I just put a Corydora in my 2.5 gal. tank with my male Betta. He is nipping his fins, can I get him to stop?

Question

I am trying to find the right fish to keep with my Betta. I tried 2 Neons, but he bullied them, kept them from feeding and they died. I put in 2 Sunburst Platys, and 1 died when I changed the water. Now I put in a Corydora, and I am almost positive he is nipping his fins. How do I get him to stop? I took the Corydora out and put him in the very small Betta tank I put them in when I change the water. Can I put him back in knowing he won't hurt my Betta? The Corydora is very high energy and swims all over the tank. Should I take him back to the store and buy a better suited fish that doesn't nip? Thanks for any advice you can offer.

Okay, I appreciate all the answers so far. I know a thing or two about Bettas, but I am asking about Corydoras. Everyone seems to think Bettas can't be kept with other fish, but that is wrong. I have been to many pet stores where a Betta is kept in a large tank with many other fish and there is no problem. Bettas just don't like other Male Bettas because they are terriotorial. I have a snail and frog in the tank and he gets along fine with them. He doesn't even bother my Corydora even though he is nipping him. I like my Corydora, but he is the one bulling my Betta. Is there anything I can do to make him stop nipping the Betta?

Answer 1

Frankly I have never heard of a cory doing any fin nipping or being bothered by a fin nipper for that matter.. That was probaly just a fluke as the fish "got to know each other". To be honest I wouldn't worry about them being together at all. I would put them back together and see how it goes. Watch them carefully though and fi you see any actual damage to either fish then move one of them. Just because it's rare dosen't mean it can't happen. As long as there is no damage, they will probably stop soon though.

MM

Answer 2

I think you helped anwer your question here:

"Everyone seems to think Bettas can't be kept with other fish, but that is wrong. I have been to many pet stores where a Betta is kept in a large tank with many other fish and there is no problem. "

You're absolutely right - in a large enough tank the Betta can be kept with lots of types of community fish. I keep one with a group of cardinals and Corydoras with no issues, but it's a planted 15 gallon tank (what I consider small sized and the minimum I would use for any fish). Your tank, at 2.5 gallons, is far from large - it's more like microscopic. It isn't big enough to keep any type of fish except the betta, and it's certainly too small for territorial type fish to share.

As mentioned Cory's are also grouping fish and should have companions of their own kind to expend that energy with, but there really isn't enough room for that in this little tank.

Bettas, Cory's, and any fish suitable to go with them, enjoy a planted aquarium and will truly thrive in such an environment, but again, there just isn't enough room to consider anything more then a tiny token plant or two.

Your best bet is to return the Corydora and come home with a proper tank of 10 gallons or more if you want to keep your betta with other fish. Then you can get a few Cory's, and a few of another suitable fish too, and you can keep the tank properly heated and filtered and planted and give these fish home worth living in.

Answer 3

Bettas can be kept with other fishes, but don't really need company. They like to have their own territory and don't really get lonely. I'd never keep a Cory cat alone (best in groups of 3-5) or in a tank smaller than 10 gallons, as they get 5-7 centimeters long. Your 2.5 gallon tank is fine for a betta, just don't cram anything else into it. It's too small.
The reason bettas do well in small water volumes is that that is their natural habitat. Low-oxygen, small bodies of basically stagnant water. They breathe air from the water surface with an organ called the labyrinth (some species of labyrinthine fishes actually will drown if they can't reach the water surface). Gouramis and Paradise Fishes are also labyrinthine fishes from similar habitats. So they don't need high oxygen content in the water or a large water surface area for oxygen exchange and can do just fine in small bowls. Corys will "gulp" air from the surface and absorb it in the gut, but they still do better in larger, aerated tanks.

Answer 4

No. I don't believe you can get him to stop nipping the Betta's fins also if the Betta's a male which has long fins that keep him from swimming as fast ,so even if you get a bigger tank he may still nip his fins while the Betta's not looking or while eatting (iv seen happen) he may start to get stressed out from it and get sick, So you may want to take him out of the tank and also treat him with some Melafix before he gets fin rot, if not try to get other kinds of fish to distract the nipper from your Betta. Being that your Betta is the only one in the tank all he has is him to play with. I have a male Betta in a 10 gal with other fish and they know hes the boss but they play with his fins at times but don't nip.
You may want to try some Danios that are fast swimmers so your Betta cant catch them, maybe some Red Rosy minnows there not tropical fish but they do fine with mine not bad a try for only 12cents at Petsmart !!!!!! I also put some comets in there to .
Some good fish for female Betta's are Black Tetras, Glowlight Tetras, Guppies,and Platies.
Hope I could be of some help !

Answer 5

The tank you're using is pretty small for a cory. They like to be with other corys more than they like to be with bettas. The other problem with a 2.5 tank is heating it. There aren't to many options for a thank that small. Bettas can be successfully mixed with other fish, the males do not get along, but the usually have no problem with other fish. Occasionally they have issues with long finned fish like guppies because they confuse them for other bettas. Still, a betta will thrive alone and doesn't need to have tank mates.

Answer 6

Your tank is simply to small to house more than the Betta. Upgrade tp a 5g+ tank and your troubles may go away, a 10g tank is ideal for a community tank with a betta. Also the cory is stressed, they are schooling fish that are normally very peaceful, they should be kept in groups of 3 or more. A single cory is a sad sad fish. Take him back and let him be with a school.

Answer 7

This sounds like you should keep the two fish seperated.

When looking for companians to work with betta fishes keep this in mind:

~ If the fish is similar in color/looks to a betta fish in ANY way, the betta may mistake this fish for a predator.

~ If the fish is high energy/fast paced it may also be perceived as a threat.

I would definitely go back to the store and ask someone who knows about fish habitats what will work best with bettas.

I keep a small snail in the same tank as my betta fish and that has worked well.

Roger (my betta) gets curious and investigates the snail, but isn't bothered by him.

~ Hope this helps!

Answer 8

Betta's and Corydora's are territorial, that's why they do it. Sometimes one can keep them alone, or with other fish (ask your local petstore owner for details) sucessfully - I had a Betta in with an Angel (they kept chasing each other but never caught each other) and about twenty other tropicals. Just remember the Betta will eat newly hatched little ones. My neon tetra's were fine with the Betta though. Angels are territorial too. Perhaps they're too far apart in size?

Answer 9

Corydoras like to be in groups. A betta and a cory cat is probably too much fish for your tank take back the corydora.
You could have one larger snail with your betta. A pair of zebra danios should be okay with the betta though they might tease him into jumping out of the tank.

Answer 10

You may not put anything with a male betta besides a female betta. If you put any fish with a male betta, the fish might not be killed instentaneously, but you will stress all of the fish in your little tank, including the betta. Eventualy one of them will die. What you can do is buy a 5 gallon tank with a filter and put a female betta with your male betta. The male will mate with the female if your lucky. Once the female has laid her eggs and they have hatched, the male will attempt to kill the female and eat the babies. So seperate them before the male does anything.