Corys eating tetras?

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cjb0056

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Jan 3, 2003
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I added 5 Neon Tetras to my 10 gallon tank with a common pleco and 2 spotted corys. They seemed to be doing fine and even ate a bit. The next morning I only see 3 swimming around. After a search I find the other two gutted and stripped of almost everything but the head. I decided to see if this was just a freak occurance but the next day 2 more tetras were dead. I've read that corys are peaceful and get along with tetras. Why are my corys doing this? They eat like pigs already.

My last poor tetra is waiting it out in a breeder until I can find out what to do with him.


Chris
 
hey;

ive got 2 peppered cories in a 5g with 6 black neons; the largest cory could easily make a meal of the smallest tet ,yet ive never seen one bit of aggression.

could it have been the plec
have you seen the corys going for the tetras??
 
Hi,

I doubt it is your Corries. As firetank suggests you Plec is a more likely candidate. However by far the most likely explanation is that two of your Neons have just died. They were then eaten by your other fish (probably your Plec mainly) during the night after they died. Same thing the next time.

Unfortunately Neons can often be quite fragile especially when you first get them. As your Plec grows he may eat Neons at night but you wont find any evidence (they will be swallowed). Plecs can get huge (12"+) so if you have a common plec and not a Bristlenose Catfish (Ancistrus spp.) then I advise you to return him before he quite literally fills your tank all by himself :)

Here are some links, but bare in mind that there are actually many sorts of Plecs and Bristlenose catfish.

Bristlenose Catfish Link

Common Plec Link

Other than that Corries and say a Bristlenose should be fine with Neons if you decide to get more. I suggest you try a different LFS for them though as it is likely that the shop you got your Neons from either has a weak batch or has very different water paremeters to you both of which are likely to lead to Neon fatalities :(
 
I agree with Hoplosternum. Cory's are pretty much a scavenger, unable to inflict enough harm to kill a fish. Neons are quite sensitive, and I'd say you water parameters caused their death. The cory's would just have made a meal of the already dead bodies.
 
i agree. if you decide to look for an alternative to the pleco, you might consider the farlowella cat. not as forgiving of water conditions though.
 
hmmm?

I don't think it's my water parameters caused the death. The last neon is still doing very well.

I have a 55 gallon I'm waiting to put the common plec into. It's just done cycling and I wanted to hold off moving him.

I guess I'll move him and set the last guy free and then we'll figure it out.

I guess my plec is a bit aggressive.



Thanks.
 
I agree with the general consensus that the cories didn't kill your fish. They probably did nibble on it postmortem though.
 
I doubt it was your pleco either...I suspect that the neons died due to either pH shock (they are quite susceptible), or were ailing when purchased. Neons are NOT the easiest fish to keep. They are very sensitive to changes, and will die in droves. A single survivor is common enough.

Pretty much all bottom dwellers--heck, all fish-- will partake in scavenging, if it's available. This includes loaches, cories, and 'plecos' of all kinds, including fish normally considered vegetarians.
 
I found the last one dead and nibbled on, on the filter strainer.


I still don't think my water killed them. The last one was fine until I let him out of the breeder and turned the lights off. Then a few hours later, dead.
 
I agree it is very unlikely that the cories are what killed them. As the others have said neons are very sensitive and die easily. Have you checked your water? Is there any temp fluctuation?
 
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