Need help with corydoras selection

[eriol]

Hey guys, I'm relatively new to fish-keeping and need some advises.

I'm wondering which cory specie can live in unison with small fishes(eg, guppies and tetras) and does not die easily. I used to have panda cory and it dies off really quickly. I'm currently quite interested in white cory and wondering if they are easy to keep?And is cory or shrimps better in picking off remaining foods at the bottom of the tank?

I currently has 10 neon tetras and 3 male guppies in 3 feet tank with java moss planted on wood and 2 potted plant, but without any gravels, plain glass bottom. I wanted to add in some gravels, but I'm wondering:

- Is it dangerous to add gravels to tanks which already has fishes?...what should i do when adding them in?
- Do I need to take out the gravel to wash them regularly like once 2-3 weeks? It is going to be very tedious to wash the gravels in a 3 feet tank.

Lastly, I'm wondering what other fishes will be compatible with guppies and neon tetras? Currently, due to the small number of fishes in my tank, I see "more of water than fishes" in the tank.

Thanks in advance...

[benny]

I believe either Corydoras aenus or Corydoras paleatus are suitable for your current tank. They are in the region of S$0.6 to S$15 each, depending if they are wild caught or locally farm bred. These 2 species are also available in albino (white) variants.

Throw in about 10 or so yamato shimps and you will have a pretty good cleaning crew for the bottom of your tank. Your neon tetras and guppies can be pretty messy eaters sometimes and these cleaners will help you keep the bottom of your tank tidy.

If you like, you can add gravel into your tank. A few things to take note:

• Make sure that the gravel or fine sand is inert
• Make sure the gravel is rounded (not sharp to hurt the cory)
• Make sure the gravel/sand is throughly cleaned (otherwise your water will be a mess for weeks)
• Add the gravel slowly into the tank

When you have bottom feeders, you have to make sure you have enough food to feed them.

As for other fishes, you have plenty of options. If you like something bigger and have a bit more presence, you can consider bolivian rams or discus. Your 3 ft tank should be able to accomodate them.

Cheers,

[eriol]

I'm wondering if Yamato shrimps can be dangerous to the neon tetras as my neon tetras are quite small at the moment. Yamato shrimp look quite big to me.

Regarding the gravel issue, I'm wondering do I need to take out the soil and wash them for like every 2 weeks?

[Quixotic]

Yamato shrimps are not predatory, they eat uneaten food (including dead faunas).

If anything you should worry, it's the other way round, as crustaceans are food to a lot of fishes in the wild. However, I doubt the neons would be of any threat if your Yamatos are much larger than their mouth could fit.

About the gravel, are you thinking of taking them out from the tank and wash them every 2 weeks? You clean them by using a siphon and stir them a little around their surface when doing water changes. Gravel is something that you add once in the tank and leave them, until you decide to totally overhaul your tank setup.

[tormentz]

I remembered washing my gravel every other week to clean the debris and waste when i first started the hobby. I knew nuts about fish keeping, was wondering why my fishes were dying so fast back than.

For me, i use a small cup to scoop the new gravel and gently lower it to the bottom before pouring them out. Quite a tedious process if you have a lot of gravel.