What Do Corydoras Eat? A Complete Guide to Types, Easy-to-Keep Species and Care Tips

Corydoras have two small pairs of “whiskers” beside their mouths, closely resembling little mice swimming in the water, which is how they got the name “corydoras”. So, what food do corydoras usually eat? What types are there? Which species are easy to keep? What should you pay attention to?

1. What food do corydoras usually eat?

Corydoras are omnivorous fish. Those living on the sandy shallows along riverbanks move by suctioning onto aquatic plants, rocks and other objects with their downward-slanting sucker-like mouths.

2. What types are there? Which species are easy to keep?

1. Albino types: albino bronze cory, albino gold-stripe emperor cory, albino panda cory, albino gold-stripe pearl cory, albino pearl cory, etc. Other corydoras occasionally produce albino forms too, but they are relatively rare, so they are not listed here.

2. Miniature types: the common ones are just three - the dwarf cory, the salt-and-pepper cory and the pygmy cory, with a body length of 2~3CM. Among them, the pygmy cory and the salt-and-pepper cory, similar to tetra fish, have the habit of schooling in the upper layers, though they also move about near the bottom. In addition, miniature corydoras are small in size and have relatively shorter lifespans.

3. Red-head types: there are quite a lot of corydoras in this category, mainly including the black-gold red-head cory, the red-head cory, the long-snout red-head cory, the large red-head cory, the crown red-head cory, the Rio Negro green cory, the Venezuelan green cory, the princess cory, the broad-band princess cory, the engraved broad-band princess cory, etc.‘

4. Leopard-type corydoras: the three-line leopard cory, the king leopard cory, the Julie leopard cory, the long-snout Julie leopard cory, the Ambica leopard cory, the crown leopard cory, the white leopard cory, the long-snout white leopard cory, the Lambert leopard cory, the black-waist leopard cory, the eye-spot leopard cory, the black-bean leopard cory, the black-wing leopard cory, the spotted leopard cory, etc.

5. Fox-type corydoras: the white fox cory, the fine-spot white fox cory, the pirate fox cory, the green-shadow cory, the black-shadow cory type I, black-shadow type II, black-shadow type III, the Fowler cory, the Cortas cory, the Cridi cory, the Christina cory, the Sarita cory, the Pastaz cory, etc. Fox types all have long snouts and cannot tolerate high temperatures (above 30 degrees Celsius); a water chiller is needed for keeping them if conditions permit.

6. Space-type corydoras: the space flying cory, the gold-back space cory, the lightning space flying cory, the space cory, the black-gold space cory, etc. Space-type corydoras belong to the genus S, and they are all long-snout corydoras that cannot tolerate high temperatures; adults can grow to 10CM+, and after colouring up they have a very strong dark metallic look.

7. Smoke-ring-type corydoras: the Colombian smoke-ring cory, the long-snout smoke-ring cory, smoke-ring type I cory, smoke-ring type II, smoke-ring type III, etc. These corydoras are considered high-end corydoras in the eyes of ordinary hobbyists, because their prices are generally on the high side.

8. Super-type corydoras: the long-snout super Indiana cory, the super Indiana cory, the super Schwartz cory, the long-snout super Schwartz cory, the super two-tone cory, etc. These corydoras are relatively larger in body size than the ordinary species that resemble them in appearance, hence the word "super" before their names.

9. Gold-line types: the gold-line green cory, the gold-line green cory (green-line form, gold-line green), the gold-line red, the gold-line blue, etc.

The above is the complete list of corydoras types and species compiled by the editor. As for which species looks good or is easier to keep, you can look into them in more depth before deciding which species of corydoras to keep.

3. What should you pay attention to?

Corydoras can also be considered an easy-to-keep type of ornamental fish. When keeping them, you do not need to change the water frequently; they like old water, and changing the water too often will instead make them develop skin diseases. This is because the native habitat of corydoras is in the South America region, and they like fast-flowing rivers. When keeping them, in order to help them adapt to the environment faster, you can appropriately increase the water flow, and installing a lift pump is still necessary. Corydoras also need some cover or hiding places for them to rest, so when keeping them you can appropriately place some driftwood and the like.