Keeping kuhli loaches and corydoras together: experiences and advice

[bereb]

I've read through a few threads and it seems like the kuhlis would be out competed for food by the corydoras. Would careful, almost "spot feeding" help with this? Or maybe smaller corys would be more compatible, like pygmy or dwarf corydoras.

Just research so far, but I love the look of kuhli loaches but I'd like some bottom activity during the day as well if possible.

[aquamar]

You might get away with feeding the kuhll loaches at night when lights are out and making sure to drop a pellet in for the cories during the day. I have both, but in separate tanks. If you kept a colony of amphipods in the aquarium too, not only would things stay clean but you might also end up with breeding fish. Kuhlis would hunt the amphipods at night and the cories would hunt them during the day.

[bettaMagenta]

I currently have 3 albino Cory’s in the same tank, with some Coolies ( 3 ) that started out tiny, and are huge now… but that set up is all wrong… neither will live in that tank, I’ve been told by a dozen “experts” but somehow things find a way, my Cory’s are fat and happy, and my Coolie loaches have gone from tiny, to almost giant Coolie size… as long as you can find a way to keep both fed, you can probably make it work

[graye]

They CAN live together, but as competitors. They are each other in different parts of the world, and I can see no way either species would be 'happy' in such a set up. There would be a constant low grade stress, encroachment on each others' turf going on. They might get used to it in the way people get used to war and disease, but it isn't an ideal set up for either fish.

I solve it by really disliking kuhli loaches and loving Corydoras.

It's one of those philosophy things. We can make it work for us. We can't make it work for any natural behaviour from the fish, which suggests we can't make it great for them.

[bereb]

They CAN live together, but as competitors. They are each other in different parts of the world, and I can see no way either species would be 'happy' in such a set up. There would be a constant low grade stress, encroachment on each others' turf going on. They might get used to it in the way people get used to war and disease, but it isn't an ideal set up for either fish.

I solve it by really disliking kuhli loaches and loving Corydoras.

It's one of those philosophy things. We can make it work for us. We can't make it work for any natural behaviour from the fish, which suggests we can't make it great for them.

I love your sense of humour

I understand what you are saying, and it makes sense. I definitely wouldn't want to subject either species to unnecessary stress.

[sidthy]

I’m shocked. How can anyone dislike Kuhlies? Gary, go and see your shrink. Tell him it’s an emergency.

[aquamar]

I never cared for kuhlis either until I bought a used aquarium that came with 4 of them. I enjoy them when I see them now, but if they weren’t there I’d for sure add some cories. I’ve kept cories for 20+ years and will probably always have some as long as I still have aquariums. My cory population at the moment is sparse, down to the last 3 survivors. They are old too, and I’m sure they’re coming to the end of their life cycle. I have been scoping around looking at available cories and know that I’ll be picking out a small school again soon. I’m considering pygmies this time as I‘ve yet to keep those.

[FishNe]

I have 4/5 kuhli loaches, 6 cories and 4 zebra loaches in my 55 tank, no problems. It does have plants and driftwood and the kuhli loaches don’t come out often during the day. The zebra loaches and cats get along fine. The rest of my fish are various tetras. After reading the other posts I guess I could move my kuhli back to my 25 gallon tank but they just didn’t seem happy there, always hiding. I drop their algae pellets separately from my cories. I have a big piece of drift wood ne the seem to like being under that and the cats don’t go under it, the zebra loaches go back and forth.

[sSjey]

Kuhli loaches are not algae eaters, they are micropredators; they eat tiny animals such as insect larvae and small crustaceans in the wild. Besides commercial food, they also need some live or frozen food in their diet.
I'm not sure from your post whether or not you mean that you also feed algae wafers to cories - they are not algae eaters either.


What else is in the 25 gallon, perhaps a tank mate stresses them out. Is there enough decor in the smaller tank for kuhlis?

[aquamar]

I usually drop in a Hikari, sinking wafer for my kuhli loaches once the lights go off in my aquarium. I’m not sure the cories would compete too much with the loaches as long as there is enough hiding places for everyone. I find that my Siamese algae eater is the one that bothers my cories. It often chases the cories from their resting spots.