Guppy aquarium fish - simple and detailed about them. Breeding guppy aquarium fish

All aquarium lovers know the small viviparous guppy fish. Both in the USSR and abroad, exhibitions and competitions of guppies are annually held, at which aquarists-breeders demonstrate their achievements in improving the existing and breeding new breeds of this extremely variable in shape and color of the fish.

Unlike males, females of this species do not differ in beauty. Therefore, amateurs dream of mastering ways that would allow them to get more beautiful bright males and less monochromatic nondescript females.

In order to consciously and successfully engage in breeding new guppy breeds and find ways to control the sex ratio in offspring, you need to know the basic laws of heredity, as well as the factors that determine the development of the female and male sex and the resulting characteristics of shape and color.

Chromosomes located in the cell nucleus are directly related to the phenomena of heredity. When the mother cell divides, the chromosome substance is divided equally between the two daughter cells.

Each organism possesses a certain even number of chromosomes peculiar to this species. The number of chromosomes contained in the cells of the body is called diploid or double, in contrast to the sex cells (gametes), which contain half or haploid (single) number of chromosomes.

Separate small sections of the chromosome that have a certain biochemical function that have a specific effect on the development of individual traits of an individual are called genes.

Chromosomes that have genes that play a decisive role in determining sex are called sex chromosomes, chromosomes that do not have such genes are called autosomes.

In germ cells with a haploid set of chromosomes, in guppies, like in most animals, there is no more than one sex chromosome, and in body cells with a diploid set, there are two sex chromosomes: one from the mother, the other from the father.

In guppies, in the cells of the body of females and in all eggs (eggs) of a given species, the sex chromosomes have the same shape and are called X chromosomes, and in males there are two types of sex chromosomes - X chromosomes, which have the same shape as in females, and Y chromosomes that differ in shape and size from X chromosomes. In sperm, there is always one sex chromosome - either X or Y.

It has been established that a male develops from eggs fertilized by a sperm carrying a Y chromosome, and a female develops from eggs fertilized by a sperm with an X chromosome.

In the male gonads, the testes, the same number of spermatozoa with the X chromosome and with the Y chromosome is formed. Therefore, the egg has an equal chance of being fertilized by a sperm carrying an X or Y chromosome. Therefore, on average, the same number of males and females are born.

Thus, each female in the cells of her body has two X chromosomes, one of which is received from the mother, and the other from the father. The male receives the X chromosome only from the mother, and the Y chromosome only from the father. Chromosomes that have genes that play a decisive role in sex determination are called sex chromosomes, and chromosomes that do not have such genes are called autosomes.

Autosomes in guppies are responsible for inheriting body color in males and females, body size and shape, and fins. If a female with a golden body is crossed with a purebred gray male, or, conversely, a gray female is crossed with a golden male, then all the offspring will turn out to be gray. The sign of gray color seems to suppress the sign of gold color. Such suppressive traits when crossing are called dominant, and the phenomenon of suppression of one trait by another is called dominance. A trait that does not appear during crossing (in this case, golden color) is called recessive.

As a rule, individual traits are inherited independently of each other. The only exceptions are those whose development is determined by genes located close to each other on the same chromosome. They are, as it were, linked to each other and are transmitted together.

For guppy lovers, sex-linked traits are of greatest interest. The genes responsible for the development of these traits are located on the sex chromosomes Y and X. The former are necessarily transmitted directly from father to son. There is no need to talk about dominance here, since there is no second X chromosome in the cells of the male (this type of inheritance is called paternal). Traits linked to the female sex (maternal type of inheritance) are more difficult to transmit.

To understand the process of inheriting traits linked to the female sex, let's take a male guppy with a red stripe running along the lower edge of the caudal fin (this trait is remarkable in that, being invisible in young females, it manifests itself and becomes noticeable not only in males, but also in old females), and we cross him with a female from a breed devoid of this trait. The red stripe will not be inherited by any of the sons, but it will not disappear. She will be inherited by the daughters. Let's not wait for them to grow old. To speed up the appearance of the red stripe, we put the females in a weak solution of methyltestosterone (a synthetic substitute for the male sex hormone). (0.1 grams of methyltestosterone is dissolved in 100 cubic centimeters of 70% alcohol. This solution is poured into 900 cubic centimeters of water. This solution is added to the aquarium every other day at the rate of 10 drops per 15 liters of water.). After about three weeks, red streaks will begin to appear on the lower edge of the caudal fin. When such a female is crossed with a male that does not have this trait, half of her sons will have a red stripe along the lower edge of the caudal fin. Why half? Because the mother has one X chromosome containing the gene that determines the development of the red stripe on the tail, she inherited from her father who had this trait, and the second X chromosome from the mother who did not have such genes.

To make it easier to understand the process of inheritance of sex-linked traits, imagine that females are treated with methyltestosterone. When they are contained in a methyltestosterone solution, only dominant traits inherited by the type of maternal heredity and dominant traits, the development of which is determined by genes located in autosomes, are revealed. Recessive traits in hybrid individuals can only be detected by crossing (hybridological analysis).

Guppy sex-linked traits are well studied and described by geneticists. The conclusions of geneticists are confirmed when testing females using methyltestosterone. Many signs of color linked to sex have been described by the Danish scientist O. Winge and the Soviet geneticist V.F. Natali.

According to F.M. Polkanov, a red carpet in the middle of the caudal fin is transmitted by the maternal type of inheritance, and by the type of paternal inheritance, the main features of emerald guppies.

So we found out that the sex of the guppy fry is determined at the time of fertilization and depends on which spermatozoon the egg was fertilized with: carrying the X-chromosome or Y-chromosome. We also found that in female guppies, under the influence of male sex hormones, a number of signs appear that, regardless of whether they are sex-linked or not, are usually noticeable only in males.

It is known that methyltestosterone has a stronger effect on young females than on old ones. Embryological data indicate that the differentiation of the gonad in guppies begins even in the egg, a few days before the fry hatch from the eggs. Finally, physiologists, more precisely endocrinologists, found that sperm contain hormone-like substances, and in spermatozoa with a Y chromosome, substances predominate that in their effect on animals resemble female sex hormones, and in spermatozoa with a Y chromosome, male ones.

I had a question: is it possible to intervene in the process of gender formation and, with the help of hormones, change the direction of its development?

In doing so, I proceeded from the assumption that it is easier to interfere with the “choice” of the fertilized egg of the direction in the development of sex than to change it when it has already begun. I planted full females in a solution of methyltestosterone, and after hatching the fry, I raised them in a solution with the same concentration for 20-60 days. When the sex was determined, it turned out that males prevailed in all litters (65-70 percent), while in the control, the number of males in any litter did not exceed 52 percent.

By outward appearance males could easily be divided into two groups. About two-thirds of the males were of normal coloration, and one-third were only those color traits that usually appear in females under the influence of methyltestosterone.

To make sure that I really succeeded in completely transforming females into males, I put two males each with the color of females treated with methyltestosterone and one virgin golden female in separate jars. After a month and a half, only gray fry appeared in all five banks, and when they grew up, it turned out that there was not a single son in the offspring of these males. This is understandable that none of the males had a Y chromosome, since by origin they were supposed to become females.

Thus, I learned to get some females. In order to get more males, and besides, they are also normally colored, you need to learn how to turn males into females.

In theory, this can be done with female sex hormones.

The Japanese scientist Yamamoto, who conducted experiments with a small fish medaka (a family of spawning toothy carp), was a success. He turned males into females and, by crossing them with normal females, he got 25 percent of females and 75 percent of males.

Gooppi (Latin Poecilia reticulata) is an aquarium fish, which is known even to people who are very far from aquaristics, let alone amateurs. Perhaps every aquarist at least once in his life kept a couple of guppies, and many began their journey with them, and even now contain luxurious, selective species of guppies. To answer all the questions about them, you probably need to write a book, but we will try to consider especially popular ones.
Male guppies of different breeds

The homeland of the guppy fish is the islands of Trinidad and Tobago, and in South America - in Venezuela, Guiana and Brazil. As a rule, they live in clear, flowing water, but they also like brackish coastal waters, but not salty sea waters. They feed on worms, larvae, bloodworms and various small insects. Because of this feature, they even began to be massively populated in areas where there are many anopheles mosquito, since the guppies eat its larvae. Males of guppies in nature are much brighter than females, but still their color is far from aquarium breeding forms. She must protect them from predators, since the fish is small and defenseless.
Wild guppies in nature:

The guppy aquarium fish got their name from the name of the discoverer (Robert John Lechmere Guppy), Robert Guppy was the first to find and describe this fish on the island of Trinidad in 1866.

