How I Bred Sterbai Corydoras at Home

In this video I'll show you how I bred Sterbai Corydoras at home. I'll explain the methods I used for triggering spawns, hatching eggs, and raising the fry.
Anything that generates a current will attract many corydoras species to spawn as shown in this video. Don't buy something new if you already have a piece of equipment that will accomplish that. For anyone who wants the specific pump used, here is an affiliate link:
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[@sethanie42]

You had me at the "for the same reason I don't round house kick my door to shut it" comment.

[@allisonberryere375]

By far the best video/footage of the little Cory raising process I've found, thank you for sharing!

[@michaellou7101]

Seriously easy fish to breed for me…..I do ab40% water chance about every three to four days. I use my tsp soft water at ph 7.4. I had 9 original juvie but once they are grown bd started spawning, they now have more than 120 babies in 4 spawns. I sold about 100 to my local shop at around 5 dollars each. I kept 20 of my best looking babies and now they are grown near adult size and I am collecting their eggs for my breeder box. Now I have close to 50 Sterbais at various stages of life. My original 9 are huge and very happy. They don’t need to spawn and I just want them to enjoy their retirement…….seriously fun and cute cories and so beautiful when there is a huge group.

[@SaadKhan006]

is sand necessary for them to breed? I've got green curry

[@shackleDev]

So you are selectively breeding sterbais? Havent heard about that being done with cories before. Good luck with it mate.

[@michaelpriestley1304]

Great video. Another tip for fish breeding in general is keep an eye on your local weather. If you do a cold water change the same day a nice rainfall hits your area you will almost always get breeding activity. The drop in barometric pressure is the key

[@emorygarrett451]

Haha the roundhouse kick your door shut joke in your matter of fact voice had my firing laughing 😂

[@lruddy8820]

for those that cant (easily) get methaline blue (like some of us in canada), malachite green or cupramine by seachem also works, im about to give breeding my mixed batch of normals and albinos a go and your videos are always my go to before i start breeding a fish

[@evanchoo9241]

Great high-quality video, your voice is extremely calming and the content is also highly interesting and entertaining. I've never kept or tried breeding Corys, but this definitely has given me an interest to do so!

[@FitchinAquatics]

Man this was probably one of the most informative video I’ve seen

[@scarletamazon3455]

Wow! By far the clearest and most informative video I've ever seen about the cory fry rearing process, with beautifully clear and helpful footage of the fry as well! Thank you so, so much for putting this together. Will definitely be linking this video to other hobbyists in the future, and have memorised several tips for myself to try for next time - thank you!

[@huntermclaren322]

Hilarious comparison re: melted snow. Great video!

[@SlickNick3]

Great job Lowell! You’re always breeding something I’m interested in! I love how well you explain everything keep it up 👍🏻

[@MakeMoreFish]

Thanks as always, more to come

[@Aquatica87Heaven]

Use cattappa leaves if you don’t have methylene blue. Make sure to soak the leaves with boiling hot water to active the tannins and help soften the leaf so it will sink. In a hang on tank cut the leaf in half.

[@bhausahebvairal8455]

Hey bro tell me what is this 😳😳? 10:36 On the upper left side Is this a germ or any bacterial special I also found in my snake head tank !😳

[@MakeMoreFish]

That in particular was a microworm. In your case I'm betting you have detritus worms. Nothing to be concerned about.

[@sleepytasmr]

How many water changes? Everyday?

[@MakeMoreFish]

Just a normal water change schedule. Maybe a few more here and there but nowhere near every day

[@davajo3868]

I feed all of my corys Xtreme Nano pellets too! My sterbai are doing just that at the moment, they've laid 3 big clutches within 3 weeks, such hoes... Definitely reconsidering their life choices. 😂 Also feed Omega One shrimp pellets as the other main staple. 10G tank with strong sponge filter, started at 78-80°F to trigger but now at constant 72-74°F, with 50% water change weekly. Other less frequent foods include rare treat frozen bloodworms plus the Premium Naturals algae wafers, Tetramin Plus flakes, Repashy Community, and API foods pellets/flakes that they steal from my other fish during group feedings. ***Edit: As of today, that makes 300+ sterbai eggs, plus 27 panda and 25 bronze in just under a month.

