Chocolate Gourami and Corydoras Compatibilty
 

I'm wondering if the cories would stress the choco's from being too active or not.

I have a small group of panda's in a 10 and would like to rehome them to a bigger tank with the chocolate gouramis but I don't want to stress them out from all the activity the pandas zip around the tank doing. Right now it's just glass cats and ottos in the chocolate setup.

Chocolate gouramis are one of the hardest to keep. Do you have experience with gouramis?

I know they need really soft water, warm temps and a diet of mostly live foods. Very frequent water changes since in the peat waters they're from, I believe the water replaces with new so often that they need constant clean water. Don't like it soiled much at all. I have slowly lowered my ph with leaves and peat, and want to keep them with glass cats and a few ottos. Floating plant too, there's some plants in it which will thrive in softer water.

I've kept thick-lips and honeys, I had a thick lip for years as well as my honeys. I am keeping pearls and a gold opaline right now. I have kept dwarfs... I have wanted chocolates or licorices for years but didn't have the courage to keep them.

In my mind I am sure I'm ready for this and if they survive the bag ride to my house I will do everything I can not to slack on water or diet in order to keep them alive.

I absolutely love gouramis. Favorite fish next to discus which I have yet to keep despite the obsession!

Sounds like you are ready indeed.

I don't know enough about them to say if the corys would be a problem. My guess is that it would not be a problem - in the larger tank.

This is not a good combo, and because of the temperature. The Chocolates need warmth, our profile gives 79F as the lower end of the range, I kept and spawned mine at 80-81F. Panda cory needs cooler water, they come from streams fed from higher in the Andes, and 78-79F is the top end of their range.

While this might seem possible at 79F, it would still stress the corys to be at that high a temp permanently. Fish are best when kept about mid-range; the higher the temp the harder they must work to maintain their internal physiological balance, and this wears them down faster.

I had loach in with my chocolates, and some other gourami. Check the profile, click Chocolate Gourami, it details the issues. I would not put Licorice in with them; I had success with the pygmy sparkling gourami and two species of chocolates in groups of 3 each. All were spawning regularly. Tank must be thickly planted, swimming room is not needed by any of these upper-water fish. Wisteria works, or floating Water Sprite completely covering the surface. Crypts for lower plants, as little light will penetrate (best for these fish too) and crypts are low light plants. And lots of bogwood.

Byron.

I have sand, it's black so dark but better than too bright white right?

There's driftwood and sticks all over the place. I've got 3 different colored crypt wendtiis, some amazon swords and bit of sag. Had wisteria but moved to a different tank. Can I buy and float brazilian pennywort with an order of water sprite?

I've looked at the chocolates profile. Some reason I thought that because cories can do well in blackwater that they could withstand the temps. That and because I see cories in with discus set ups all the time and those set ups are in the mid 80's aren't they?

Thanks.

Yes. Dark substrates are always better for fish, with very few exceptions.

Yes. Water Sprite is ideal for gourami since it is native to their habitat and it provides the deep root structure to collect plankton on which they browse, plus it is perfect for bubblenests (for those that make bubblenests, like the sparkling gourami; chocolates do not of course, they are mouthbrooders) and it will shade well.

As I said previously, there are some cory species that manage in warm water. But there are many that do not. It is the same principle i referenced; the warmer the water, the more the fish has to work just to function. And this wears them out, shortens their lifespan, may cause stress which brings on other health issues... etc, etc. The profiles give the acceptable temperature range for the cory species.