# Other Aquarium Forums > Freshwater Fauna > Catfishes >  Advise on Green Laser Corydoras

## nicholasliao

Hello all, 

I'm interested to start a new species only tank of Corydoras Green Laser.
I know little about these species and would like some advice in regards to rearing and breeding them.

Please share your photo's, habitat creation and some advise.

I would like to create a habitat which replicates their natural environment. Some inspiration would be good to start off with.

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## stormhawk

These are Peruvian in origin so keep them as you would like other Peruvian Corydoras. Green Lasers do well with sand bottom tanks, driftwood tangles and leaf litter. Keep them cool if possible with good water flow. Watch this video to have an idea of what it's like for Corydoras in the wild:




Species in the video is C. sp. Novo Airao but you'll get the idea.  :Laughing: 

This is a link to a discussion with regards to keeping and breeding this particular species:
http://www.planetcatfish.com/forum/v...hp?f=6&t=22756

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## nicholasliao

Thanks alot storm!! Dont think we have alot of green laser fans around. Do you yourself keep them? Im not sure if I would be able to successfully breed them as well.

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## nicholasliao

Hi all! I have another question. For water change, do you guys dechlorinate your water before dumping it in? Anyone has breeding success with our tap water that contains a high amount of chlorine?

Doing a 50% percent water change would take bucket loads of water. Any ideas?


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## vannel

Direct tap water in large amounts will probably be detrimental in the long run. A good dechlorinator will prevent chlorine burns for your Corydoras and greatly increase the success of your eggs hatching. Don't skimp on the anti-chlorine. It only takes a few drops anyway.

I used to run a pipe from my tank to the toilet when I did my water changes. Easy to drain and top up without needing to carry buckets every few days.


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## vannel

For your info, some LFS do sell "pipe holders". Those things clamp on to your tank glass and holds the pipe there while you control the other end of the pipe (either leaving in lower than the tank to drain water, or, connecting to a tap to force water back through the same pipe to top up).

I dose the anti-chlorine into the existing water before topping up, and then a bit more after, just in case.


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## nicholasliao

Hi vannel. Thanks for replying. Do you have a picture for the pipes? Would be good to someone see what it is to have a better idea on what to get. The topping up and changing of water is starting to be a hassle.

On the question about dosing, does it mean you pour anti chlorine into your comm tank and then refill It with our tap water? Fishes wont be affected in any way if there is an excess of anti chlorine?

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## vannel

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_kw=P...ium+Hose+Clamp

The above link shows what I mean by the hose clamp. The other side you can just leave in the toilet drainage.


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## nicholasliao

Ok which means I would need a pump to pump the water out. If I manage to connect a eheim pump I doubt I would need to get the manual ones already.

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## vannel

No need for a pump. You can just fill up the hose and let gravity do the job for you..

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## nicholasliao

I'm still waiting for some Green Laser Cory's to show up in this forum. Doesn't anyone have any pictures or biotopes to share?

I might further add that I'm considering to house rummy noses and gold tetra with the green lasers but i'm not sure if it will affect their breeding at all. 

The rummy noses and gold tetras will inhabit the mid sections. For top section, i'm not really sure what is suitable. Maybe some frogbits.  :Very Happy:

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## stormhawk

Nicholas,

I kept these several years ago when I was crazy over Corydoras. Now I don't really want to keep them aside from certain species that I'm fond of. When I last had these, I fed them primarily with Tubifex and frozen bloodworm. My group never spawned however, and died of old age eventually. There's another type called Orange Laser, probably just two forms of a single species.

As for the idea to add in rummy noses and tetras, they won't affect the breeding but they might eat the eggs as the female deposits them all over the place. Biotope is as I described, a thin sandy bottom, lots of leaf litter and driftwood tangles. You can add in smooth pebbles to resemble a stream. Just keep them cool if possible. A 2 ft tank with a canister filter should be sufficient and manageable enough (maintenance-wise) for a group of about a dozen adults. Keep it as a species tank so the fry if any, will grow up in the same tank as the parents.

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## BFG

Have you guys checked at Petmart? I think I saw them but they cost $25 per piece.

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## nicholasliao

Thanks storm! 

For a 2ft tank its wise not to keep more than a dozen? Any particular habits or care that I have to take note of? I read that In order to replicate their natural habitat, the temperature of the water tends to be below 25 degrees. Water change must also be done twice weekly at 25-50%.

In order for the corys to spawn, a large water change of 50% and a lower temperature of water below 25 degrees will trigger them to spawn.

Im afraid with our climate, I dont think that we are able to get them to spawn at all. Would mixing the green lasers with rummy noses, gold tetras, shrimps, oto and nerite snails be an overkill? 

I might think of running to eheim canisters just for this setup. Would it be possible to increase the water quality?

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## nicholasliao

> Have you guys checked at Petmart? I think I saw them but they cost $25 per piece.


Hey bro! The green lasers at JZX seems to be much cheaper and nicer. I've been to seaview and petmart and the colouration of their green lasers pale in comparison with the ones at JZX.

I think the green lasers at JZX is a tad cheaper as well and they seem to specialize in these little ones. The fishes in petmart are usually more expensive but there are certain breed of fishes that are stocked there that are cheaper than the others.