[@simtalkayak]

If he just goes into breeding Corydoras and that general family he's got years worth of videos if he uploads once a week.

[@Josh.c.144_knight_Errant]

Hey sterbi are the coolest...😎 they chill out always...sit in a row on the same ornament...Lil trippers 😅🎉

[@Aquariumike]

Amazing content thank you so much❤

[@frankhoetker4877]

Excellent video thank you!

[@scottcahala7779]

Thanks for the information.

[@alanwakefield9826]

Our Cory's quite openly do the t position in the middle of the open tank

[@seasaltz6538]

I can tell you have so much passion for breeding the cute corys! They're beautiful

[@joaoalmeida5653]

Thanks for your vídeos 🔝

[@masteraquaticsjustcallmeed5115]

Superb video Lowell's!!! Totally enjoyed this presentation!!! Thank You!!!

[@MakeMoreFish]

That's very kind, thank you

[@fireball7677]

You should breed bronze corys next

[@gudynator4245]

Make a video for breading bettas or neocaradinas

[@PantheraPhotoSafaris]

Mine lay eggs every day....

[@Finsandflowers]

Great info

[@AbhorsenAchika]

Great video :), my Venezuelan black corys have unexpectedly laid eggs for the first time today and it was so cool to see, if I can get at least 1 to survive I'll be happy. The weather where I am has got colder in the last few days and I think it must have triggered them.

[@MakeMoreFish]

Congratulations, hopefully that's just the first of many. Black venezuelans are beautiful

[@brandonsmith3447]

Great video, though I highly disagree with your style of door closure. I enthusiastically roundhouse every front, screen, weather and even the occasional automobile door. Thanks for the video.

[@MakeMoreFish]

you're a madman!

[@GAIZINE]

Very useful and informative video on youtube for the breeding of corydoras. I have a group of 7. My corys have spawned in like crazy since the past 2 weeks but im unable to get the eggs to hatch even with methylene blue and a little bit of aeration for the water to not get stagnant. I would really appreciate some advice in regards to it as this is my first time working on breeding cory. Thanks and keep up the good work 🎉

[@garysoutar451]

Healthy barbels is 💯 upping your odds .

[@marianolteanu7360]

Verry beautifull corydoras. Congradulations! 🫧🫧🍀

[@mitchellmarion1544]

I thought Sterbai Corydoras were a little more silverish in color are the black ones a different species of Sterbai Corydoras?

[@MakeMoreFish]

They were sitting over a black surface and adjusted their colors accordingly. Back on a lighter substrate or something they would look more familiar

[@rebelutu]

Whats is the green powder you mix with water to feed the babys? Thank you

[@MakeMoreFish]

That would have been Sera Micron

[@plantedgoldies8121]

Please answer: how do you sink tubifex worms?

[@MakeMoreFish]

I sink them by getting them wet or holding them underwater while squeezing all of the trapped air out of them. It takes practice.

[@AFR2024]

0:08 *wink*

[@JeffGillis1]

@10:39 upper left, appears to be a wiggling brine shrimp, yes? Ideal food for fry?

[@MakeMoreFish]

That in particular was a microworm or detritus worm. Brine shrimp are an ideal fry food

[@kellycasperhanson4426]

Regarding the actual breeding process, I've spent a lot of time watching my corys breed and MAY have gained some new info. During their breeding time, I thought my female was sick. The skin on her chest & belly looked like it was swollen. Later on, I wondered if the swollen area might actually be a "pouch" that was enlarged due to breeding. As the corys continued, I saw the female "T" with the male, and then ACTUALLY SAW HER EGGS drop into her fins! It was instantaneous. It made me think that the "pouch" on her underside is the place where the milt goes so it can mix with the eggs before passing into her fins. The intake of the milt and the deposition of eggs into the fins happened so quickly that it seems reasonable that my "pouch hypothesis" may be true. Just curious what you think about it.

[@MakeMoreFish]

Yep, the pouch or often called a basket formed by her ventral fins is where the milt would come in contact with the eggs. The fertilization is outside of the body for sure.

[@kellycasperhanson4426]

@MakeMoreFish Thank you! I knew you would be an excellent resource!

