Agassiz's Cory
Corydoras agassizii
Callichthyidae
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About
Agassiz's cory is a roughly 6 cm armoured catfish from the upper Amazon around the Brazil-Peru border, with records reaching upstream into the Rio Nanay near Iquitos in Peru. Its silvery, straw-toned body is peppered with discrete dark spots and carries a blurred yellowish stripe along the lateral line, the first three dorsal-fin rays are entirely black, and the bluish-white tail is crossed by three to five rows of dark speckles. Its head is finely spotted rather than covered in the maze-like reticulation of the three-line cory, which separates it from C. trilineatus — but not from C. julii, which is spotted-headed too, so the dorsal and caudal markings are what you actually check. The species it is most often mistaken for is C. ambiacus, and shop labels across this whole group of spotted Amazon corys are unreliable. Peaceful and endlessly busy, it forages the bottom on sensitive barbels and only settles once it has a real shoal around it.
Care
Keep six or more over soft, scrupulously clean sand — smooth rounded gravel is workable only if you keep it spotless, because it is a dirty or sharp substrate, not gravel as such, that leads to barbel erosion and infection — in at least 70 litres with gentle to moderate flow, dim light and cover from wood or leaf litter. It is noticeably sensitive to stale water and a dirty substrate, so keep water changes regular and siphon the sand often.
Diet
Omnivorous bottom forager. Offer sinking wafers, tablets and micro-pellets as the staple, plus frozen or live bloodworm, Tubifex, daphnia and brine shrimp, and drop food straight onto the sand after lights-out so it is not stolen mid-water.
Tankmate compatibility
Gets along with (86)
Possible with care (133)
Avoid (52)
Computed by the AquaSage engine for a spacious reference tank — always check the full verdict for your exact setup in the calculator.
Telling males from females
What works for this species, most reliable first.
- Width from aboveStrong · from about 8 months, once they are adult-sized
Corydoras are sexed from directly above, never from the side. Look down at the group while they rest on the sand.
- Bristles and cheek spinesA hint only · from about a year
Male plecos grow odontodes — spiny growths on the cheeks and along the leading pectoral rays. Bristlenose males additionally grow branching tentacles across the snout and over the top of the head.
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Frequently asked questions
- What tank size does a Agassiz's Cory need?
- A Agassiz's Cory needs an aquarium of at least 70 litres (18.5 US gallons) with a footprint at least 60 cm (23.6 in) long — for this species, swimming length matters as much as raw volume.
- What water parameters does a Agassiz's Cory need?
- Agassiz's Cory does best at 21–27 °C (69.8–80.6 °F), pH 6–8 and a general hardness of 2–18 °dGH.
- What group size does a Agassiz's Cory need?
- Agassiz's Cory is a social species — keep a group of at least 6 so natural behaviour emerges and stress stays low.
- Is the Agassiz's Cory suitable for beginners?
- Agassiz's Cory sits in the middle of the difficulty scale — manageable for a careful beginner who has done the reading, but it has specific needs worth researching first.