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I rescued some cories tonight from a LCPS. I got 4 sterbai, 2 ornatus/schwartzi(?), and 2 panda(?) cories from the assorted cories tank. All for $2.50 each . Now, they've been in my 20 gallon for a couple of hours, and have colored up a bit. The pandas don't look quite so panda-y anymore! All the pictures of C. panda that I've seen show the caudul peduncle having a distinct spot. Mine don't really have that. They seem like a mix between panda and davidsandsi. There is black that connects the dorsal and tail. It's as if someone drew a diagonal line from the bottom of the end of the dorsal to the bottom of the beginning of the tail. Make any sense? I'll try to get some pictures soon. I've been surfing planetcatfish, and the ones that seem closest so far are names in the title. So, any ideas?

This 20 gallon now has a total of 15 cories :%). It is one of my most interesting tanks to watch!

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They shade the glow of it with their mossy-misty costumes,
They wear masks of silk, porcelain, brass, and silver,
So as not to mislead with their own, ordinary faces.

Hmmm, that description of the 'panda' cory sounds more to me like either a C. metae or C. melini. The 2 are very close, but the distinguishing features b/w the two is that although melini has that diagonal stripe from dorsal to tail, it has some small, light, vertical stripes flanking its body. C. metae does not have this feature.

Yeah, they look a bit like C. metae. I'll have to see what they are when they completely color up.

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They shade the glow of it with their mossy-misty costumes,
They wear masks of silk, porcelain, brass, and silver,
So as not to mislead with their own, ordinary faces.

I agree, it does sound more like metae or melini. Davidsandsi tend to have a little bit of yellow/gold behind their face mask (the vertical black line), which the other fish lack.

Personally, I'd bet that you have C. metae. They are more common than the others, and do look very like panda cories. I'll admit though, the rarity of the fish may not have any bearing in this case. After all, C. sterbai for $2.50? That's nuts!

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And when he gets to Heaven, to Saint Peter he will tell: "One more Marine reporting, Sir! I've served my time in Hell."

From what Cali has taught us you can tell if it is matae or melini by the stripe on it's back.

If the stripe on the back splits a little down the back then it is melini, if the stripe does not split in any way then it is matae.

Congrats on your awesome find! Can you post pics?

Edit: BTW, Heidi has matae...while I have melini.

Last edited by ~jamie~ at 29-Mar-2005 14:51

Haven't seen any bird's eye view shots of the two Jamie, but I'll keep a look out just in case some materialise ...

Meanwhile ...

Corydoras melini

Corydoras metae

These should be sufficient to keep everyone happy vis-a-vis the melini/metae distinction ...


Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

That's cool Cali, I think the pictures you linked above shows the difference pretty well IMO.

I hope Janna is able to post some pics so we can drool over her new additions.

I'm waiting to see Janna's Corys too. Apart from the business of identification, I want to see if she catches some of the now-infamous Cory comedy antics on film. Goodness knows I must have shot a fair few of those in my time photographing the Pandas!

Oh, and Janna, if you can get live food for your Corys, watch them come alive amazingly. Especially if you can obtain live food regularly.

Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002