Without doubt one of the most popular and iconic families of fish in the hobby are catfish. Everybody has an idea of what a catfish looks like, big fish with whiskers.
This is usually true, there are hundreds of species of catfish that get enormous and eat pretty much everything... so no good for your average aquarium.
One family however are absolutely perfect for a tropical aquarium and in my opinion are one of the friendliest fish out there, Corydoras.
Corydoras are a family of fish that originate from South America and are incredibly wide spread. There are well over 150 different types of Corydoras, more being discovered and allocated "C" numbers to aid classification.
They are commonly found in slow moving streams and ponds with smooth sandy or gravel bases, crystal clear water and dense vegetation is always a common factor in their habitat.
They are found in a wide range of water conditions so keeping them happy in a home aquarium is nice and easy.
They vary in size and pattern. From the large Brochis Corydoras which get to around 4" to the dwarf Corydoras which stay a tiny 1" but often smaller.
They come in a huge variety of colours and patterns, ghostly pink albino, scribbled Sterbai, spotted Julli, all with those little barbels on the front of their mouths which they use for foraging. There is a Corydoras to suit everybody.
They are an incredibly peaceful fish, one of the most peaceful fish I have any experience with so tank mates are nice and easy as they get on with anything. Just make sure you have nothing too boisterous as Corydoras can get pushed around when it comes to feeding.
I will always recommend a smooth substrate in an aquarium, the delicate barbels of Corydoras can get damaged if the substrate is to rough or sharp. Provide plenty of plants and wood for these fish, creating shaded areas if possible. Gentle water flow is appreciated which is easily replicated with a small internal filter. Clean water is important so regular water changes are as important here as with any fish.
They are a very sociable fish which need to be kept in groups of 4 or more, you can mix almost all sorts of Corydoras together and they will all sit together quite happily. I have always found that a bigger group of one type looks much more impressive cruising round together.
Feeding is nice and straight forward, sinking pellets and wafers are a really high quality nowadays, offering frozen bloodworm will always go down well, watching them suck up a worm like a piece of spaghetti is always great to watch.
Spawning in an aquarium is not uncommon, sticky eggs are laid on flat surfaces so providing smooth cobbles or pieces of slate can help encourage this.
Corydoras are such a rewarding fish to keep. I couldn't recommend them highly enough, trouble is, there are so many different types... which to go for!