[@philliptaylor5981]

People forget how big they need to be to breed! They need to be at least 1.5 - 2 years old to breed. Hard to get them to breed in community tanks.

[@ogh4x]

Not particularly true, mine started breeding at 11 months old in my community planted tank

[@arvinthemindfreak]

How did u maintained the new water while adding.....as these are more sensitive to medicines if any desease occured.....

[@garageaquatics2023]

Very thorough. Thanks, Lowell. ~Ron

[@johnsonbigbob]

a large water change a bit cool worked for me in the past, great video getting into keeping sterbai again since i finally am able to. just got a 40b and have 4 sterbai from a 15gail.. will probly buy 10 more. ill have to get pre filters and some worms to feed . ive collected eggs with my finger off the glass and transfered to a smaller tank to raise fry with good success

[@contactjd]

I had a sterbai which paired up with a panda cory. Only one of the fry survived and is a cross between the two. Looks like a spotted panda

[@realessayog6947]

I've never owned corydoras before but I've fallen in love with them

[@DuxDad1]

Where did you get the pump? Generic? Brand?

[@MakeMoreFish]

Generic from Amazon. Just a small submersible pump

[@johnbrand1893]

Great video 👍 of one of my favourite corys, so I surely did find this fascinating to watch. 👍

[@JeffGillis1]

Your Cory’s seem darker than most, was this just random good luck or is there a genus your sought out?

[@MakeMoreFish]

I paint most of my tanks black on the back and bottom so the fish tend to darken their color to match. A bit of camouflage. In a brighter environment their color would lighten up too

[@p3teytran]

Wow best video on breeding corydoras hands on. I really appreciate you sharing that knowledge

[@mrwilson.1]

So nice to find such a good quality tutorial amongst the slew garbage. Thank you.

[@camerica7400]

“I don’t do that for the same reason I don’t roundhouse kick my door shut when I leave my house”😂

[@paulorebelo3460]

Perfectly explained,thanks for the vídeo 👌

[@petergracemeguide1280]

I found they spawned well in side floating black plastic seedling pots 3 to 4 inches long. As for feeding to condition i would cut thin strips of prawn meat in addition to normal diet. Methylene blue on the eggs is a must for volume hatchings. Then once hatched the old egg yoke but after 6days I swapped to green water

[@keytesofessex]

Too many adverts to finish watching

[@MakeMoreFish]

There's a way around that but first, have you tried Tide's new 3 in 1 laundry detergent pods? They outperform other leading brands, even in cold water.

[@BensonQiuu]

I watch a lot of fish-related videos on KZbin. So far I've watched your videos on celestial pearl danios and sterbais -- both are very high quality. Thank you!

[@davidmarks7787]

Best line - "I don't roundhouse kick my door closed". Too funny.

[@AceMalinwa]

Amazing video with all the details i wanted to know. Thanks for this step by step explanation!

[@jimcusick2054]

Well done video Lowell. Very informative and the information you provide was on point. Thanks!

[@waynergy]

Wow! That was super informative! Thank you so much for your effort!

[@shackleDev]

My sterbais just started laying eggs, thank you for the video.

[@CorydorasEmpire]

Thanks for the detailed video mate! Really appreciate it! 🤌

[@sturgeonman5208]

There seems to be an abundance of infusoria in the water

[@MakeMoreFish]

probably just mulm particulates floating around after recent feeding or tank cleaning

[@ecoalex9345]

I am trying to breed Cory's and this is the best video that was the most help out of anything. Thank you!

[@zadesbackyardfarm350]

I love my corydora's! Yours are stunning 😍

[@brandonr6618]

How do i know when the sterbai are interested in breeding or when they're ready to, what does that behaviour look like? Pls help

[@MakeMoreFish]

If you see it from across the room, it will look like three of them are trying to chase down and kill another one. It's hard to miss. But most likely the first time it happens you won't see it at all. You'll wake up or come home and find eggs on the glass.

[@brandonr6618]

@@MakeMoreFish thanks for clarifying. Im yet to do a water change, have just been working on fattening them up so far. but ill do a water change tonight. Hopefully i see some action tomorrow morning.

