Corydoras Sterbai

Scientific name: Corydoras sterbai

Adult size: about 6.5 cm

Origin: Rio Guaporé, Bolivia and Brazil

Water: 24–28 °C, pH 6.0–7.6, 1–15 dGH

Group: 6 or more

Diet: omnivore, sinking pellets plus frozen and live foods

Temperament: very peaceful, bottom-dwelling

Sterba's cory is a boldly patterned armoured catfish, covered in fine white spots over a dark body, with orange-yellow pectoral fins that set it apart from the similar-looking Corydoras haraldschultzi. Adults reach about 6.5 cm. It comes from the Rio Guaporé on the border of Bolivia and Brazil, and it is one of the few cories that is comfortable at the warmer end of tropical temperatures, which is why it is often chosen for tanks kept above 26 °C. It is a peaceful bottom-dweller that spends its day rooting through the substrate for food, using barbels, the fleshy whiskers around the mouth, to feel for anything edible. Cories are social and should be kept in a group of six or more; a lone fish is nervous and inactive. Seriously Fish notes that cherry shrimp are used in cory breeding tanks to clean fungus from the eggs, which suggests how little interest the adults take in them.

Water: 24–28 °C and pH 6.0–7.6, hardness 1–15 dGH. Cories are sensitive to a dirty substrate and can lose their barbels in poor conditions, so vacuum the bottom regularly and keep up partial water changes.

Tank and planting: a soft sand or fine, rounded gravel base for foraging, with driftwood, plants and shaded spots. Avoid undergravel filters, which trap waste where the fish feed.

Feeding: a quality sinking pellet or tablet as the staple, supplemented with frozen or live daphnia, brine shrimp and bloodworm. Feed after lights-out occasionally so the cories get their share.