First post

[Cory.Rivers]

Hello! I've just joined Planet Catfish and wanted in introduce myself. I am an American expat currently studying in England. Cories are my joy- they're such delightful little fellows. I've kept them since I was a kid. I've done some fieldwork on Cories in the wild, and am interested in their behavior. I'm setting up a few tanks of Cories now (just Bronze Cories, my favorites) and have been having a lot of trouble with 1) the tap water quality in Cambridgeshire (hard, high pH, high levels of nitrates ~40ppm) and 2) the poor health of the fish available at my local pet shops. It's disheartening to lose fish (all the Cories I've had before this have been so hardy and long-lived!), and I'm looking for solutions to these problems. I have access to RO water, which I have started combining with the tap water, which has improved the water quality. However, I would be thrilled to find a good supplier of Corydoras aeneus locally, or online.

[bekateen]

Hi Cory.Rivers,

First, welcome to PlanetCatfish!

I don't suppose it's very "local," but have you seen this post about the Catfish Study Group's annual Open Show and Auction on Sept 20 in Darwen, Lancashire? From what I can see, it's only about 200 miles away from Cambridgeshire. From the advertisements, it sounds like you won't find a better selection of corys anywhere, anytime soon.

http://www.planetcatfish.com/forum/view ... =2&t=42389

Cheers, Eric

[Jools]

Cambridgeshire, Illinois?

Jools

[Mol_PMB]

Welcome!
I can't help with local shops as I'm near Manchester.
But there are two really excellent shops up here that have a great range of Cory and do mail order too: Aqualife Leyland and Pier Aquatics.
For aeneus you probably won't have to resort to mail-order, they should be available in most shops.
The local independent stores may be better (or worse) than the big chains; the latter can often be 'reliably mediocre'.

[Jools]

Guys,

I think the OP is in Illinois, USA.

Jools

[racoll]

I think the OP is in Illinois, USA.

I am an American expat currently studying in England.

Perhaps adding the countries to the two locations ("Cambridge, UK", and "Illinois, USA") is a good idea in this case. People don't always absorb every piece of information when they read a post quickly, and it can be confusing because all of these places, with the exception of Massachusetts, are all also places in the UK:

Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, in the Boston metropolitan area

[Jools]

Sorry guys, my bad.

Jools

[Dave Rinaldo]

I am an American expat currently studying in England.

[Jools]

I think @MatsP is in Cambridgeshire and so might be able to chip in.

Jools

[Cory.Rivers]

Thanks everyone for your help, and I'm sorry about the confusion! I've updated my locations, and hopefully this makes things more clear Sorry if this is a silly question, but would it be okay if I messaged MatsP to ask advice?

[Marine590622]

Why not, worst he can say is no.

[Jools]

would it be okay if I messaged MatsP to ask advice?

Knowing Mats personally, I am sure he would be happy to help someone seeking local knowledge.

Jools