Corydoras surinamensis Breeding Guide

Breeding Corydoras surinamensis from Suriname: parameters, sexing and the documented Corydoras T-position spawning pattern (no species-specific report).

Overview

Corydoras surinamensis (treated by FishBase under Hoplisoma surinamense) is recorded from the Coppename River basin in Suriname, reaching about 5.1 cm SL, and is listed as Least Concern by the IUCN (2021). No species-specific aquarium spawning report is available, so the guidance below is explicitly anchored on the documented Corydoras genus pattern.

Sexing

Following the general Corydoras pattern, females grow rounder and broader-bodied than males, most obviously when carrying eggs and viewed from above.

Conditioning

Condition a mixed-sex group on a varied diet of live, frozen and dried foods. FishBase reports parameters of 22-25 degrees C, pH 6.0-8.0 and hardness 2-25 dH for this species.

Spawning Behavior & Trigger

For the genus, a large cooler water change with increased oxygenation and flow is the usual trigger. In the Corydoras T-position described on Wikipedia, the female attaches her mouth to the male's vent; sperm passes through her gut and is released with the eggs into a pelvic-fin pouch, which she carries to a deposition site. Note: this describes the genus, not a confirmed observation of C. surinamensis.

Egg & Fry Care

By the genus pattern, eggs are attached to firm surfaces and hatch within a few days; fry accept microworm and brine shrimp nauplii once the yolk sac is absorbed and do best over fine sand. Species-specific incubation figures for C. surinamensis are not documented.