PlanetCatfish.com

I've had my three bronze cories for four monthes now. Ever since I added a clump of java fern to my 10 gallon, they've been hiding behind that. They will not come out unless either the room has it's lights on and the tank does not, or when the tank is completely dark, but if I sit there long enough or leave the room, they do eventually come out, but if make any movement what so ever, they are back behind that java fern in a split second.

I'm a bit concerned. This happened on a few other occasions, but this morning when I got up to feed my fish, I caught a cory off guard. He was front and center, and as soon as he realized that I was in front of the tank, he started darting around, bumping into other fish, the wall, and decorations before he retreated behind the java fern. Him and another cory had their faces sticking out, and the one who had darted was breathing a lot harder than the other one.

I'm worried I'm going to stress them out unintentually to the point of death. I'm not in my room a whole lot, but even if I open the door and can see the tank, they dart out of view. Sneaking around doesn't help either.

You didn't say what other plants, rocks, wood or decorations you had in the tank, but please get more! Your cories will hide, initially, and they will dash for cover when they see you - at first.
Provide them with enough places to go when they get startled, and they will reward you by coming out more often. New cories dash around a lot, and also swim up and down the tank sides.
You answered your own question, in a way, when you said you are not in the room a lot. They are not used to you or your movements, yet.
My experience with C. aeneus is that they are a lot more lively than some cories, and they are active nearly all day.
Get more plants and other suitable "structure" pieces in the tank, and they will soon adjust.

Deborah

I have two flowerpots, a rot, and a giant anubias.

Last night when I did a water changed, I rearranged my clump of java fern, which has been reproducing like mad, and spread it out among the back left corner.

Here's a bad picture of my tank before I rearranged it.



But hopefully that helps a little. Plants are so expensive, and when our LPS finally get in the ones I want, I never have the money for them. I'll be spending more time around them though, now that it's summer.

I have another couple questions. One of my cories have a notch taken out of it's top fin. It's been like that for a while and I can't recall when it has gotten that notch. And one of my cories is shorter and chubbier than the rest. Could that one be female?