintenance Report.
Would Corydoras aeneus be a good addition to a community tank? Never Doubtful, only with VERY calm fish Only with species of similar size Yes, a good community fish	How would you describe the disposition of Corydoras aeneus? Very timid Slightly timid Neutral Somewhat aggresive on occasions Very aggressive
In which water conditions do you keep these fish? Very soft and acidic Moderately soft and acidic Neutral Moderately hard and alkaline Very hard and alkaline	At what average temperature? 10-15°C 16-19°C 20-23°C 24-27°C 28°C+
What, if any is the biggest difficulty encountered when breeding these fish? Poor egg production Poor egg survival Poor fry survival rate Deformities Skewed sex ratio	How would you describe sex ratios when breeding Corydoras aeneus? If you are unsure please leave this question unanswered. Almost all males Somewhat male heavy Roughly equal Somewhat female heavy Almost all females
In general, how difficult is Corydoras aeneus to keep and breed? Very easy Easy Average Difficult Very difficult	How sucessful have you been at breeding Corydoras aeneus? Very unsucessful Fairly unsucessful Average Fairly sucessful Very sucessful

Remember, each record represents only one persons experience; if you had different results, or used different methods, please share your experiences