Bronze Cory

About

The bronze cory (Corydoras aeneus) is probably the fish that introduced more hobbyists to corydoras than any other species, and for good reason. Native to a broad stretch of South America from Colombia and Trinidad down to the La Plata basin, it inhabits slow, shallow waters with soft substrates, though it adapts to a wide range of conditions in captivity. The body has a warm, coppery-green sheen that shifts depending on the light, and like all corydoras it is covered in bony plates rather than scales. A trait shared across the armored catfish family Callichthyidae. In the wild, adults form schools of twenty or more individuals, and this social nature carries over into the aquarium: a group of at least five or six will behave far more naturally and actively than a lone fish or pair. One of the more fascinating things about this species is its ability to breathe atmospheric air through a modified, highly vascularized section of intestine, so the regular trips to the surface are completely normal. Handle them carefully. The stiffened pectoral spines can pierce skin and may carry mild venom. Captive-bred albino and long-finned forms are widely available alongside the standard wild-type, and the species breeds readily in home aquariums, making it a genuinely forgiving choice for newer fishkeepers.