Description

A small fish, moreover, males are smaller than females, and as a rule reach a length of about 5 cm. Guppies live for 2-3 years, since their small size and warm water accelerate metabolism and shorten their lifespan.
As for the appearance, it is almost impossible to describe it. Guppies cross so often and a lot that even dozens of breeding forms can be counted, and even more common ones. The male and female differ strikingly between themselves, but we will talk about this difference later.

Difficulty in content

Great fish for beginners and pros. Small, active, beautiful, very easy to reproduce, undemanding to maintenance and feeding, it seems that the list goes on forever. However, we will warn novice aquarists against buying bright, selective forms of guppies. How to understand that the form is selective? If all the fish in the aquarium are strictly the same color, the males have long and uniform fins, then these are demanding guppies.

If the males are all different, like the females, there is a riot of colors and colors in color, then these are the guppies that an ordinary aquarist needs. The fact is that as a result of crossing, they become very beautiful, but also very capricious, losing their advantages. Hybrid forms of guppies already have weak immunity and are very demanding for maintenance. So if you just decided to try yourself in the aquarium hobby, buy the simplest, but multi-colored gupeshki.

They will delight you no less than breeding forms, but they will live much longer and there will be fewer problems. And for the pros there will be selective forms of guppies - they need to be carefully sorted, even more carefully bred and looked after.

Feeding guppies

It is very easy to feed them, they eat very different foods - artificial, frozen, live, even dry. They eat flakes, pellets and other artificial feeds with pleasure, but it is better to choose well-known brands, for example, Tetra. Of the living, the best are bloodworms, tubifex, brine shrimp, corotra. It is important to remember that the guppy has a small mouth and stomach, the food should be small, and it is better to feed it two to three times a day, in portions that the fish will eat in 2-3 minutes. Also, guppies love food with a high content of plant substances, so that their gastrointestinal tract remains healthy, and their immunity is high, buy, in addition to regular cereals, also with herbal supplements and feed them twice a week.

Separately, I would like to say about dry food - these are not branded food, but dried daphnia, which is often sold in poultry markets. I strongly advise against feeding fish with such food, even gupeshek. He's poor in vitamins nutrients and in fact it is just a dried shell. It inflames the digestive tract in fish and they die.

Like everyone else tropical fish, guppies love warm water(22-25 ° C), but can live in a wider range of 19.0 - 29.0 ° C. As for the parameters of water, this is practically irrelevant for ordinary forms. They adapt so quickly to local conditions that moving to a new aquarium can be tolerated without any problems. It will be ideal if the aquarium contains: 7.0 - 8.5, and the hardness is 12.0 - 18.0, but the parameters may be completely different, which will not prevent the guppy from living and reproducing.

The aquarium can be small, 20 liters is enough for 5 fish. But, the larger the volume, the more fish you can keep and the more beautiful it will look.
It is best to have a lot of plants in the aquarium, as this will look like natural environment habitat and will significantly increase the survival rate of fry in the general aquarium. Lighting can be anything from bright to twilight.

It is advisable to use a filter, an internal one is quite enough for gupeshki, but if there is an external one, then great. It is only better to close the holes in it with an additional fine mesh, since a powerful filter is not only able to suck in fry, but even an adult fish.

Guppies cannot be called a schooling fish, but it makes little sense to keep them in pairs. It is very small in size and in small quantities is almost invisible in the aquarium. For guppies, the rule is simple - the more of them in the aquarium, the more impressive and beautiful they look.

Compatibility with other fish

A very peaceful fish that does not cause any trouble to neighbors. But she can be offended, especially by large and predatory fish, which gupeshek perceive only as food. So with fish like, or should not be kept.
Also, you can not keep with fish that can cut off the fins of male guppies - some gourami, for example.
Guppies get along best with peaceful and small fish: -,.

Sex differences

Distinguishing a female guppy from a male is very, very simple. Males are smaller, slimmer, they have a large caudal fin, and the anal one has turned into a gonopodium (roughly speaking, it is a tube with which males of viviparous fish fertilize a female). Female guppies are larger, have a large and noticeable belly and are usually rather pale in color. Even juveniles can be distinguished quite early, as a rule, those of the fry that are the first to become colored will be males.

Breeding guppies

One of the easiest fish to breed is domestic guppies, they are very easy to breed in home aquariums. The fact is that they are viviparous, that is, the female bears eggs in her stomach, and a fully formed fry is already born. The first hours he will lie down and hide, but very soon he will begin to swim and eat.

To breed guppies you need ... a male and a female. Even not so, one young and active male is enough to court 3-5 females tirelessly. That is, for successful breeding, it is quite possible to keep one male for 3-5 females. More males are possible, since males do not fight with each other, but only compete. You will see how the male chases the female tirelessly, but this is normal and you do not need to do anything about it. The fact is that during such persecutions, he fertilizes the female and soon you will have fry.

A female with a dark spot is coming soon! What does it take for guppies to breed? Fresh and clean water, good and abundant feeding and a couple of opposite sex fish. As a rule, guppies are quite successfully bred in a common aquarium. But, they also eat their fry, and the neighbors, if they are, will help. This means that pregnant females are better off in a separate aquarium.

How to understand that you have a pregnant guppy? In a pregnant female, the spot near the anus begins to darken, the eyes of the growing fry are already visible, and the darker it is, the sooner she will give birth.
Put mommy in a separate aquarium, with the same water and thickets of plants, where the fry can hide from her (yes, she can eat her children). When the deadline comes (maybe up to a month, if you were in a hurry to plant her), she will give birth without any problems.

Immediately after giving birth, the female must be besieged. Taking care of guppy fry is pretty simple, just like taking care of the parents. How to feed guppy fry? You can feed them with finely chopped branded flakes (which you feed your parents), but better with dry egg or branded food for fry. Note that there is such a relic of the past as dry food. It is dried daphnia and cyclops and can still be found commercially. So, feeding guppy fry with this rubbish is strictly not recommended. The nutritional value there is slightly higher than zero, in fact it is an analogue of a taranka. Will you grow up a lot if you eat one ram? The same can be said for adult fish.

It is necessary to clean them regularly so that the remains of feed do not spoil the water. You can also launch snails into this aquarium, for example or. They do not touch the fry, and will eat the remains of the food.

How a fry is born:

It is important that the water is clean, but it is impossible to change a lot and immediately, since the fry are still weak and a large water change is dangerous for them. The easiest way is to change about 10% of the water every one or two days, or 25% once a week.
The water temperature for guppy fry is very important, and you need to keep it at the level of 24-26.5C.
At proper care and feeding, guppy fry grow quickly and after a month and a half begins to stain.

Frequently asked questions about guppies

What kind of fish can you keep with guppies?

Some species have already been listed above, but you can still see the article - everything on this list is good for keeping with guppies.

How do you know if a guppy is pregnant or about to give birth?

Usually, a female guppy gives birth to fry once a month, but the timing may differ depending on the temperature of the water and the conditions of detention. Mark the time with last time when she gave birth and watch. In a female ready for new birth, the spot becomes darker, the eyes of the fry are visible.

How does a guppy breathe?

Like all fish - oxygen dissolved in water, do not forget to turn on aeration and filtration.

How long do guppies live?

About two years, but it all depends on the conditions and temperature. The higher the water temperature, the shorter their life. Some fish live up to 5 years.

How often should guppies be fed?

Every day, in small portions two to three times a day. For example, in the morning and in the evening. Once a week, you can arrange a hungry day, but keep in mind that the fish will actively search for food and their own fry will be the first victims.

Why do guppies get torn tails?

There may be many reasons, but the most common is old water, which is rarely changed. It accumulates ammonia and nitrates, and they poison the fish and destroy the fins. Replace the water regularly with fresh water. There may also be sudden water changes, injury, or poor feeding when vitamins are low.

If the tail of the guppy has disappeared, then this is an alarming sign - either someone cuts it off and you need to carefully examine the fish with which it is kept, or it contracted an infectious disease, and you need to look even more closely at the rest of the fish.

Why does a guppy have a sticky tail?

Again - either old and dirty water, or infection, or poor feeding. Try changing 20% of the water once a week and keep an eye on the health of other fish.

Why does a guppy have a crooked spine?

Such fish are found in almost all species, as a rule, this is a defect from birth. If this happens in an adult fish, then this may be due to the fact that it is kept in a too cramped aquarium, with a large number of fish. In guppies, the spine also curves from old age, and this is normal, but the most common cause is fish tuberculosis or mycobacteriosis. The disease is complex, and its treatment is not easy, does not always bring results. It is best to isolate these fish to avoid the spread of infection.

Why do guppies only give birth to females?

