Eversi Cory Care Guide - Aquarium Setup, Diet & Breeding

The Eversi Cory is a small, elegant armoured catfish with the familiar rounded body, short barbels and underslung mouth typical of Corydoras. Its pattern is built around a dark, contrasting body with warm golden to orange tones in the head and fin area, giving this relatively uncommon species a distinctive appearance under aquarium lighting.

Like other Corydoras, it is a peaceful bottom-dweller that spends much of its time investigating the substrate with its barbels. Groups move confidently together, resting among plants and wood before making energetic trips to the surface or across the tank in search of food.

In nature, Eversi Corys inhabit shallow tributaries and forest streams where leaf litter, submerged roots and fallen branches create a complex mosaic of cover. Seasonal changes in rainfall can alter the depth, flow and chemistry of these waters, while the bottom is commonly made up of sand and fine sediment.

This species was named in honour of aquarist and author Hans-Georg Evers. It remains less commonly seen than several familiar Corydoras, making a healthy group especially appealing to aquarists who enjoy unusual South American catfish.

Corydoras eversi is native to the Rio Tahuamanu drainage in the upper Madeira basin of South America, in the Peruvian Amazon region. It comes from small, clear to lightly stained forest streams associated with the wider Amazon watershed.

A group should have at least a 60-litre aquarium, with a footprint of roughly 60 by 30 cm or larger. Use soft sand or another smooth, fine-grained substrate to protect the sensitive barbels, together with driftwood, rounded stones, aquatic plants and leaf litter that provide shaded resting places. Gentle to moderate circulation, open floor space and secure cover are useful, and the aquarium should be mature, clean and well oxygenated.

Up to about 4.5 cm (1.8 inches) in total length; females are usually slightly larger and deeper-bodied than males, while males commonly reach around 3.5–4 cm (1.4–1.6 inches).

Offer a varied omnivorous diet based on quality sinking catfish pellets or wafers, supplemented with frozen or live foods such as bloodworm, daphnia, brine shrimp and blackworm. Small portions should reach the bottom where the catfish can feed naturally. They are not algae eaters and should not be expected to live on scraps or leftovers alone.

Eversi Corys are peaceful community fish and suit similarly calm species such as small tetras, rasboras, pencilfish, peaceful small barbs, hatchetfish, dwarf cichlids and other non-aggressive Corydoras. They should not be housed with large, predatory or boisterous fish, fin-nippers, or aggressive bottom-dwellers that may compete for territory. Keep them with fish that will not swallow them or outcompete them for sinking food.

Eversi Corys are egg-scattering catfish that can be bred in an aquarium when mature females are well conditioned with a varied diet of live or frozen foods. Encourage spawning with a series of partial water changes using slightly cooler, clean water. The female carries a few adhesive eggs between her pelvic fins before placing them on glass, plant leaves or other smooth surfaces. Adults may eat the eggs, so remove the eggs or separate the parents after spawning; the eggs generally hatch in around three to five days, with tiny fry accepting newly hatched brine shrimp and other suitably small foods.

Females are generally broader through the body, particularly when carrying eggs, and are usually a little longer than males. Males tend to be slimmer with a more streamlined profile, although the difference can be subtle in young fish.