Corydoras paleatus
Encyclopedia
Corydoras paleatus is a species of catfish
(order
Siluriformes) of the family
Callichthyidae
. Its common names include peppered cat, pepper cory or salt & pepper cory. It originates from the lower Paraná River
basin and coastal rivers in Uruguay
and Brazil
.
. The male is smaller than the female and in proportion to body length, the dorsal fin
and pectoral fins are longer on the male than the female.
s, insect
s, and plant matter.
C. paleatus has been known to produce sound; it does this by abduction
of its pectoral fins. This is used by males during courtship
and intrapersonal communication
, and by both sexes and juveniles when distressed.
In reproduction, males do not behave aggressively toward each other, nor do they monopolize mating areas or females. The T-position is involved in courtship, as with many other Corydoras species.
It is a very good choice for the community aquarium, as it is a hardy, good looking, and peaceful fish. They can be successfully kept with other small, peaceful aquarium fish like livebearers, danio
s and tetra
s. It is sometimes seen in the shops as an albino form, although this is similar to other albino corys (see the C. aeneus albino form). It grows to around 7.5cm, and is easily bred at home.
These fish have sensitive barbels
and one should have the proper substrate for them. To keep their barbels (whiskers) in the best condition one requires the fine gravel that looks like coarse salt. This is available in white and brown, both look good. Beware that fry are difficult to spot on the brown gravel. Gravel with sharp edges will cut their barbels (until they are gone). Their barbels are important for finding food, and thus remaining healthy.
These fish prefer a planted tank with temperatures around 60 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit (20 to 24 degrees Celsius) although they can take lower temperatures than this. Their high temperature tolerance seems poor and 30 ºC (85 ºF) is the highest safe temperature. They like to nibble on the algae that grows on floating plants, but are not a specialized algae eating catfish. The lighting must not be too bright and you need to set up hiding places, such as bogwood (also known as mopani wood) for them as they like to hide from the light during certain parts of the day. Also provide heavily planted areas, where the light is minimized as they like darker areas due to their bottom feeding nature.
Feed them on a mixed diet of sinking pellets
, algae wafers, frozen and live food, such as bloodworm
or daphnia
. They may also occasionally enjoy a bit of blanched spinach, which you can attach to plants with a peg or the side of the glass with special magnetic clips. You may also see them dart quickly to the top of the tank, this is natural because they can use atmospheric oxygen to supplement what their gills extract from the water. They will do this more frequently when water quality is starting to deteriorate, so keep an eye on them, they are good indicators!
After depositing a group of eggs closely together, the female rests for a few moments. The males regroup and start chasing each other and then resume chasing the female. The males are so relentless in this pursuit that they try to mate with the female even while she is busy laying her eggs. The spawning lasts more than an hour and many eggs are laid.
n organisms in the tank, but will soon be able to eat fry foods.
Catfish
Catfishes are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Named for their prominent barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, catfish range in size and behavior from the heaviest and longest, the Mekong giant catfish from Southeast Asia and the second longest, the wels catfish of Eurasia, to detritivores...
(order
Order (biology)
In scientific classification used in biology, the order is# a taxonomic rank used in the classification of organisms. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, family, genus, and species, with order fitting in between class and family...
Siluriformes) of the family
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
Callichthyidae
Callichthyidae
Callichthyidae is a family of catfishes , called armored catfishes due to the two rows of bony plates running down the length of the body. This family contains some of the most popular freshwater aquarium fish, such as the Corydoras.-Taxonomy:The family derives its name from the Greek words kallis...
. Its common names include peppered cat, pepper cory or salt & pepper cory. It originates from the lower Paraná River
Paraná River
The Paraná River is a river in south Central South America, running through Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina for some . It is second in length only to the Amazon River among South American rivers. The name Paraná is an abbreviation of the phrase "para rehe onáva", which comes from the Tupi language...
basin and coastal rivers in Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
and Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
.
Description
This fish species reaches about 5.9 centimetres (2.3 in) SLFish measurement
Fish measurement refers to the measuring of the length of individual fish and of various parts of their anatomy. These data are used in many areas of ichthyology, including taxonomy and fisheries biology.-Overall length:...
. The male is smaller than the female and in proportion to body length, the dorsal fin
Dorsal fin
A dorsal fin is a fin located on the backs of various unrelated marine and freshwater vertebrates, including most fishes, marine mammals , and the ichthyosaurs...
and pectoral fins are longer on the male than the female.
Ecology
Corydoras paleatus is found in the amazon basin, and feeds on worms, crustaceanCrustacean
Crustaceans form a very large group of arthropods, usually treated as a subphylum, which includes such familiar animals as crabs, lobsters, crayfish, shrimp, krill and barnacles. The 50,000 described species range in size from Stygotantulus stocki at , to the Japanese spider crab with a leg span...
s, insect
Insect
Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...
s, and plant matter.
