Should I buy it?
Panda Corydoras
Corydoras panda
Also known as: panda cory, panda catfish
A small black-and-white cory that keepers buy for the markings. Needs a school of six on sand or smooth gravel. The panda pattern washes to grey when the fish is solo, stressed, or kept on sharp grit.
Panda Corydoras tank mates · 60L tank size hub
peaceful · beginner care
Sources & confidencehigh · verified · beginner: excellent
Checked against several solid care sources that mostly agree. Numbers here are a careful starting point. Your tap water, tank size, and habits decide the rest. How we evaluate.
Best for: Nano and community tanks 60L or more with fine sand substrate and patience for a six-fish shoal that displays the full black-and-white markings.
Avoid if: You only have sharp gravel, your tank is under 50L, or you can only find one or two for sale.
Common mistakeKeeping two panda cories in a 30L desktop tank is how keepers invent grey, stressed fish that never school. Markings fade under stress, and two fish are not a group. Stock six or more in at least 60L on sand — or skip the species.
Top things that go wrong
- Group welfare — not a solo display fish. Plan at least **6** together for normal behaviour; smaller groups often mean stress, colour loss, or nipping depending on species.
- Shrimp & snails. Cherry shrimp and other dwarfs can coexist with peaceful small fish; baby shrimp are food for almost anything that finds them.
What most shops don't tell you
- 1.Myth: two panda cories are enough for a cute nano cleanup crew. Reality: they need six or more on sand in a proper footprint — under-grouped fish fade, hide, and never behave like the active school people wanted Plan the husbandry before the shop impulse buy.
- 2.Bought in pairs as a 'splash of contrast' for a 60L. The black markings fade to grey within weeks of solo or undergrouped life.
- 3.Kept on warm Amazon settings near 28°C. Pandas hold colour better at the cooler end of the cory range.
- 4.Sand and a group of six. Avoid copper or strong malachite meds without scaleless-fish research first.
About this species
Panda corys carry a black eye band, a black shoulder, and a black tail base on a white body. Prefer cooler, well-oxygenated water than most Amazon tetras.
- Corydoras Catfish60L min · same group, comparable tank size
- Julii Corydoras60L min · same group, comparable tank size
- Salt and pepper cory / dwarf cory60L min · same group, comparable tank size
- Adolfoi cory80L min · same group, similar adult size
- Glass Catfish80L min · same group, similar adult size
- Peppered Corydoras80L min · same group, similar adult size
- Pygmy Corydoras30L min · same group, similar adult size
- Bronze corydoras100L min · same group, similar adult size
- Amano Shrimpalso beginner peaceful, similar tank size
- Assassin Snailalso beginner peaceful, similar tank size
- Beckford Pencilfishalso beginner peaceful, similar tank size
- Black Neon Tetraalso beginner peaceful, similar tank size
- Black phantom tetraalso beginner peaceful, similar tank size
- Bloodfin tetraalso beginner peaceful, similar tank size
- Agassiz’s dwarf cichlid tank matesnames this fish as a conditional pairing — read the pair page conditions
- Black phantom tetra tank mateslists this fish among its safer mates
- Cockatoo / crested Apistogramma tank matesnames this fish as a conditional pairing — read the pair page conditions
- Penguin tetra tank mateslists this fish among its safer mates
- Splash tetra tank mateslists this fish among its safer mates
Plan grid
Key limits are above. Here: pH band, swim level, bioload, and activity.
Swim zones
Care snapshot
Quick compare before you buy. Not a score of how “good” the fish is.
- Beginner ease85
- Peacefulness90
- Community fit79
- Small-tank fit100
- Hardiness79
- Energy24
Numbers are deterministic planning indices from Fishori fields — not a scientific score of your individual fish.
Example setups
Starting points only. Run the pair checker for every fish you add.
Rough 90L+ layout: one calm centrepiece, 8–12 small tetras/rasboras, 6–8 corydoras-type bottom fish — verify every name in the pair checker before buying.
Safer directions include: Ember Tetra, Harlequin Rasbora, Neon Tetra.
Prioritise 6+ of Panda Corydoras in 60L+ with filtration sized for messy feeding — add only mates that already pass pair checks with this species.
Compatibility
Tank mates for Panda Corydoras
Usually safer (engine GOOD): Ember Tetra, Harlequin Rasbora, Neon Tetra. Avoid (RISKY): Green Terror, Jack Dempsey, Oscar. Every name links to a live pair check — the lists are a shortlist, not a stocking plan.
Usually safer
Open a pair page with this fish as the starting point.
Needs planning
Read the blocking rule on each pair page before experimenting.
None listed. Use the pair checker before mixing.
Usually avoid
Do-not-stock combinations on conservative hobby rules.
Compare with
Run a real pair check: Panda Corydoras + Ember Tetra
- Try Ember Tetra — open the pair check.
- Try Harlequin Rasbora — open the pair check.
- Try Neon Tetra — open the pair check.
Behaviour and temperament
Panda cories are peaceful schooling catfish that stay calmer in groups of six or more. They do not bother midwater fish. Stress shows as faded markings and inactivity when kept as a pair on gravel in a tiny tank Plan the husbandry before the shop impulse buy.