The exact answer to this question has not been found. Apparently with an excess of males, the laws of nature are turned on and the population compensates for the females in order to preserve itself.

Can you only keep one guppy in an aquarium?

It is possible, although it looks somehow sad ... All the same, this is a cheerful and lively fish that loves company. If you are looking for a fish that would be beautiful, unpretentious and would live wonderfully on its own, then look in the direction of the cockerel.

Do guppies need oxygen and a filter?

Optional, but desirable. You can buy an inexpensive, internal filter with a washcloth. It will perform its functions well enough and will not suck in fish. Please note that if you bought a filter, and it is placed higher (so that the water surface in the aquarium is in motion), then you do not need to buy additional aeration or, more simply, oxygen.

Do guppies need soil and plants?

It's up to you. An empty aquarium is easier to clean, but it looks worse, the fry does not survive in it, and the gupesh themselves love to frolic among the plants. I am for an aquarium with soil and plants.

Does guppy need light?

No, fish do not need light at all, other than falling on the aquarium during the day. Plants need light to grow.

Guppies spawn?

No, they are viviparous. That is, the fry is born completely ready for life and can immediately swim. Sometimes it falls out in the egg, but it breaks and it floats. Sometimes he has a yolk sac, which he digests quickly.

Do guppies sleep?

Yes, but not as people. This is more of an active rest, when at night the fish reduce their activity, but still swim. And it is better to turn off the light at night, although some do not, but is it dark in nature at night?

How many fry does a guppy give birth to?

Depends on the female, her age and size. Usually about 30-50 pieces, but sometimes 200

How long does a guppy fry grow?

Very fast in good conditions. Males become sexually mature at two months, and females at three.

Can guppies be kept in sea water?

No, they tolerate poorly salted water well, but they die in the sea, this is a freshwater fish.

Why do guppies swim on the surface?

They breathe oxygen dissolved in water, and your aquarium lacks it. Because of which? Maybe it's too hot, maybe you haven't cleaned the aquarium or changed the water for a long time, maybe it's too crowded. Be sure to turn on aeration or filtration (place the filter closer to the water surface to enhance gas exchange) and replace some of the water with fresh water.

Why do guppies jump out of the aquarium?

They can do this both accidentally and because of bad water - for example, if it has not been changed for a long time and the soil has not been siphoned in the aquarium. Also, the reason may be a small amount of oxygen in the water, read about this above.

Why is the guppy's tail stuck or stuck together?

Unfortunately, the exact reason cannot be named, even if the aquarium is near you. This may be improper feeding (monotonous, only dry food or plentiful), there may be inappropriate water parameters (a lot of ammonia), or there may be a disease. The minimum that needs to be done is to replace some of the water, siphon the soil and change the type of food.

What kind of catfish can you keep with guppies?

Any small ones. More or less large catfish, almost without exception predators. The only exception is that it can be kept with a guppy. Well, any corridors will perfectly get along with guppies and will be very useful, eating up the remains of food from the bottom.

Guppy fry care

The most unpretentious of the fry, they survive in the wild. But, if you regularly change the water, give enough food so that they eat in a couple of minutes and feed the fry two or three times a day, then they will quickly grow, color and delight you. How to feed guppy fry? There are no difficulties in feeding, they eat crushed flakes, but it is better to give naupilia brine shrimp or cut tubifex.

Record navigation

For guppies to breed in an aquarium? natural process. How often your fish will produce offspring and how viable the fry will be depends on the general conditions of detention.

Breeding guppies can be fun as the fish different colors cross well, which allows you to get unique, new colors of guppies.

How to tell the difference between a female and a male guppy

In this species of fish, sex determination is not difficult.

Males, as a rule, are smaller than females and slimmer - from 2 to 4 cm, their tail is much larger, and the anal fin has turned into a gonopodium (the tube with which fertilization occurs).

Female guppies are relatively large - up to 6 cm, they have a noticeable belly and a paler shade.

How do guppies breed in an aquarium? Peculiarities

For breeding guppies, several females and one male should be selected (more can be, but one is quite enough), which will constantly pursue females and fertilize. During such a period, it is better not to interfere with him - this is a condition for successful breeding.

The aquarium should have clean water, the fish are abundantly fed during this period. After pregnancy in female guppies becomes noticeable - an enlarged belly (closer to childbirth, it resembles a trapezium) and a darkening spot in the anus? they are placed in separate spawning aquariums with a volume of about 5 liters. This is done so that the fry do not become food for neighbors.

For about a month, the female bears eggs in her stomach, this period can be increased to 7 weeks - it all depends on the type of fish and the conditions of detention. Since the guppy belongs to viviparous species, she does not lay eggs: an already formed fry is born.

Before giving birth, the female refuses to eat, moves a little, tends to swim up to the heater in the aquarium, her tail trembles. Usually, during the first spawning, the female brings up to 25 fry, and in subsequent births several times more.

In the aquarium, pregnant and giving birth to female guppies should have vegetation. The mother guppy can eat her fry, and the aquarium plants will give the kids the opportunity to hide. However, in order not to risk offspring, the female guppy immediately after giving birth is best placed from the babies in a common aquarium.

Guppy fry care

Babies are born already fully formed fish, so caring for guppy fry is no more difficult than caring for adults.

It is recommended to feed the offspring in the first month with finely chopped branded flakes for fry (not to be confused with low-nutrient dry food!) Up to four to five times a day. From the second or third month, their diet is exactly the same as that of adults.

Leftover feed should be carefully removed. To do this, you can add, for example, ampullia to the aquarium, which will collect the remains of food without touching the fry. It is important that there is clean water in the aquarium, however, it is not recommended to make large changes - it is enough to change 10% of the water every two days.

The water temperature should be in the range of 24-26.5 ° C.

At good care guppy fry grow quickly and begin to stain by 4-6 weeks. Grown up babies are transplanted into a common aquarium. By about 4 months, guppies become sexually mature.

Guppy endler: breeding in the aquarium

Unlike the usual, in dwarf guppies, the guppi / guppy endler, reproduction has the following features:

1. The birthmark in female guppy endler is somewhat lighter than in ordinary ones.
2. The belly of pregnant females is round before childbirth remains round.
3. Endler guppies do not eat their fry, so they are planted only in order to provide the babies with proper nutrition.
4. Pregnancy in a female guppy endler lasts 22-23 days.
5. At the same time, 5 to 25 fry are born.
6. Females become sexually mature by two months.

Male guppies of different breeds

Living in nature

The homeland of the guppy fish is the islands of Trinidad and Tobago, and in South America - in Venezuela, Guiana and Brazil. As a rule, they live in clear, flowing water, but they also like brackish coastal waters, but not salty sea waters. They feed on worms, larvae, bloodworms and various small insects. Because of this feature, they even began to be massively populated in areas where there is a lot of anopheles mosquito, since guppies eat its larvae. Males of guppies in nature are much brighter than females, but still their color is far from aquarium breeding forms. She must protect them from predators, since the fish is small and defenseless.
Wild guppies in nature:

The guppy aquarium fish got their name from the name of the discoverer (Robert John Lechmere Guppy), Robert Guppy was the first to find and describe this fish on the island of Trinidad in 1866.

Description

Difficulty in content

Feeding guppies

It is very easy to feed them, they eat very different foods - artificial, frozen, live, even dry. They eat flakes, pellets and other artificial feeds with pleasure, but it is better to choose well-known brands, for example, Tetra. Of the living, the best are bloodworms, tubifex, brine shrimp, corotra. It is important to remember that the guppy has a small mouth and stomach, the food should be small, and it is better to feed it two to three times a day, in portions that the fish will eat in 2-3 minutes. Also, guppies love food with a high content of plant substances, so that their gastrointestinal tract remains healthy, and their immunity is high, buy in addition to regular flakes, even with herbal supplements and feed them twice a week.

Separately, I would like to say about dry food - these are not branded food, but dried daphnia, which is often sold in poultry markets. I strongly advise against feeding fish with such food, even gupeshek. It is poor in vitamins, nutrients, and in fact it is just a dried shell. It inflames the digestive tract in fish and they die.

Like all tropical fish, guppies love warm waters (22-25 ° C), but can live in a wider range of 19.0-29.0 ° C. As for the parameters of water, this is practically irrelevant for ordinary forms. They adapt so quickly to local conditions that moving to a new aquarium can be tolerated without any problems. It will be ideal if the aquarium contains: 7.0 - 8.5, and the hardness is 12.0 - 18.0, but the parameters may be completely different, which will not prevent the guppy from living and reproducing.

