Bandit Cory
Hoplisoma metae
Callichthyidae
No photo of this species yet
Got one of your own? Send it and your name goes under it.
About
The bandit cory wears the mask its name promises: a black band straight through the eye, and a second oblique dark bar running along the dorsal surface of the back half of the body that stops dead at the base of the tail fin, without running onto the fin and without splitting above the caudal peduncle. That last detail is the whole identification. Its near-twin C. melini carries a bar that does split in two over the peduncle, and shops sell both fish as bandit corys. C. metae is a Colombian species endemic to the río Meta basin in the Orinoco system, it reaches only about 4.8-5 cm, and it is one of the few Corydoras the IUCN has assessed as Vulnerable. It is also not the soft-water specialist its blackwater cousins are: Seriously Fish suggests 90-215 ppm hardness for it, roughly 5-12 °dGH, where the range it gives for C. melini and C. adolfoi starts at 18 ppm. The 2024 revision of the subfamily moved it from Corydoras into the resurrected genus Hoplisoma, so older books and most shop labels still call it Corydoras metae — same fish, same care.
Care
Keep six or more - eight is better - over soft sand at 23-25 °C, in anything from soft to moderately hard water. Seriously Fish recommends a base of 80 x 30 cm for long-term care, so give the group length wherever you can. This is one of the easier Corydoras: it does not need a blackwater tank, and it takes ordinary tap hardness better than the Rio Negro species standing next to it in the shop. Feed it deliberately with sinking food; it will not live on what the fish above it drop. Sharp gravel wears the barbels away, and keep a lid on, because corys dash to the surface to gulp air.
Diet
Omnivorous bottom forager. Sinking pellets and wafers plus frozen or live bloodworm, tubifex and daphnia. Make sure the food actually reaches the sand.
Tankmate compatibility
Gets along with (228)
Possible with care (124)
Avoid (66)
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.
Also in these lists
Similar species
Same category and the closest water parameters — if this species isn't quite it, start here.
Health
Disease guide entries relevant to this species — worth a read before you reach for medicine.
The full disease guide →Sold in Lithuania
These Lithuanian shops listed this species in their public catalogue (checked August 8, 2026). Stock moves — ask before you travel.
These links are unpaid: we get nothing for them and ask for nothing.
Frequently asked questions
- What tank size does a Bandit Cory need?
- A Bandit Cory needs an aquarium of at least 60 litres (15.9 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 Bandit Cory need?
- Bandit Cory does best at 20–26 °C (68–78.8 °F), pH 6–7.5 and a general hardness of 2–14 °dGH.
- What group size does a Bandit Cory need?
- Bandit Cory is a social species — keep a group of at least 6 so natural behaviour emerges and stress stays low.
- Is the Bandit Cory suitable for beginners?
- Yes — Bandit Cory is one of the easier species to keep and forgives typical first-tank mistakes, as long as the aquarium is cycled and maintained.