English catfish judge Chris Ralph introduces this month's featured catfish, a smaller than average Corydoras.

Corydoras cochui belongs to the family Callichthyidae from South America namely Brazil; Upper Araguaia River basin. This catfish is documented as occurring in the Rio Araguaia, Santa Maria Nova and State of Goyaz (Goiaz).

The body of this species is described as being slender with a rounded snout, although it does still have the typical triangular appearance which makes this family distinct. The base colour of the body and head is described as being light brown. There are four dark coloured blotches along the flanks of this catfish, one below the dorsal fin, one between the dorsal and adipose fin, one below the adipose fin and one on the caudal peduncle. There is a dark streak along the back of the fish which extends backwards from below the dorsal fin spine, ending in a dark spot on the upper edge of the caudal peduncle. The top of the head is described as being dark which continues to below the eye. The upper and anterior portion of the opercle is described as being dark in colour. The caudal fin is described as having five narrow irregular dark coloured cross bands. The base of the anal fin has a dark coloured spot extending into the body. The ventral fin is described as being clear. The pectoral fin rays have a few dark coloured scattered spots, whilst the dorsal fin rays have a scattering of dark coloured spots which form two irregular rows. The dorsal and pectoral fin spines are described as having a narrow dark line along them.

Corydoras cochui is best described as being one of the dwarf or pygmy species of Corydoras catfish. This particular species is not commonly available, but is well worth looking out for and is ideal for smaller aquariums. The catfish depicted in this feature have been incorrectly shown as Corydoras habrosus in the last couple of years.

I would suggest a minimum size of 24": x 15": X 12": for a small shoal of these catfish. As with all other species of fish, water quality and general husbandry is very important, and I would recommend that a minimum of 25% water is changed on a weekly basis.

This article has had 5610 hits. Photo credits for the images used in this article can be found on the Cat-eLog page.