The aquarium can be small, 20 liters is enough for 5 fish. But, the larger the volume, the more fish you can keep and the more beautiful it will look.
It is best to have a lot of plants in the aquarium, as this will be similar to natural habitat and will significantly increase the survival rate of fry in the general aquarium. Lighting can be anything from bright to twilight.

Compatibility with other fish

A very peaceful fish that does not cause any trouble to neighbors. But she can be offended, especially by large and predatory fish, which gupeshek perceive only as food. So it is not worth keeping with fish such as the mecherot, giant gourami, pangasius or shark ball.
It is also impossible to keep with fish that can cut off the fins of male guppies - Sumatran barbus, Denisoni barbus, fire barbus, some gourami, for example, kissing, thorns.
Guppies get along best with peaceful and small fish: - rasbora, cardinals, Congos, neons, cherry barbs, speckled catfish, tarakatums.

Sex differences

Breeding guppies

What does it take for guppies to breed? Fresh and clean water, good and abundant feeding and a couple of opposite sex fish. As a rule, guppies are quite successfully bred in a common aquarium. But, they also eat their fry, and the neighbors, if they are, will help. This means that pregnant females are better off in a separate aquarium.

A female with a dark spot is coming soon!

Immediately after giving birth, the female must be besieged. Taking care of your guppy fry is pretty simple, just like taking care of your parents. How to feed guppy fry? You can feed them with finely chopped branded flakes (which you feed your parents), but better with dry egg or branded food for fry. Note that there is such a relic of the past as dry food. It is dried daphnia and cyclops and can still be found commercially. So, feeding guppy fry with this rubbish is strictly not recommended. The nutritional value there is slightly higher than zero, in fact it is an analogue of a taranka. Will you grow up a lot if you eat one ram? The same can be said for adult fish.

It is necessary to clean them regularly so that the remains of feed do not spoil the water. You can also launch snails into this aquarium, such as an ampullarium or a coil. They do not touch the fry, and will eat the remains of the food.

How a fry is born:

It is important that the water is clean, but it is impossible to change a lot and immediately, since the fry are still weak and a large water change is dangerous for them. The easiest way is to change about 10% of the water every one or two days, or 25% once a week.
The water temperature for guppy fry is very important, and you need to keep it at the level of 24-26.5C.
With proper care and feeding, guppy fry grow quickly and after a month and a half begins to stain.

Frequently asked questions about guppies

What kind of fish can you keep with guppies?

Some species have already been listed above, but you can still see the article - 10 best fish for beginners, everything on this list is good for keeping with guppies.

How do you know if a guppy is pregnant or about to give birth?

Usually, a female guppy gives birth to fry once a month, but the timing may differ depending on the temperature of the water and the conditions of detention. Note the time since the last time she gave birth and observe. In a female ready for new birth, the spot becomes darker, the eyes of the fry are visible.

How does a guppy breathe?

Like all fish - oxygen dissolved in water, do not forget to turn on aeration and filtration.

How long do guppies live?

About two years, but it all depends on the conditions and temperature. The higher the water temperature, the shorter their life. Some fish live up to 5 years.

How often should guppies be fed?

Why do guppies get torn tails?

If the tail of the guppy has disappeared, then this is an alarming sign - either someone cuts it off, and you need to carefully examine the fish with which it is kept, or she contracted an infectious disease, and you need to look even more closely at the rest of the fish.

Why does a guppy have a sticky tail?

Again - either old and dirty water, or infection, or poor feeding. Try changing 20% of the water once a week and keep an eye on the health of other fish.

Why does a guppy have a crooked spine?

Why do guppies only give birth to females?

The exact answer to this question has not been found. Apparently with an excess of males, the laws of nature are turned on and the population compensates for the females in order to preserve itself.

Can you only keep one guppy in an aquarium?

Do guppies need oxygen and a filter?

Optional, but desirable. You can buy an inexpensive, internal filter with a washcloth. It will perform its functions well enough and will not suck in fish. Please note that if you bought a filter, and it is placed higher (so that the surface of the water in the aquarium is in motion), then you do not need to buy additional aeration or, more simply, oxygen.

Do guppies need soil and plants?

Does guppy need light?

No, fish do not need light at all, other than falling on the aquarium during the day. Plants need light to grow.

Guppies spawn?

Do guppies sleep?

How many fry does a guppy give birth to?

Depends on the female, her age and size. Usually about 30-50 pieces, but sometimes 200

How long does a guppy fry grow?

Very fast in good conditions. Males become sexually mature at two months, and females at three.

Can guppies be kept in sea water?

No, they tolerate poorly salted water well, but they die in the sea, this is a freshwater fish.

Why do guppies swim on the surface?

Why do guppies jump out of the aquarium?

Why is the guppy's tail stuck or stuck together?

What kind of catfish can you keep with guppies?

Any small ones. More or less large catfish, almost without exception predators. The only exception is the tarakatum, it is quite possible to contain it with guppies. Well, any corridors, for example speckled, will perfectly get along with guppies and will be very useful, eating up the remains of food from the bottom.

Guppy fry care

Aquarium guppies - the best fish for beginners

Guppies are the most common species in the aquarium. These are colorful fish with a large iridescent tail. Often, when talking about their hobby, experienced aquarists say that they should start with buying it. In addition, guppies are ideal test subjects for studying genetic mutations. Males of this species are much larger and more beautiful than females. Their tails are much larger than those of females, and are distinguished by their original, unusual colors. The small size of the fish - from 1.5 to 3 cm allows you to make them the center of the aquarium world. Females are much larger - about 6 cm, but not so beautiful in color. Today, with the help of selection, beautiful individuals of females have been obtained, but their cost is much higher. You can see the possible options for fish in the photo, which is teeming with the Internet.

Aquarium guppies are ideal for novice breeders. Caring for them is so easy that a child can cope with it. To breed them, an aquarium of 15 - 35 liters for 6-8 pieces is quite enough. This aquarium is very small and is ideal for small children's rooms. In addition, you can save space due to the fact that you do not need to provide fish with additional water filtration - there are enough fresh plants for them, but be prepared that you will have to clean the water and soil more often.

Additional lighting should not be ignored. But due to the fact that the aquarium is small, a table lamp in evening time... The fish is picky about food. To feed her, you can use industrial feed from a jar, bought at the nearest store. Dry food is also cuddled with pleasure with them. This type of aquarium inhabitants attracts those who are forced to constantly leave home. Guppies can easily tolerate weekly breaks, so you do not need to ask your friends to constantly come and feed your inhabitants. Constant overfeeding, on the contrary, can ruin the young. From overeating, the fish begin to die. From the above, we can conclude that breeding aquarium guppies is not a troublesome and costly business.

In addition, the aquarium is very beautiful. If you place different decor at the bottom, you can create real masterpieces, capture them in a photo and brag to your friends and like-minded people.

Varieties of aquarium inhabitants

Today, guppies are very common in the wild. The main condition for breeding is warm, fresh water. Initially, they were artificially bred to protect people from the anopheles mosquito. A large number of guppies were eaten by insect larvae that were near the water edge. Today they can be found in Russia, there are a lot of them in warm, drainage places. There is an opinion that the first fish got there thanks to amateurs - aquarists.

There are varieties in shape, size and color. They can have different fins, tails. The fact is that, being carried away by selection, scientists were able to cross individuals from different bodies of water with each other, so it is unrealistic to say how many varieties there are. The main difference between one species and another is considered to be tails.

The most common types of caudal fins are:

Two swords, fins located under each other;
Round tail fin;
Radish;
One sword;

Among breeders, monochromatic guppy breeds are very much appreciated, as they look very impressive and, undoubtedly, will decorate any aquarium. They are rightfully proud of the guppies, posting numerous photos on the network.

In many countries, aquarists create associations that hold exhibitions and congresses, communicate according to their interests. Aquarium guppies are very popular, so you can easily find like-minded people.

As mentioned above, guppies are completely unpretentious to the conditions of existence, but some rules should still be followed. The composition of food and water for ordinary fish does not matter, but if you decide to breed an elite breed, you will have to create comfortable conditions:

The water temperature should not be lower than 18 and not higher than 20 degrees;
The optimum water hardness is 6 - 10 degrees;
Change of water three times a week;
Using only settled water;
At least 1 liter of water per male and 2 per female.

It will not be superfluous to add 1 teaspoon of table salt per 10 liters of water to the water. For elite breeds, it is necessary to provide filtration and aeration devices.

It is necessary to be very careful about the number of males and females in the same aquarium. The fact is that in the struggle for leadership, males can hurt each other. But usually, severe injuries do not happen. If you decide to make a mixed aquarium, then you need to carefully select roommates for the guppies. These fish are very harmless and cannot harm anyone, therefore they become easy prey for others. Most often, beautiful tails of males suffer from attacks from neighbors. However, given the huge number of varieties of guppes, a single-species aquarium can be made a real work of art, by capturing it in a photo, you can easily win competitions held in associations of interest.