All about bargain hunting!

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## stormhawk

If you intend to breed them, keep them by themselves with no other fishes or snails. You can use an Eheim canister of the appropriate size for their tank, but make sure you cover the intake with a sponge prefilter thing. I got mine from GC before they moved to their current location.

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## nicholasliao

No other fishes or snails? I plan to keep a community of other fishes. Especiall shrimps, rummy noses and nerite snails. 

Its not possible at all?

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## stormhawk

Not possible if you intend to breed them in that tank. For successful spawning you need a species-only setup. Snails are not advisable, shrimps are fine, specifically cherry shrimp, but the activities of the Corydoras may stress them out, and/or any shrimplets that appear will probably become food for the adult Green Lasers.

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## vannel

As usual, I concur with stormhawk's observations. Species only is the best way to go. Else and otherwise, you probably won't have much luck with seeing juveniles.


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## nicholasliao

Noted. Now to shop for the low profile, 90x30x24cm, crystal glass tank!

Will be keeping a look out for offers on aq. Hoho

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## nicholasliao

> These are Peruvian in origin so keep them as you would like other Peruvian Corydoras. Green Lasers do well with sand bottom tanks, driftwood tangles and leaf litter. Keep them cool if possible with good water flow. Watch this video to have an idea of what it's like for Corydoras in the wild:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Species in the video is C. sp. Novo Airao but you'll get the idea. 
> 
> This is a link to a discussion with regards to keeping and breeding this particular species:
> http://www.planetcatfish.com/forum/v...hp?f=6&t=22756


Hi storm, 

I've been wanting to ask. How do you create a good water flow with a canister filter? For cool water im pretty sure I would need to get a chiller for this setup. 

To replicate river water and the constant flow, do you have anything in mind that can replicate it? 

I've seen a page in the practical fishing website that uses pvc pipes and pumps to create that kind of effect but I have no idea how to go about constructing one.

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## stormhawk

The setup you are referring to is called a River Tank. See the two following articles on Loaches Online for a better idea on how to do it:

http://www.loaches.com/articles/a-river-runs-through-it
http://www.loaches.com/articles/rive...anifold-design

You need some basic DIY skills to get this done. It is not difficult and easily done for most tanks. With a canister filter you will need a rainbar to diffuse the current and it should be sufficient for most Corydoras. The river tank concept was meant specifically for rheophilic fish like hillstream loaches. You might have to modify it a little for Corydoras but they don't mind current as long as there is sufficient hiding space to create calm spots for them to hide in.

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## nicholasliao

Thanks storm! This definetely helps alot! 

Anyone knows how much anti chlorine to add into a red pail of tap water? Will excessive amti chlorinw harm shrimps or fish?

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## shyta

different anti chlorine brands have different potency, just check the label behind your bottle of anti chlorine, it should have the instructions

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## nicholasliao

> Nicholas,
> 
> I kept these several years ago when I was crazy over Corydoras. Now I don't really want to keep them aside from certain species that I'm fond of. When I last had these, I fed them primarily with Tubifex and frozen bloodworm. My group never spawned however, and died of old age eventually. There's another type called Orange Laser, probably just two forms of a single species.
> 
> As for the idea to add in rummy noses and tetras, they won't affect the breeding but they might eat the eggs as the female deposits them all over the place. Biotope is as I described, a thin sandy bottom, lots of leaf litter and driftwood tangles. You can add in smooth pebbles to resemble a stream. Just keep them cool if possible. A 2 ft tank with a canister filter should be sufficient and manageable enough (maintenance-wise) for a group of about a dozen adults. Keep it as a species tank so the fry if any, will grow up in the same tank as the parents.


Storm,

What are the species do you normally keep now? I'm really fond of their colours. As of now, i'm researching on hastatus as well.

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## Doraemon82

personally I feel for lazer , if you want them to have the best colour you must have low water temp ..

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## imzf

nice video.

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## stormhawk

> Storm,
> 
> What are the species do you normally keep now? I'm really fond of their colours. As of now, i'm researching on hastatus as well.


I'm very sorry Nicholas, for the late reply. I have only 1 C. loxozonus along with several C. sterbai at the moment. I will not add more because I have a lot of fish in my community tank. C. hastatus is a good choice for those who wish to keep smaller species, but I would suggest C. pygmaeus, if you can find healthy individuals.

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## nicholasliao

What do you mean by healthy individuals? Hastatus are quite expensive considering that they are quite similar to pgymys

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## stormhawk

Healthy individuals of C. pygmaeus here means those that are not stunted, diseased or injured. Sometimes at the LFS they are crammed in a small tank and suffer from lack of food etc. The best way to start with C. pygmaeus is to buy a group of roughly 20-30 fishes that came straight from the farm. Basically, those that were pre-ordered and were not introduced to any of the sales tanks at the LFS. They are almost always small in size at first but with good feeding and care, they will grow into healthy adults that will spawn like clock work each time you do a water change.

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## nicholasliao

Which kind of farm in Singapore supplies them?

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## stormhawk

Locally I believe they are bred by Seng Bros Tropical Fish Farm, 50 Neo Tiew Road. You can order them in bulk at the LFS, which are usually juveniles.

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