C. paleatus has been known to produce sound; it does this by abduction
Abduction (kinesiology)
Abduction, in functional anatomy, is a movement which draws a limb away from the median plane of the body. It is thus opposed to adduction.-Upper limb:* of arm at shoulder ** Supraspinatus** Deltoid* of hand at wrist...
of its pectoral fins. This is used by males during courtship
Courtship
Courtship is the period in a couple's relationship which precedes their engagement and marriage, or establishment of an agreed relationship of a more enduring kind. In courtship, a couple get to know each other and decide if there will be an engagement or other such agreement...
and intrapersonal communication
Intrapersonal communication
Intrapersonal communication is language use or thought internal to the communicator. It can be useful to envision intrapersonal communication occurring in the mind of the individual in a model which contains a sender, receiver, and feedback loop.-Definitions:...
, and by both sexes and juveniles when distressed.
In reproduction, males do not behave aggressively toward each other, nor do they monopolize mating areas or females. The T-position is involved in courtship, as with many other Corydoras species.
In the aquarium
Danio
The Danio genus comprises many of the species of danionins familiar to aquarists. The common name "danio" is used for members of the genera Danio and Devario.-Taxonomy:...
s and tetra
Tetra
thumb|right|250px|Pristella tetra — [[Pristella maxillaris]].thumb|right|250px|Golden Pristella tetra, a [[morph |morph]] of [[Pristella maxillaris]].thumb|right|250px|[[Silvertip tetra]] — Hasemania nana....
s. It is sometimes seen in the shops as an albino form, although this is similar to other albino corys (see the C. aeneus albino form). It grows to around 7.5cm, and is easily bred at home.
These fish have sensitive barbels
Barbel (anatomy)
A barbel on a fish is a slender, whiskerlike tactile organ near the mouth. Fish that have barbels include the catfish, the carp, the goatfish, sturgeon, the zebrafish and some species of shark...
and one should have the proper substrate for them. To keep their barbels (whiskers) in the best condition one requires the fine gravel that looks like coarse salt. This is available in white and brown, both look good. Beware that fry are difficult to spot on the brown gravel. Gravel with sharp edges will cut their barbels (until they are gone). Their barbels are important for finding food, and thus remaining healthy.
These fish prefer a planted tank with temperatures around 60 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit (20 to 24 degrees Celsius) although they can take lower temperatures than this. Their high temperature tolerance seems poor and 30 ºC (85 ºF) is the highest safe temperature. They like to nibble on the algae that grows on floating plants, but are not a specialized algae eating catfish. The lighting must not be too bright and you need to set up hiding places, such as bogwood (also known as mopani wood) for them as they like to hide from the light during certain parts of the day. Also provide heavily planted areas, where the light is minimized as they like darker areas due to their bottom feeding nature.
Feed them on a mixed diet of sinking pellets
Compound feed
Compound feeds are feedstuffs that are blended from various raw materials and additives. These blends are formulated according to the specific requirements of the target animal...
, algae wafers, frozen and live food, such as bloodworm
Chironomidae
Chironomidae are a family of nematoceran flies with a global distribution. They are closely related to the Ceratopogonidae, Simuliidae, and Thaumaleidae...
or daphnia
Daphnia
Daphnia are small, planktonic crustaceans, between 0.2 and 5 mm in length. Daphnia are members of the order Cladocera, and are one of the several small aquatic crustaceans commonly called water fleas because of their saltatory swimming style...
. They may also occasionally enjoy a bit of blanched spinach, which you can attach to plants with a peg or the side of the glass with special magnetic clips. You may also see them dart quickly to the top of the tank, this is natural because they can use atmospheric oxygen to supplement what their gills extract from the water. They will do this more frequently when water quality is starting to deteriorate, so keep an eye on them, they are good indicators!
Spawning
The males initiate the courtship ritual, which entails chasing the females around the tank. The female darts away and the males search for her and find her a few moments later. The males shiver all over the female and may lie down on top of her. When she is ready to spawn she turns to the male next to her and pounds furiously below his ventral fin. The male releases his seed and the female catches it in her mouth. The female cups her ventral fins and lays a few eggs (normally about 4) in them. She now starts cleaning a spot on the glass to lays her eggs on. Corydoras are egg depositors and lay their eggs all over the aquarium. Favourite spots include the heater, filter tubes and the glass, although, occasionally eggs are also laid on plants.After depositing a group of eggs closely together, the female rests for a few moments. The males regroup and start chasing each other and then resume chasing the female. The males are so relentless in this pursuit that they try to mate with the female even while she is busy laying her eggs. The spawning lasts more than an hour and many eggs are laid.
Raising the Fry
The eggs should hatch in about six days. Peppered Catfish will eat their babies. At first the babies will eat mainly the protozoaProtozoa
Protozoa are a diverse group of single-cells eukaryotic organisms, many of which are motile. Throughout history, protozoa have been defined as single-cell protists with animal-like behavior, e.g., movement...
n organisms in the tank, but will soon be able to eat fry foods.