Adequate light has a huge impact on male coloration, so keep an eye on additional lighting and position your aquarium so that sunlight did not fall aggressively on guppies.

They also have no problems with feeding. They are ready to eat anything. For them, the type of feed does not really matter. But if you want to grow very beautiful guppies, then it is advisable to alternate types of food, not forgetting about live food that can be bought at pet stores. Life cycle these fish are about 2 years old. However, this figure may vary depending on the conditions of detention. For example, the temperature of the water is very important. The higher its degree, the faster they develop and the life span is reduced. Increase vitality, aquarium guppies can due to a large number green plants. The abundance of algae will help females hide from males, and fry from large individuals.

Reproduction and breeding

Guppies are one of the easiest breeds to breed, which is why their population is growing so rapidly. In order to start breeding them, you do not have to make a lot of effort. It is enough to provide them with comfortable conditions. It is surprising that fish can reproduce without a male. This is due to the first fertilization. That is, the female can reproduce several times during one “meeting” with the male. Therefore, to start breeding, you can buy only one female and you will get about 8 litters.

Guppies are viviparous, so they do not need a place for spawning. The fry appear completely independent. They are already swimming and ready to take full adult food. Photos of fry can often be found on the Internet - they differ from their parents only in size, otherwise, this is a full-fledged fish.

After you notice that the female is "in position", remove her from the rest. Although pregnancy lasts about 30 days, it will be much more comfortable for her in a separate home. After the fry are swept out, it must be deposited. Hungry guppies can eat their own offspring, so at first, it is better for young animals to live separately in an aquarium with small-leaved plants, and when they get stronger, return them back.

In communities of aquarists, all thickets began to receive reports of aggressive behavior... Sometimes pack relationships can be disastrous for the weakest. If you notice something is wrong in your aquarium, then reconsider the conditions of their maintenance, it is quite possible that they are simply cramped.

GUUPI Poecilia reticulata or Lebistes reticulata
Detachment, family: Peciliaceae (Poeciliidae).
Comfortable water temperature: 20 - 26 ° C.
Aggressiveness: not aggressive 0%.

Guppy Compatibility: compatible with all non-predatory and small fish.

Personal experience and useful tips: Everyone probably knows these fish, even those who have never seen aquariums. We can say that these fish are fish of all children of the former USSR (they were in all Soviet aquariums))). The fish is very beautiful and unpretentious. The tail fin is its beauty. The unpretentiousness of the fish lies in the fact that it can withstand "difficult conditions". I happened to see a guppy aquarium without aeration, filtration, no plants, no proper feeding, etc. - horror, nightmare of the aquarist. Nevertheless, guppies not only managed to survive in such an aquarium, but even tried to reproduce. So scoffing at the fish is certainly not worth it !!!

Interestingly, guppies reproduce - they are viviparous and in fact do it on their own without any special stimulation. I recommend taking 3-4 females for 1 male, otherwise the females are simply driven. Fry may not be removed from the common aquarium, but then there must be floating plants on the surface of the water, for example, duckweed. The fry will hide behind these plants.

Guppy description:

In nature, it lives in the northern part South America... But at present, as a result of artificial acclimatization, these fish have spread across all continents.

Per long years Keeping guppies in aquariums and careful selection has produced many species of guppies, the care and maintenance of which is not at all so easy. Currently, it is very difficult to classify guppies, since as a result of numerous crosses, more and more new breeds are bred every year. The basis for the classification of guppies is the color of the body (mainly in males), the size, shape and color of the fins. The length of the male guppy is up to 3 cm, of the female up to 6 cm. The body of the male is elongated, slender, somewhat flattened laterally. The body of the female is also elongated, with the posterior part more flattened from the sides. Guppy males much brighter and have not only a beautiful pattern, but also luxurious tails and fins, while the fins of females are short, the coloration is weak. In males, the anal fin has become an organ of fertilization - the gonopodium.

The group can be kept in a common aquarium (but not with fast-swimming species that can cut off their fins) with a length of 60 cm, in places with dense thickets of plants, including small-leaved ones, reaching the surface of the water (among them, Indian limnophila and lustrous are desirable), floating plants with roots hanging down; and Riccia, where the fry will find shelter. Guppies are undemanding to the volume of the aquarium. They are compatible with any peaceful species of fish, however, their veiled and therefore sedentary forms cannot be kept even with such non-aggressive fish as barbs. Therefore, pedigree guppy species are best kept in a species aquarium. The aquarium should not contain plants with hard leaves and objects with sharp edges (stones, driftwood), which can damage the fins of the fish.

Although the temperature range of guppy content is wide enough, care must be taken to keep the temperature stable at 20 - 26 ° C; gH up to 25 °; pH in the range of 6.5 - 8.5, but better around 7.0. Sharp changes in temperature and water characteristics (pH, gH) have a negative effect on the condition of the fins of males. Therefore, the water should be changed more often, but in small volumes (no more than a third). Helpful addition table salt(1 tablespoon per 10 liters of water) and 5% alcohol solution of iodine.

Guppies are omnivorous, but prefer live food. They should not be overfed, as fish are prone to obesity and then lose their ability to reproduce. The frequency of feeding is determined by the age of the fish. The fry are fed three times a day in small portions. After identifying and separating the sexes, they switch to two meals a day. Over the age of four months, the frequency of feeding is reduced to once a day. It is dangerous to overfeed males at this time.

Feeding guppy aquarium fish

here.

Guppy breeding and reproduction. Firstly, guppies are viviparous fish (that is, they do not spawn, but give birth to full-fledged fry). Secondly, fertilization takes place in the general aquarium (you won't even pay attention to this). Well, and thirdly, fish need a separate spawning ground for hatching fry, because newly born fry are in great danger of being eaten in the first minutes after birth: these fish are prone to cannibalism!

As a breeding ground for guppy breeding, you can use any container: a plastic bowl (5 liters), a small round aquarium (5 liters), or just a three-liter jar. Naturally, any of the containers must be perfectly clean.

The female's pregnancy lasts, approximately 5-6 weeks. Your task is as follows: watch the growth of the female's abdomen. As soon as you see that the female's anal opening is a little swollen, reddened and a dark spot appeared on it - immediately transplant the fish to the spawning ground! (sometimes it is recommended to transplant the male together with the female. I see absolutely no point in this: the female is already fertilized, and the male will only interfere. By the way, the peculiarity of guppy breeding: once fertilized, a female can herself, without repeated fertilization, bring offspring several times ).

To reproduce guppies, you need prepare a spawning ground: in a container with a volume of 5 liters, put a little riccia, as well as some dense plants. The water temperature in the spawning ground should be + 26 * C + 27 * C, we leave the hardness and acidity as in the general aquarium. (Simply put, you take five liters of aquarium water, pour it into the spawning ground and raise the temperature of this water). All this time, feed the female with bloodworms: she will need strength. Depending on the age of the female and male, from 20 to 100 fry are born. At the moment when the female gave birth to the last fry, she must be transplanted.

In the photo is a female guppy

In the photo is a male guppy

The fry do not need parental care: they keep in a flock near the very surface and constantly ask for food. The best food for them are ciliates, which should be fed to babies at least 4-5 times a day. As you grow. the number of feedings is reduced to twice a day, and the feed itself becomes more "adult": brine shrimp nauplii, chopped bloodworms, and so on.

When breeding guppies Special attention give to fry. The fry do not grow very quickly, but that’s not the problem. The fact is that the fry grow unevenly. In this case, smaller and weaker individuals risk dying of hunger: strong and healthy fry simply do not allow the weaker ones to eat. Therefore, you should sort the fry by size and place them in different jars.

Sometimes, during childbirth, "force majeure" circumstances may arise: the female cannot give birth. In this case, you need to help her: make a water change in the spawning ground (50%) and raise the temperature to 28 * C + 29 * C. In this case, the female guppy will certainly give birth.

Fish reach sexual maturity at the age of 4-5 months.

In the photo, a guppy embryo

ALL KINDS OF GUPPI:
Scarlet guppy
Guppy "Berliners"
Guppy cobra
Guppy blue metallic
Guppy blue neon
Guppy green cobra
Guppy red blond
Guppy red dragon
Guppy Moscow carnation
Guppies Moscow blue
Guppy blue-green
Guppy tuxedo
Guppy black prince
ALL BREEDS OF GUPPI:

FAN-TAILS
FAN TISSUES TRIMMED
FAN-TIED ANGULAR
UPPER SWORD
BOTTOM SWORD
VOIL
DOUBLE SWORD
NEEDLE
SPEARS
ROUND-TAIL
SHOVELS
LYRHOUS
FLAG TAILS
Read a detailed article about the species and breeds of guppies HERE !!!

