False Network Cory Care Guide - Aquarium Setup, Diet & Breeding

False Network Cory is a small, beautifully marked armoured catfish with a pale bronze, grey or olive-brown base colour and a dark reticulated pattern across the body. The network-like markings can vary in intensity, while the face is decorated with fine dark lines and the fins often show subtle spotting or barring. Like other Corydoras, it has short barbels around the mouth for locating food across the substrate.

This species is peaceful, sociable and most expressive when kept in a proper group. It spends much of its time exploring the bottom, resting among cover and making quick trips to the surface to gulp air, an ability that helps Corydoras cope with oxygen-poor water in nature. Its gentle, active behaviour makes it a popular choice for a calm community aquarium.

In the wild, False Network Corys live among leaf litter, submerged roots and soft-bottomed shallow waterways. Their barbels are adapted for searching through sand and fine debris for small invertebrates and other edible material, while their bony plates provide protection from many predators.

The species belongs to the large Corydoras lineage of South American armoured catfish. Although it is sometimes confused with similarly patterned Corydoras, its distinctive reticulated markings and social nature make it a particularly attractive specialist bottom-dweller for planted and biotope-inspired aquariums.

False Network Cory is native to the upper Amazon basin in South America, with records associated particularly with Peru and adjoining parts of the western Amazon drainage. It inhabits slow-moving forest streams, tributaries and flooded areas with soft, sediment-rich bottoms.

A group of False Network Corys should have an aquarium of at least 75 litres, ideally measuring around 90 cm long by 30 cm wide or larger to provide useful uninterrupted floor space. Use fine, smooth sand or another soft substrate so their sensitive barbels are not damaged, and provide shaded areas with plants, driftwood, smooth stones and leaf litter. Gentle to moderate filtration, good oxygenation and open areas for foraging are helpful, while the aquarium should be mature, stable and free from sharp or abrasive décor.

Up to about 5 cm (2 in) in total length. Females are usually broader-bodied and may reach slightly greater lengths than males, which tend to be slimmer and smaller.

False Network Cory is an omnivorous bottom-feeder that should receive sinking catfish pellets or wafers as a staple, supplemented with frozen or live foods such as bloodworm, daphnia, brine shrimp and tubifex. Occasional finely softened vegetables can add variety, although animal-based foods are especially useful for conditioning adults. Make sure food reaches the substrate rather than relying on leftovers from midwater fish, and feed varied portions that the group can consume promptly.

False Network Corys are peaceful community fish and can be kept with similarly calm species such as small tetras, rasboras, pencilfish, peaceful danios, honey gouramis and other non-aggressive dwarf community fish. They also mix well with other peaceful Corydoras when there is enough floor space. Avoid large, predatory or boisterous fish, fin-nippers, territorial cichlids and aggressive bottom-dwellers that may outcompete or injure them. Do not house them with species that require markedly different water conditions.

False Network Corys are egg-scattering fish that can be conditioned for breeding with a varied, protein-rich diet and regular partial water changes. After spawning, a female carries fertilised eggs between her pelvic fins and places them on aquarium glass, plants or other smooth surfaces. The adults may eat the eggs, so remove the eggs or move the parents after spawning. Incubation usually takes three to five days, with tiny fry initially eating infusoria or a prepared fry food before progressing to newly hatched brine shrimp.

Females are generally larger, wider and more heavily built, particularly when viewed from above. Males are usually slimmer and a little shorter, with a more pointed body profile; colour and pattern are otherwise broadly similar.