[@richardmason3751]

Thank you for sharing in such great detail. I`m sure several things you mentioned will come in handy when my sterbai spawn in the not too distant future.

[@shackleDev]

Hi lowell, ive adjusted my setup today and ive added a mop, ive boiled it and when putting it in my tank ive squeezed out as much air as possible, but when i point the flow at it it starts to float, have you had this problem with this setup? Did you have to do anything to fix it or is it just a matter of waiting until it sinks down

[@MakeMoreFish]

They usually float a bit for a couple of days. If the water flow is carrying bubbles into the mop, that would make it float. Happens to me all the time. You can back the mop away a little bit and it won't catch so many.

[@shackleDev]

@@MakeMoreFish thanks for the advice, ive moved the mop a bit further away from the flow, and now a few hours later it sank

[@tomiebayly6085]

underated video man! thanks for the vid

[@sjaquariums4638]

Very helpful thank you!

[@madmax1412]

Hi Great video. What was the food at 12:40? Thank you

[@MakeMoreFish]

Those were live baby brine shrimp.

[@madmax1412]

@@MakeMoreFish Thanks. I had assumed live BBS would scatter as soon as they were released but these stayed bunched up even when the Cory came sliding in. I've just had 3 hatch a few days ago and yesterday harvested 11 more eggs. My first 2 batches failed but for the 3rd and 4th, I put a drop of Methylene Blue in.

[@sharadbhutoria]

Very insightful 👍🏼

[@allonekingdom]

Great info thank you

[@csharpe5787]

Fab video. Thanks

[@waldnerpeter7173]

What a Great informative video.

[@joaoalmeida5653]

At 10:33, do you stop and replace the water with fresh aquarium water all at once, instead of using methylene blue?

[@MakeMoreFish]

In this case I did a series of water changes to remove most of the methylene blue before allowing the box to circulate water from the main tank.

[@joaoalmeida5653]

@@MakeMoreFish But were the series of changes you made all in the same day or spread out over several days?

[@MakeMoreFish]

@@joaoalmeida5653 All in the same day. All in one sitting, actually. When it's time to remove the methylene blue, you want it gone asap. You just have to be gentle enough not to beat up any freshly hatched fry.

[@mariyanvladov5448]

About breeding box Fluval/Marina=== Are they the same brand?

[@MakeMoreFish]

Ummm I think so. I'm pretty sure. My understanding is fluval bought marina and they just changed packaging to say fluval

[@qifry5367]

good job bro i will try to breed them too

[@Angus1966]

A very fun fish .

[@Wellwhatevernevermind]

Excellent! Subd

[@luisablonk2510]

Great video thank you so much.I have a group of 9 sterbai who i see courting eachother a lot.And im thinking about trying to breed them.Your video is very educational and clear which motivates me into giving it a try.

[@MakeMoreFish]

Good luck! I hope they breed for you.

[@barefootaquatics]

What brand of tubifex cubes are you using? I have San Francisco Bay brand and getting them to absorb water or stick to the glass has proven difficult. I’ve even pulled a vacuum on them in water with no better results.

[@MakeMoreFish]

I have the same brand right now. There's kind of a trick to making them sink. You squeeze the cube under water, let it soak up a little, then lift it out of the water and squeeze really tight from multiple angles. Squeeze all that water back out. Then dunk it in the water again and maybe give it another squeeze or two. You'll see bubbles come out while you do this. They should just sink after that. For what it's worth, some bottles work great and other bottles I can't get to sink for the life of me.

[@yannickbroos5283]

Rescued some sterbais a few days ago from a guy who had absolutely no idea what he was doing. I have them in my community tank (with 7 aeneus as well, bred those but the heater exploded and killed all the juveniles) I have 3 sterbais (2 big fat plumb ones and 1 smaller one) (I think female female male but im not sure) my Aeneus tend to hide all day, but my sterbais are always out and about, chasing eachother around. I have not seen any eggs or T poses but they are chasing all the time. I was wondering, is this breeding behaviour? Im going to feed extra frozen food this week and finish it off with some cool water changes. Im hoping for some eggs!

[@MakeMoreFish]

Could be, a change of water parameters and temperature from moving to a new tank could trigger some interest in breeding. Only one way to find out!