Beautiful photo compilation of guppies

Great video about guppies

Guppy content care spawning photo video description compatibility.

GUPPI DESCRIPTION

Despite the fact that these fish are rightfully considered one of the most unpretentious fish, this does not mean at all that they can be kept in the toilet and fed with potato peels (while hoping for full-fledged offspring). , by no means the last. A round one does not fit, therefore, we make a choice towards a rectangular one. The length should be at least 60 centimeters, and the volume should be from 60 liters (there is a golden rule: the larger the aquarium, the better for everyone)

Guppy is one of the most undemanding and at the same time demanded fish among aquarium owners. Usually always found in every aquarium. At home, they become large and have a longer life span than in natural conditions. natural conditions... Into the aquarium

minds often present numerous breeds of guppies. The natural habitat of guppies is brackish and fresh water bodies of Northern Brazil, Venezuela. They can also be found on the islands of Trinidad and Barbados. In pet stores, guppies are sold in an assortment. The most common breeds are: blue cobra, red blond, Moscow blue, scarlet, carpet, blue-green, Berliners, mesh, dragon head.

There are also rare breeds, but you can buy and admire them only in the collections of enthusiastic private breeders. The normal water temperature for guppies is + 23 ° C. They can survive from + 18 ° to + 32 ° C. In the presence of a low temperature, guppies become large, and the life expectancy becomes equal to 5 years, but the possibility of becoming seriously ill increases. With very warm temperatures these fish live no more than one year and grow small. Pregnancy in this case also becomes shorter, and their babies are born very small.

FEEDING

Feeding is important in keeping your fish. Individuals should not be given too much food, as this leads to its settling at the bottom, from which the water quickly deteriorates. Adult guppies need to be fed once a day, in small portions and at a specific time. Fish grow well from live food, so you should give them bloodworms, daphnia, rotifers and mosquito larvae. The addition of modern feeds containing vitamins and minerals will allow maintaining the brightness of the guppy color.

Once a week, you need to arrange a fasting day for guppies. Depending on the conditions in which they are kept, guppies reach puberty at the age of 3-5 months. Every 3-6 weeks, throughout the year, the female gives birth to offspring. To prevent other fish from eating the newborns, the female needs to be moved to a 1-5-liter jar at a time when her abdomen becomes almost rectangular, and the spot at the anal fin is large and very dark.

FRY

Guppy fry are large, 5-8 millimeters long, and very mobile. Immediately after birth, they begin to briskly swim around the aquarium, looking for and eating ciliates and small cyclops. In advance, it is worth making sure that the kids have shelters in the aquarium: pebbles and thickets of small-leaved plants (in the water column and on the surface). The first week of fry - it is advisable to feed the fry four times a day in small portions, the second three times and then, until one and a half to two months of age, at least twice.

The secret to the popularity of the guppy is very simple. Their content is available even to a novice aquarist. The beauty and variety of shapes and colors pleases the eye. Differences between breeds are very great in guppies, and in one breed it is difficult to find two completely identical males. By nature, these fish are cheerful, easygoing, mobile. But the main thing, however, is that they give birth to living, fully formed fry. It is for these properties that guppy aquarists love.

Guppies live at a water temperature of 24-26 ° C. But the practice of breeding has shown that fish also treat cooler water well. Guppies are unpretentious to the volume of the aquarium. They can even live in a 3-liter jar. But, nevertheless, 1 liter of water is needed for one male, and 2 liters of water for the female. The minimum size of the aquarium is at least 40 cm in length and 50 cm in height.
The quality of the water is of great importance for raising healthy fish. One of the important parameters of water is its purity. Guppy waste products quickly pollute the aquarium water. Therefore, the volume of the aquarium must be large enough, microorganisms must live in it, processing the secretions of the fish into organic compounds that are assimilated by the fish.

One of the best plants for a guppy aquarium is the Indian fern. And, in addition, to maintain the purity of the water, it is necessary to equip a bottom filter.
Another parameter that you need to pay attention to is the acidity of the water in the aquarium. As a rule, it should have a pH close to 7. An indicator of a sufficient acidity level can be the appearance of the same Indian fern. In order not to cause severe stress in guppies when transplanting from one aquarium to another, it is necessary to track that the temperature difference is no more than 2.5 ° C, and the difference in pH values is no more than 0.2.
Another important parameter of water is its hardness, or the amount of salts dissolved in water. The desired level of hardness should be 4 - 10 ° dH. This is the soft water level. Water hardness is measured with special devices sold in pet stores.

Aquarium soil

Two points are important here. The first is the size of the soil particles. They should be of such a size that plants grow well, gases pass, and water circulates freely. The second point is the solubility of the minerals that make up the soil. If they dissolve strongly, i.e. increase the amount of salts and hence the hardness of the water, then such a soil is of little use. You need to pick up something else. The soil should be rinsed every six months.
The light regime should be, together with natural light, no more than 15 hours in summer, and 12-13 hours in winter. Guppies have this effect. With constant lighting, the fish change their color. For example, under continuous 24-hour illumination, red-colored areas of the body acquired pink color... After some time, the color was restored. As additional lighting for guppy aquariums, 15 W lamps are used for aquariums with a volume of 20-40 liters in summer, and 25 W lamps in winter. For 100 liter aquariums, 40 watt bulbs are used.

Reproduction spawning

Guppies reach puberty at 4-5 months, and females at this age are already ready to give birth. They belong to viviparous fish, i.e. they do not spawn, and give birth to full-fledged fry. The female is fertilized by the male using a special modified anal fin called a gonopodium. It is equipped with muscles and therefore can assume the positions necessary for the fertilization of the female. Spermatophores entering the female's body fertilize eggs. But at the same time, they are partially deposited, and the female after one fertilization may have several litters. The older the female, the more fry she will give birth to. The spawning of the female is stimulated by an increase in water temperature and the addition of fresh water. After spawning, the female is removed from the fry, since she can eat them.

COMPATIBILITY WITH OTHER FISH

When planning to arrange an aquarium at home, you need to know which fish live with guppies. These fish are peaceful, and get along well with other peaceful schooling fish: neons, platies, zebrafish, haracin, swordtails. Guppies do not interfere with those fish that live in the lower layers of the water.

compatibility Guppeshki is perhaps the most beloved and popular fish by aquarists. Therefore, the question of whether it is possible to keep barbs together with them is quite natural. In fact, such a neighborhood usually does not end well. Guppies hooked up to barbs will probably be driven to death. In the same case, if the fish grew up together, of course, nothing will happen to them. However, the owners of the aquarium will hardly be able to admire the beautiful guppy fins. As mentioned above, barbs and neons, the compatibility of which is also questionable, get along well if there are many plants in the aquarium. The same goes for guppies. Plant more vallisnerias, cambobas, aquatic ferns, etc. in the tank for a place to hide from pesky striped or green neighbors.

Kinds

Among themselves, these fish are divided into many subspecies. This is due to the fact that it is very easy to carry breeding work with guppies. It is clear that we simply cannot list all types of guppy fish here.

Therefore, only some particularly well-known species will be given on a general basis:

Diseases of guppies external signs and treatment photo description video.

Diseases of aquarium guppy fish:

trichodinosis;
plistophorosis;
mycobacteriosis;
red scab and split fin;
fin rot.

Trikhodinoz

At the initial stage of the disease, the fish seem to itchy o plants in the aquarium, some fish have dull spots on their bodies.

You can get rid of ciliates by raising the temperature of the water in the aquarium to 34 ° C, while it is very necessary strong aeration water so that the fish have enough oxygen at such a high temperature. Adding the following components to the water will be no less effective:

sea or table salt;
tripavlavin;
methyl blue.

See what a guppy looks like when infected with columnariasis.

Plistophorosis

Plistophorosis is one of the most dangerous diseases of guppy aquarium fish, which is transmitted from mother to fry. Recognizing the disease is quite simple: the fish become pale and stop eating, which leads to great exhaustion. The position of the body of the fish changes: the tail goes down, and the body is at an angle of 45-60 ° C, while the fish perform spasmodic movements.

In case of fish disease with plistophorosis, immediately destroy all fish, boil the soil, and thoroughly disinfect the plants and equipment.

Mycobacteriosis

This disease of aquarium fish guppies is also called fish tuberculosis. The disease is also easy to recognize: in fish, exhaustion begins, the abdomen is pulled inward, and the back is arched. Affected fish are destroyed, and plants and equipment are disinfected.

