View Full Version : Albino Cory vs Panda Cory
Albino cories seem quite common - I have yet to see a LFS that didn't have them. On the other hand, I've seen Panda cory for the first time yesterday at one of the LFS.
Are they different? All the specs suggest that they are pretty much identical in nature, except for two black patches...
Which is hardier?
Tempest
08-30-2003, 6:50 PM
I have both.. The pandas seem to be more delicate to me. I lost a number of them right off that seemed to simply not make the transition from the store tank to mine.
blitzen25bm
08-30-2003, 7:54 PM
yea, all my pandas always dies.
delmore
08-30-2003, 9:07 PM
All commonly available albino corys are the albino version of Corydoras paleatus -- the peppered cory.
I got 4 albino corys about 8 months ago, and have two left.
My Corydoras trilneatus and Cordoras agassizii are much more robust, and I never lost one. The albinos are hyper active -- always moving, and i think, like other albinos -- humans, turtles, etc have very poor eyesight. I place the two albinos in a different tank with lots of sinking pellets to eat and they are doing much better. Also, my albino corys are "runts" -- small and very slow growing. I don't know if I got a bad batch, perhaps in-bred, or if they are all like that.
kveeti
08-30-2003, 9:24 PM
I thought the albinos were the same as the bronze corys - aeneus.
I have 2, they seem to grow slower but are doing fine. I agree with delmore, they are hyper.
yhbae
08-30-2003, 10:21 PM
Just curious, did those panda cories die within a week after the purchase from the store, or did it die after that? Looks like some stores give guarantee for a week as long as I bring the water sample, which I can gradly provide...
ChilDawg
08-30-2003, 10:29 PM
Originally posted by delmore
All commonly available albino corys are the albino version of Corydoras paleatus -- the peppered cory.
Nope--most are C. aeneus, though C. paleatus runs a distant second in number of albinos produced annually.
Tempest
08-30-2003, 10:36 PM
yh= The ones that died were gone overnight. It seemed they simply couldn't take the stress of the tank change. It is possible they had already been damaged in their first shipment in to the fish store then another trip home with me. I didn't really feel they had any disease and the survivors have lived in my tank for six months. They were quite small juveniles. They have probably tripled in size now and are fat and sassy. :)
yhbae
08-31-2003, 12:03 AM
Hmm... I showed the albino, the "regular", and panda cories to my daughter - guess which one she picked? Panda... :D
I am determined to maintain my first tank in a good condition, so hopefully we will find some healthy panda cory for our tank...
ChilDawg
08-31-2003, 12:06 AM
Originally posted by delmore
The albinos are hyper active -- always moving, and i think, like other albinos -- humans, turtles, etc have very poor eyesight. I place the two albinos in a different tank with lots of sinking pellets to eat and they are doing much better. Also, my albino corys are "runts" -- small and very slow growing. I don't know if I got a bad batch, perhaps in-bred, or if they are all like that.
Mine are like that, too, hyper and slow-growing...I was likewise down to one from two after about nine months, so it's good to hear that the 50% rate of attrition happens to others (though 0% would be ideal!)
Which of the cory species stay small (less than 3 inches), cute to children's eyes, and hardy? :D (or am I asking too much?)
ChilDawg
08-31-2003, 4:47 PM
I'd suggest going to the "Cat-elog" at www.planetcatfish.com for assistance on this one. I know that a lot of good-looking Cories can stay close to that small, but I don't know which ones off the top of my head. Planet Catfish can help you find that. Remember that the cories can be found in the family Callichthyidae, and have fun searching!
anonapersona
08-31-2003, 6:15 PM
My skunk cory was part of the first tropicals I bought a year ago. This one lived through a cycle from hell (multiple mistakes with a new tank) he made it though temperature shocks that killed the serpae tetras and through an outbreak of ich in his tank (he never got it).
He has lived as a single cory for a year now, the 3 metae(?) cories died soon after adding them to his tank. The serpaes picking on him a lot in the 10 gallon but now in the 20 they try to bother the cardinals instead.
Although he lost his barbels to the cycling and new tank problems, they grew back on one side.
