Care
Adolfo's Cory is an eye-catching, sought-after species, that is ideally suited to smaller softwater aquaria. The substrate should consist of soft sand in order to protect the delicate barbel area, and plenty of shady hiding spots amongst bogwood/plants should be incorporated. As a sociable species, Hoplisoma adolfoi must be kept in groups of 5 or more. The aquarium should be well mature before this species is added and frequent partial water changes are a must, as they can be very sensitive to elevated nitrate levels. Large shoals of small midwater "dither fish" will encourage C. adolfoi out into view. Other peaceful species such as some of the smaller fish from the tetra, pencilfish and rasbora families make ideal tankmates. Corydoras have the ability to breathe air intestinally, so a small gap should be left between the surface of the water and the cover slides in order for the fish to come up to the surface and take air in. It may do this numerous times per day.
Similar in appearance to C. imitator, which possesses a longer snout. H. duplicareus and H. burgessi also bear a close resemblance and many fishes sold as 'adolfoi' are the more heavily marked duplicareus.
Hoplisoma was recently split from Corydoras and contains many familiar species.
Feeding
Sinking catfish pellets, frozen foods such as mosquito larvae and brineshrimp.
Breeding
This species is said to be a little more difficult to breed than other members of the genus, as it can be difficult to raise the fry which are often reluctant to start feeding. In the wild these fish scatter their eggs in dense vegetation, so provide plenty of fine leaved plants. A cooler water change, as with many species of Corydoras, may trigger your fish into spawning in the classic T-position. Soft, acidic water seems to be essential (peat filtration suggested) and a ratio of 2 males to every female tends to work best. Keeping the young fry alongside other Corydoras sp. fry can help encourage them to follow suit and begin feeding.