Red scab and split fin

The disease occurs only in males guppy. A red bloom appears on the tail of the male, which can "eat" the entire tail of the fish, if the infected part is not removed in time. In order to cut it, they use a very a sharp razor. You can save the fish only if no more than 1/3 of the fin is damaged. Then salt is added to the water (2-3 g per liter).

Fin rot

Fin rot is a disease of aquarium guppy fish that occurs in females, expressed in the disintegration of interradial tissue. Treatment is carried out in a common aquarium. The drugs are selected from the following:

bicillin 5;
biomycin;
white streptocide.

Depending on the choice of drug, treatment takes 1 to 3 months.

To prevent all kinds of fish diseases, you need to be very careful keep clean aquarium and take care of it in a timely manner. Also, after acquiring new fish, you should not immediately let them into the general aquarium. It is advisable to keep them in a separate container for several days in order to observe their behavior. This will prevent the introduction of new diseases into the aquarium.

First aid

Not all aquarium fish diseases are curable. There is no universal method to help with those ailments that are treatable. However, a number of initial measures to help a sick fish are worth knowing to any aquarist.

It is most correct to plant a sick fish from a common aquarium in order to carry out treatment. This way it will not infect others, and it will be more convenient to treat it.
When preparing a jig (for a guppy, an ordinary jar with a capacity of 2 liters or more is enough), use water from a common container, mixing it with fresh one.
Changing the water in the jig is done daily. Aeration is optional.
Salt water - 1 gram per liter, and add a few drops of iodine. When changing the water, the concentration of nutrients should be restored.
It is best to feed a sick pet with live food - it is more nutritious and will allow it to recover faster. Bloodworms are great.
The volume of water in the jar is very small, it spoils easily, so feed gently and immediately remove any food debris that has not been eaten.
Such measures are only first aid, then, having accurately identified the disease, you can begin more serious treatment. However, in cases that are not too severe, the first measures can also help.

DISEASES OF AQUARIUM FISH, INFECTIOUS AND NON-INFECTIOUS - TREATMENT DESCRIPTION PHOTO SYMPTOMS VIDEO.

DISEASES OF AQUARIUM FISHES - TREATMENT OF SYMPTOMS PHOTO VIDEO.

What are the types of guppies

Probably one of the most popular fish that you can see when you go to any pet store or even to the market are everyone's favorite guppies. Small in size, with a large tail and bright colors - they immediately attract attention. In addition, many species of guppies are among the earliest inhabitants of the aquarium, both for beginners and experienced aquarists. Breeding and keeping these fish is so simple that in most cases it turns into a favorite hobby. Let's consider these fish in more detail.

Living in the natural environment

The historical homeland of guppies is the islands located in South America, Venezuela, Brazil. These fish live in fresh, clear and running water. But sometimes they can be seen in coastal waters without any admixture of sea salt. As for nutrition, such fish prefer live food, namely bloodworms, larvae and small insects.

Given their passion for small insects, some aquarists even populate certain areas with large numbers of mosquitoes for guppies to destroy its larvae. In addition, these fish have a clear division into males and females. As a rule, males have a more pronounced appearance than females.

Guppy species

These fish got their name in honor of the person who first discovered and made public this discovery to the world community. His name was Robert Guppy. Such a significant event took place on the island of Trinidat back in 66. Today there are a huge number of varieties of these fish, each of which has its own distinctive features... Let's consider some types of guppies in more detail.

Guppy - green cobra

In addition to their high popularity, all types of guppies are very unpretentious and easy to care for. And this is not to mention their exceptionally peaceful nature, which allows them to get along well with the numerous inhabitants of the vessel. Fish of this species were no exception. These fish are classified as breeding forms. As for the maximum size, males, as a rule, are somewhat smaller than females. So, the largest size of the male can reach 40 mm, and the female - 60 mm. As for the appearance of these fish, the photos of which can be seen below, first of all it is worth noting their green color, from which their name actually originated. Also, if you look at the tail fin, it looks a lot like a skirt. Its length, as a rule, is 5/10 of the body distance. The back of it is slightly concave, and there are small curves at the edge at the top and bottom. The fin located on the back not only has a narrow end, but is also very strongly raised from the very base to the top. Also, small specks are placed in a chaotic manner throughout the guppy's body, giving the skin a slight resemblance to a snake.

Guppy blue metallic

Guppy species never cease to amaze with their diversity. And this statement is fully confirmed by small fish with a gray tint, a slight greenish-olive tint and rounded airy fins, a photo of which everyone can see below.

As a rule, the life expectancy of these fish does not exceed 3-4 years, but the fact that living outside natural environment they can grow several times larger. Also in the aquarium, these fish can be found on all layers of the water.

Guppy Black Prince

Dwelling exclusively in fresh water- this fish is simply mesmerizing with its appearance. Saturated dark shade, covering almost the entire body with white blotches on the head, creates the impression of a dark mantle with a crown, which actually gave rise to the name of this species, the photo of which can be seen below.

It should be emphasized that in the female, the black tint is not as pronounced as in the male.

Also, sometimes situations arise when they try to sell these fish as black monks, whose belly has a bright white color. But don't be fooled outward resemblance, since these are completely 2 different types.

Guppy blue neon

Striking in their beauty - these fish first appeared in the aquarium back in the 30s of the last century. But although quite a few years have passed, these varieties of guppies continue to be highly popular. The first descriptions of this fish appeared only in 61. And they were found in the rivers of South America, Paraguay and Brazil.

If speak about external structure, then these fish have a rather flattened body, flattened at the sides. The main external color is gray interspersed with olive shades, and the fins are transparent. It is interesting that females cannot boast of such slenderness as males, but their body itself is more rounded and with a characteristic bend near the tail. The maximum size of these fish, as a rule, does not exceed 40 mm. A photo of this fish can be seen below.

If we talk about food preferences, then these fish are best eaten:

Not a very large bloodworm.
Coretru.
Live and dry food.

Important! Such fish take root best if you keep them in pairs.

As for reproduction, it is better not to do this in a general aquarium, but to prepare a special vessel, closed from direct sunlight. It is better not to raise the water level above the 200 mm mark.

Guppy Endler

As already mentioned, the guppy species simply amaze the imagination with their diversity and color. But there is one among them that is rightfully considered a real miracle. And this applies specifically to these fish shown in the photo below.

These fish have received such a high demand not only due to their small size, but also for their extraordinary beauty and unpretentiousness. The maximum size of these fish very rarely exceeds 35 m. As for the appearance, the females not only look less bright, but their monochromatic color predominates. Also, a small speck appears on the back of the abdomen during the period of embryo maturation.

In most cases, these fish are more comfortable in the upper layers of the aquarium water.

Important! Bright and long-term lighting in the aquarium negatively affects the color intensity of these fish.

Although many species of guppies are different external forms and coloring, but there are basic rules for keeping them in the aquarium. So they include:

Maintaining the temperature of the water in the aquarium within 22-25 degrees. But sometimes, in some cases, these fish can live for some time and at a value of 19 degrees. As for the stiffness, their parameters should be in the range of 12-18 dH.
The presence of a large amount of vegetation, which will significantly increase the likelihood of survival of the fry when these fish breed in a common aquarium.
Using a filter. As a rule, an internal one will do as well.

Compatibility

These fish, due to their peaceful nature, get along well with almost any neighbors. Certain difficulties can arise only in the case of the addition of larger fish, which can begin to offend guppies.

Mecherotov.
Gourami.
Pangasius.
Barbus.

The ideal option would be to purchase such fish as:

Congo.
Speckled catfish.
Tarakatams.
Parsing.

Reproduction

As a rule, these fish do not experience any difficulties with breeding in captivity. And this is not at all surprising, given that female guppies are viviparous fish. So, the fry that were born, the photo of which cannot but please, at first have to hide from other inhabitants of the aquarium. But after a dangerous period, they are actively involved in the underwater life in the aquarium. As for certain requirements for stimulating guppies to reproduce, it is worth noting the constant availability of clean water, abundant nutrition and, of course, the presence of a male and a female.

But remember that parents can kill their children by eating them successfully without natural defenses in the form of vegetation or rocks.

Guppy: reproduction

Guppies are very popular ornamental fish, and many aspiring aquarists start with them first. But before that, it would be good to study not only the conditions of detention, but also how guppies give birth. The fact is that their reproduction has its own characteristics, although it does not present any particular difficulty. How to act in such cases and how to preserve the offspring? And is it necessary to preserve it at all? Let's try to figure it out.

Breeding features

These ornamental carps reach sexual maturity from about four months of age and are then ready to reproduce. Interesting feature: at elevated temperatures aquatic environment(+ 30 °) Maturity begins at three months.