My local Petsmart has the skunk cory on availability lists now and I've ordered them for the last two weeks. After not getting them twice, the store is trying to order a lot of them, 24 is more likely to come in than 6.
This one is about 1 1/2 inches long and seem to be full grown.
I'm very interested in this notion of barbel regeneration; my little Leopard Cory has no barbels, and I'm not certain he had any when I brought him as a little tyke a month or two ago. He seems to swim about and find food at the top edge of the tank ok, but I'm hoping for his sake that the barbels aren't gone forever. A pair of older, bigger Peppereds in the same tank have fine sets of barbels, so it can't be simply my substrate, unless of course the L. is more tender than the P. Did you notice how long it took for the barbels to grow?
Casper
09-19-2003, 12:06 AM
I have 5 albino cory and they seem very hardy to me.
Very active and excellent at cleaning the bottom of the tank of food. :)
i've had them a little over a year and have moved them to different tanks to be the little helpers..haha
they are doing well
I have 1 of each of a peppered, albino and bronze and all have been doing great from the beginning and are over 6 months old now. The albino is obviously much bigger than the peppered kind and looks much more like a bronze. He also has no eyes at all (born that way) and has never had trouble functioning in my community tank. He is generally the first to the food. Thos elittle cory eyes can't be great for much anyway.
As for size the peppered seem to stay much smaller than the bronze and albinos I have seen. But generally all the dwarf varieties I have seen in the petstores near me are under 3 inches.
cdawson
09-19-2003, 10:52 AM
Originally posted by yhbae
Which of the cory species stay small (less than 3 inches), cute to children's eyes, and hardy? :D (or am I asking too much?)
There's the pygmy cory, but I think they're rather delicate. I bought 4 for my planted tank about 2 months ago and they didn't last more than a month. Whereas I've got almost 4 species of delicate corys in the tank and they've never even shown signs of being sick. I just bought 3 (one turned out to be an oto) for my 7g planted tank and they appear to be doing fine.
delmore
09-19-2003, 12:10 PM
Originally posted by Myrt
I'm very interested in this notion of barbel regeneration
I read a study about barbel regeneration, and what causes barbel to diminish in the first place. They used glass fragment for the substrate (ouch!) and guess what -- the barbels were fine. The barbels disapear due to poor water quality, according to the research. I found this on the web, but unfortunately it may no longer be posted. Barbels will regenerate if the water quality is acceptable. SOme cory's are probably more sensitive than others.
Fascinating!
My water is good: ammonia 0, nitrite 0, nitrate between 5 and 10. No telling what water he was in at the store, and I truly can't say that he had barbels when I bought him. Sure I should have checked, but he was the last C. trilin in the tank, and he was an afterthought. Only after he was in my tank did I look at him in comparison with the Peppereds, and realize that the 'face' looked different.
No discernible regrowth yet; my water is hard and alkaline, but again, the Peppereds have been in there longer than the Leopard, and they're doing fine with it. He does have a reddish spot under his chin which looks rather like a sore. Any clues there?
Fishskin
09-21-2003, 9:00 PM
I have a relatively new Panda cory who had no barbels when I got him...his grew back over a three week period. I have a Jullii Cory with barbels on only one side which has been that way for two months. I have 2 paleatus cories...one with perfect barbels, the other lost most about 6 weeks ago and have not regrown. Tank is stable with perfect water parameters. Water is a little warm ( 79-81) but tough to do better in South Florida summer. Anyway, I have no clue about the barbel differences. THe fish all seem happy, healthy and eating equally well.
Firsttanks
09-22-2003, 2:09 AM
Which of the cory species stay small (less than 3 inches), cute to children's eyes, and hardy? (or am I asking too much?)
Have you looked into any of the Aspidora species? I find they are a hardy fish and most stay to the 2 inch or smaller range.
We have 3 Aspidoras fuscoguttatus (I think) and they are great to watch. They are like little water chipmunks, fat cheeks and mouth always going. A very peaceful and personable fish for a community tank.
Here is a pic of one of our little guys
http://www.aquaticconnection.info/gallery/albums/album07/Ap2.jpg