What sets them off
- Sudden crowding
- Poor water quality
Fin nipping: Not a habitual fin-nipper; stressed or crowded individuals can still test fins.
Predation: Not a predator toward similarly sized community fish; fry and dwarf shrimp are still fair game for most species.
Territory: Not strongly territorial, but still needs room so its working space does not overlap the next fish.
Planted tanks: excellent — easy plant ideas
In the glass: typical and warning signs
- Six or more work sand together and rest in loose groups between feeds.
- Barbels searching the substrate are normal ownership on soft sand.
- Grey, inactive fish in a pair usually need more of their own kind and better substrate.
- Torn barbels on sharp gravel mean substrate choice failed.
- Low listed risk as aggressors.
- They get eaten by large cichlids long before they bully anyone else.
- Increase school size before chasing mystery colour meds.
- Move them off gravel onto sand when barbels look worn.
Fish behaviour can vary between individuals and tank setups. Always observe new fish closely after introduction.
Water, food, and grouping
Hardness
soft
Diet
omnivore
Panda cories are small bottom omnivores that take sinking wafers and frozen foods on sand once a group of six or more is settled. Surface flake alone leaves them thin while midwater fish look fine. Feed after lights soften, confirm the school reaches food, and keep them on soft substrate that does not grind barbels.
Shrimp & snails
Cherry shrimp and other dwarfs can coexist with peaceful small fish; baby shrimp are food for almost anything that finds them.
Schooling species — buy 6+ together. Smaller groups stress and lose colour.
- Hold 20 to 26 °C steadily on a real thermometer, not the dial on the heater.
- Aim for pH 6 to 7.5 and a hardness you can re-test in two weeks. A one-time strip in the shop car park is not a water test.
- Schooling species. Buy 6 or more from the same tank on the same day before adding any centrepiece fish.
- Tank volume meets or exceeds 60L published minimum for adults.
- You can stock at least 6 individuals (group welfare).
- Heater can hold 20–26°C without cooking cooler-water tank mates.
Explore and stocking hubs
Tank-mates hub, matching guides, category peers, and litre stocking lists around this species’ minimum tank.
Plan with tools
Check mates as pairs first, then add this fish in the tank builder for the full stocking.
Filtration & heating
A 60L minimum tank needs a filter rated for at least 240L/hr turnover and a heater to hold 20–26°C reliably.
Plant suggestions
Panda Corydoras does well in planted tanks. Plants compatible with 20–26°C and pH 6–7.5:
Research: verified · Confidence: high · 3 linked source(s). We do not invent citations.
How Fishori evaluates compatibility (same logic as pair and tank tools).
- Seriously Fish. Corydoras panda
Primary: aquarium size, water chemistry, behaviour, and compatibility (URL verified in upgrade script; recheck if site content changes).
- FishBase. Corydoras panda
Secondary: taxonomy, distribution, and maximum length in nature; cross-check with aquarium import lines and measured tank parameters.
- Wikipedia. Corydoras panda
Secondary: general species context; verify all husbandry numbers against a dedicated aquarium care sheet and your test kit, not a single table row.
Evidence notes
- The Seriously Fish profile for the binomial in this record was successfully reached as the primary aquarium reference.
- FishBase contributes natural-range size and habitat context. Translate those numbers through your heater, your water report, and your tank footprint before stocking.
- Wikipedia is only cited if the article URL returned OK. Use it for orientation, not as the only care sheet for an import.
- All compatibility text reflects typical hobby experience and the Fishori model. Individual fish, shop stress, and the order tank mates are added in can still defy a single-paragraph label.
Featured compatibility checks
Curated pair pages for Panda Corydoras. Each opens a full verdict — not just a list label.
Common questions about Panda Corydoras
- How big do Panda Corydoras get?
- Panda Corydoras adults reach about 5 cm. Shop fish look smaller; stock for the adult length.
- What size tank does Panda Corydoras need?
- 60L is the planning floor for adult swimming space and bioload. A 73L+ tank is the more comfortable long-term footprint. Length and depth matter as much as raw litres for active or territorial fish.
- Are Panda Corydoras aggressive?
- Panda cories are peaceful schooling catfish that stay calmer in groups of six or more. They do not bother midwater fish. Stress shows as faded markings and inactivity when kept as a pair on gravel in a tiny tank Plan the husbandry before the shop impulse buy.
- Do Panda Corydoras need to be kept in a group?
- Schooling species — buy 6+ together. Smaller groups stress and lose colour.
- What is the most common mistake with Panda Corydoras?
- Keeping two panda cories in a 30L desktop tank is how keepers invent grey, stressed fish that never school. Markings fade under stress, and two fish are not a group. Stock six or more in at least 60L on sand — or skip the species.
- What fish can live with Panda Corydoras?
- The Panda Corydoras profile lists Ember Tetra, Harlequin Rasbora, Neon Tetra among its safer pairings (engine-checked GOOD). Avoid Green Terror, Jack Dempsey, Oscar (RISKY). Run the pair checker for your exact water and tank size before stocking.