[@dae711moe5]

Very cool. Great

[@williamnorris1380]

Excellent video

[@armenkirakossian7702]

where did you get the gravel vac screen I've been looking for one for my phyton easy water changer but couldn't find any I've been using a mesh bag for filter media until I can find something that's more permanent

[@MakeMoreFish]

Oh that's actually just a plant pot.. standard size if there is such a thing. They happen to fit the diameter of the gravel vac

[@melissaturner1737]

I can’t wait to see how my little pandas do. They breed all the time but I finally found some eggs before other fish got them. 8 eggs and I watched them just hatch! Have you ever fed babies repashy? I don’t have the food you talked about but I have many different repashy choices and xtreme flake foods.

[@MakeMoreFish]

I think if you give them something really fine that they can fit in their mouths, they should be fine. I know I've heard of feeding repashy to baby corydoras

[@BB-bv6uq]

Really excellent video, I can say even though I have never spawned Cory'sI probably could. I was impressed how tuff the eggs were

[@MakeMoreFish]

Ya the eggs are pretty solid. Over time rigidity goes up and adhesiveness goes down.

[@julianaquascaped]

This is an excellent video.

[@joehuang4325]

So I’ve had my sterbai eggs for 6-7 days now. And for the past 3 days I’ve been seeing tails sticking out of eggs and the eggs “swimming” around frantically - but no fry. I noticed that when I gently touched an egg, the egg popped and a fry came out, which to me looks pretty dark and thin. So I’ve been wondering if I’m just inpatient or if these fry are having trouble breaking out and I should manually let them out? One note is I wasn’t able to adhere most of them to the wall of the container, maybe the fact that they weren’t adhered hindered their ability to break lose?

[@MakeMoreFish]

6-7 days seems a bit long. I can't say I've seen much difference between re-adhered or not in terms of hatch rate, but I do think cleanliness is a factor. If the eggs get covered in debris and general "fuzz," fungal or otherwise, it can be difficult for the fry to hatch out. Hard water also I have heard can harden the eggs and make them more difficult to break out of. That's 100% hearsay but it makes some intuitive sense to me.

[@joehuang4325]

@@MakeMoreFish yeah it’s been 9 days and most of them are still swimming around in their eggs with the tail sticking out…kinda sad because I don’t know what else there is to do with this batch besides watching them die one by one :(…interestingly though, I had a second batch that has hatched very well for me after 3 days. The only difference is I used methylene blue this time - which I noticed resulted in no biofilm building up on the container wall, which I guess may have contributed….? I have so many questions…did you use water from the tank when hatching these eggs or do you think that’s not a big deal? Also, how toxic is methylene blue to fry? Manufacturer claims it to be safe for fry but I read a paper which showed at high concentrations it is indeed toxic. I ask because it seems to help keep my fry alive past the first couple of days and I was wondering how urgently I would need to water change it out.

[@MakeMoreFish]

For those fry that struggled to hatch all the way, if you happen to have a small pipette you can draw them in and then somewhat forcefully puff them back out. It can blow off the eggshell. By that time they may be too far gone but I have about a 50% success rate with it. I jokingly call it a corydoras C-section. Over the last year or so I've taken to using brand new, clean, and dechlorinated water for hatching eggs artificially to reduce debris and biofilm accumulation. In my experience, a concentration of methylene blue that is sufficient to prevent fungal growth has been harmful or lethal to fry if left in their water for more than about a day. That's completely my own experience. I have no idea what the science is on it.

[@joehuang4325]

@@MakeMoreFish I’ve accidentally done it a couple times already! I guess I’ll go back and blow all of them out of their shells :) didn’t know it’s actually a thing. And that makes sense! I guess I’ll experiment it a little bit with methylene blue and figure it out from there… How much and how often are you changing the water during hatching and fry grow out? I’m using a small container which I estimate to hold 1.5 gallon of water.

[@melissaturner1737]

This trick of resticking the eggs to the wall of my grow tank work’s amazingly well. I’ve done it with all eggs I find now and haven’t had a single fungus.

