“Corydoras Venezuela Black” is not from Venezuela it’s from Peru.

The dark form of Corydoras venezeulanus have never commercially entered the hobby. If you are having trouble distinguishing one from the other, here is a simple guide.

Corydoras schultzei black.

Young Corydoras schultzei “Black” tend to have all reddish fins which darken with maturity. Corydoras venezuelanus look very similar to the young Corydoras schultzei “Black”. However both the normal Corydoras venezuelanus we see in the hobby, and the dark form have reddish dorsal and adipose fins, but the caudal, anal and ventral fins are grey.

Corydoras schultzei black.

This black strain was first produced by a German aquarist in the early 90s, and then sent on to fish breeders in the Czech Republic where it has been commercially bred in large numbers ever since. The body colour is typically jet black but the fins are dark brown. Rather confusingly, many suppliers list the fish with the misleading name “Corydoras venezuelanus sp. black”. This line bred black strain of C. schultzei has no Venezuelan origins and is not a variant of C. venezuelanus, which itself is another “aeneus variation”. Misunderstanding is made due to the occurrence of a black wild form of Corydoras venezuelanus, but this is not the same fish. The wild black form of C. venezuelanus has not been exported for the aquarium trade in any great numbers.

This Black Venezuela Cory Catfish, Corydoras schultzei or “Black Venezuela“, is a rare color variant of the Gold Flash Cory Catfish. It displays black and dark maroon coloration across its entire body. Despite its “Venezuela” name, it is not from Venezuela, but is instead indigenous to Peru. This black variant was developed and line-bred by German aquarists in the 1990s and has since spread to aquarists around the world, but it does not seem to be commercially bred at nearly the level of other common Corydoras species.

The “True” black Cory Catfish – Corydoras aeneus from Peru.

So to call this Cory catfish a “Venezuelan Black” is misleading and wrong. It’s should be called “Peruvian Black Cory Catfish” if any other then the Latin scientific name, Corydoras aeneus sp. Black.

Cheers!

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