[@MakeMoreFish]

I'm glad it's working for you! For me it has just depended on how soon I find the eggs if they will re-adhere to another surface or not. It does help though

[@vivaeuropa]

I'm curious are the fry now adults and breeding yet?

[@MakeMoreFish]

They are grown and sold. Some of them might have bred by now, they should be large enough

[@teresahandley6632]

Great video

[@alfiehowie4652]

Great video mate

[@pelhamsaquatics]

New. Sub!!

[@wtrubeck]

Great video!

[@tubarao1143]

Only air stone? No air filter or water changes are performed?

[@MakeMoreFish]

I'm sorry, at which point? The only time I recall using an air stone only is while eggs were incubating

[@pelhamsaquatics]

Sir does this method work for most all corydoras, or is it sterbai specific?

[@MakeMoreFish]

I suspect it would work equally well for many other varieties but I can't say for certain. I'll be continuing to test as I bring in new species

[@idirmakhlaf1435]

When you do the water changed with cold water, do you leave the heater on or off?

[@MakeMoreFish]

I leave the heater on. The temp drop is only temporary. That is something I think about though, how long does the drop need to last? Briefly is working out so far

[@jauken83]

Watching this video and I look over to see my corys in the t pose. Great video!

[@MakeMoreFish]

Congratulations! That's incredible timing

[@Bri-me6fu]

My eggs already hatched and I didn't get the chance to separate the eggs from the tank I turned off the tank filter and I can see the fey moving at the top surface of the water. Should I remove the adult snails and cory cats I have currently in the tank(no fish in tank) I'm scared to use a net to get the adults and what if the fry get stuck when I put the net in.

[@MakeMoreFish]

Did you have any other fish in the tank? Fry at the surface of the water sounds unusual for corydoras. If your goal is maximizing fry survival I think you would still be better off removing adult fish in the tank despite any risk of disturbing fry while you do it. Snails shouldn't be a problem

[@Bri-me6fu]

@@MakeMoreFish there are no other fish in the tank it's a 36 gallon and what we have in there is one large mystery snail, small ramhorn snails think they came from a plant we purchased for the aquarium and so we ended up having about 10 small ramhorn snails and then I have 3 corycats. The eggs started appearing on the tank walls and plants they look like Corycat eggs from videos I've watched and today I noticed some eggs looked broken but we do see very very small particle size white things moving around the tank this morning. I see more movement around the top water surface. I haven't moved anyone or done anything except turn off the filter for now.

[@MakeMoreFish]

@@Bri-me6fu hmmm I'm suspicious. Corydoras fry are much larger than a particulate. They would look like 3/16" transparent tadpoles and would be almost exclusively on the bottom of the tank. the eggs might be from the fish but the particulates sound more like an infusorial bloom

[@Bri-me6fu]

@@MakeMoreFish I will look into that to see what I can find out. I appreciate the fast response. I haven't had fish in the tank for months now. The large mystery snail I have in the past has laid eggs and hatched successfully but these are not the same eggs they do look very smiling to the corycat eggs but I'm going to research the bloom you mentioned as they are so small things moving in the water does not look like tadpoles I have 1 large green emerald cory cat and the other two are a different type of corycat. From hat I've read abiut ramshorn snails these are not that either. But thank you.

[@MakeMoreFish]

Thanks for watching! Feel free to leave questions in the comments if you have them, and If you enjoyed this video, consider subscribing to see future projects. Quick update: I was lucky enough to meet and chat with Eric Bodrock who is a world-renowned breeder of Corydoras. He feels very confident that microworms do not have a negative impact on fry. His word is good enough for me, but I recommend experimenting and coming to your own conclusions.

[@emilytoth5220]

did you get these guys locally or did you order them? they look fantastic

[@MakeMoreFish]

@@emilytoth5220 I bought them from a couple local fish stores but they were imported I'm sure. This was after 6 months of good food!

[@maryseloyer]

Hi. Where do you come from? Sorry for my question Im french and i Want To say "you speak so speed for me" But i like your Channel. Thank you very much 😉 See you soon 🙄😊

[@021kid84]

Loko

[@Ilostmyschmungus]

Where did you get the small water pump youre using to trigger spawning in the mop? Im wanting to breed sterbais and wanting to copy the setup you have.