Reproduction can take place both in a general aquarium and in a special spawning grounds. Even a three-liter jar is suitable for this, since ornamental fish are unpretentious, and a couple will be able to give offspring even in such Spartan conditions.

In principle, the type of container is not so important, the main thing is to carry out a number of measures to create optimal conditions for the reproduction of offspring: temperature regime and the presence of green vegetation (Javanese moss, for example) in which future fry will find their shelter.

Most experts are unanimous on how to provoke guppy breeding: this is an increase in the temperature in the aquarium by 3-4 degrees and the replacement of about 1/3 of the water in the spawning (or general) aquarium. Naturally, the water must be settled.

However, some professional aquarists insist that such a provocation is needed only in a strictly defined case, when the birth of guppies is difficult and premature.

When the male begins to chase the female, to cuddle up to her from the side or from below, mating has begun. There is important feature: if the fish are in the general volume, then you need to make sure that there are not too many males. They can drive the female to a state of complete exhaustion, there have even been cases of the death of females in such conditions. Therefore, the ideal option is a pair of individuals.

The male fertilizes the female with the help of a special genital organ, which has the scientific name of gonopodia. In essence, this is a modified section of a fin in the form of several tubes, which is found only in adult males.

How to distinguish a pregnant female guppy?

First of all, it must be borne in mind that these beautiful fish are viviparous, that is, they do not lay eggs or larvae, but they give birth, producing offspring that are already ready for life.

The duration of the female's pregnancy is 28 to 40 days. It has been found that this depends on the number of fry she is carrying.

A pregnant female guppy, in her appearance, stands out from the general fish community. First, she develops a rounded belly, in the section of which she bears eggs, and then the belly takes on a rectangular shape with a black area below. This shape of the abdomen indicates that a pregnant female guppy will soon give birth.

Important clarification: during this period, it is impossible to change the conditions of keeping the fish, since a pregnant guppy before giving birth is very sensitive to the slightest fluctuations in temperature, water quality, lighting intensity. The calmness of the female is the key to her successful spawning.

Guppy birth

Immediately before giving birth, the female trembles a little, moves little, she has no appetite (some individuals even spit out food). If there is a heater in the aquarium, then the female is constantly near it. By the way, this can also be a sign of premature birth.

Immediately during childbirth, the female's veiled tail trembles, for a moment she freezes. Live fry come out one by one, they immediately show independence, starting to move actively.

How many fry a guppy is born, perhaps no one can say for sure. The fact is that their number is different and depends on the age of the female and the number of previous genera. In addition, fertility increases with the size of the individual. That is why we can only talk about the approximate number of fry.

So, during the first spawning, a young female can give birth to 15 to 25 babies, during the second and subsequent births, the number of fry increases from 50 to 100. A case of 180 small guppies was born at once. Counting the exact number of small individuals is further complicated by the fact that the parents eat the fry.

Postpartum behavior and fry conservation

Aquarium beginners are often interested in the question of why guppies eat their fry. Yes, there are ornamental fish that take care of the offspring, protect it from the encroachments of neighbors. But such species are in the minority.

And guppies, like other cyprinids, do not have a maternal instinct. It often happens that the female eats her offspring immediately after spawning and even at the moment of giving birth, if the fry recklessly swims past her mouth.

There is nothing to be done: whoever did not hide, he died. Natural selection, you know ...

What should be done to preserve at least part of the offspring?

It has already been mentioned that it is required to keep vegetation in the general aquarium, which provides a natural shelter for the fry.

In addition, when breeding in a separate spawning grounds, it is important not to miss the moment when it is time to plant the female guppy.

The opinion here is the same: this is done immediately after the female gives birth to the last fry. Of course, if the owner of the aquarium wants to preserve the offspring, and such a goal is not set in every case.

Another variant: spawning takes place in the general aquarium. In this case, the aquarist must decide for himself whether or not to place the guppy fry in a separate growing tank.

If such a decision is made, then the juveniles are carefully and quickly collected with a plastic cup and transferred to a prepared water Kindergarten... Of course, it is impossible to collect all the fry, but it is quite possible to save most of them.

How to care for guppy fry?

The most important for the further development of the cubs are the first 3-5 days of their life. The practice of breeding fish in an aquarium has long and specifically determined how to feed guppy fry during this period and how best to do it.

Experts believe that food should be plentiful and around the clock. At first, it is recommended to give live dust, brine shrimp, rotifers, microworm.

As a top dressing, you can also use a solution of boiled and grated egg yolk in a tablespoon of aquarium water. A case of 180 small guppies was born at once. Counting the exact number of small individuals is further complicated by the fact that the parents eat the fry.

Commercial feeds specially formulated for feeding fry are available. For example, the German MicroMin contains in its composition all the necessary elements that contribute to the stable development of juveniles.

It is not recommended to turn off the light above the rearing aquarium in the first week (constant lighting has a positive effect on the growth of juveniles), and feeding should be done 5-6 times a day, from the second week to two months of age - at least 2-3 times a day, avoiding overfeeding.

By the way, it depends on the nutrition in the first month of life how fast the guppy fry grow. With high-quality, abundant feeding, after about 2 weeks, they reach sizes from 1.5 to 2 cm. Some breeders believe that with such sizes the fry can already be released into the general aquarium.

Guppy fry: how to determine gender

From the same age, you can start gender sorting of fish (if necessary for breeding). In young females from two weeks of age onwards, a sure sign of gender appears - a dark speck in the lower part of the abdomen, closer to the anal fin. If necessary, females are caught and deposited. However, this trait appears unevenly in individuals, and such work should be continued up to one and a half months.

Some difficulty can be experienced when distinguishing between light (silvery) guppy breeds. In this case, the speck will not be black, but light, but this area of the tummy will be matte, without a silvery tint.

Guppies are unpretentious and beautiful fish found in many home and office aquariums. There is no need to panic if one day new small residents appear in the fish house, and this process will be repeated every 1.5-2 months. If there is no desire to specifically engage in the breeding of ornamental carp, then natural selection will put everything in its place. The goal of the aquarist is to prevent overpopulation of the aquarium.

How to care for pregnant guppies

Guppy pregnancy is the period during which the female bears the fry. Inexperienced breeders may confuse "fun" with overeating. A fish that bears cubs has a bulging tummy. It is also called the "suitcase". There are a number of other signs that indicate that the female is preparing to give birth to offspring. It is important to determine which day she will give birth to avoid stress.

How does a guppy carry fry?

How do you know if a female guppy fish is pregnant? A female guppy can become pregnant as early as one month old, although puberty usually occurs at 3 months of age. The key to pregnancy is a noticeable rounded abdomen, and the appearance of a dark spot on it. A pregnant female will become large and bulky, her tummy can become almost square in shape, which will be noticeably closer to the end of pregnancy. Through the thin, transparent skin of the fish's belly, the eyes of the fry can be seen, especially near the spot.

The gestation period for a guppy will vary depending on the health of the female, her stress tolerance, and the conditions in the aquarium. How long does it take to carry fry? The gestation period in a pregnant guppy can last from 21-40 days, although the average duration for most females is 22-26 days.

See what a pregnant guppy looks like.

Warming the water in the aquarium to 25-26 ° C will keep the female from prolonged pregnancy. Childbirth will be delayed if she feels danger, stress. An increased stress threshold can shorten the gestation period and lead to miscarriage or spontaneous abortion. What can you do to protect your fish? It is important to maintain a stable water temperature in the aquarium, make regular water changes, clean the bottom of food residues, control the level of ammonia and others. toxic substances... Diseases can affect fry development or pregnancy success. Live food is also important for the female, as proteins protect the body from miscarriage and fry deformation.

How do guppies give birth?

Towards the end of pregnancy, a week before the expected birth, the female can be transferred to the prepared birthing tank by pouring water into it from the general aquarium. Such an aquarium has a dividing wall, so the fry will not be harmed by a hungry female. On the day of pregnancy, the female cannot be transferred to such a reservoir, otherwise a miscarriage will occur. When the female is ready to give birth, she may swim slowly, or seek a secluded spot in the aquarium. During one birth, she will produce 10-60 fry, although some mature females can give birth to up to 200 babies.

How long does labor take? Usually a few days. For 1 day, the female can bring all the fry, and it so happens that one fry per day. If giving birth in a shared aquarium, make sure there are plenty of live plant bushes in which the babies can save their lives. Unfortunately, the fry are clearly visible, so they become victims of parents and their neighbors in the aquarium.

How to determine readiness for childbirth? Before this process, the female's body trembles, she is inactive, she has no appetite (food can spit out). If a heater is installed in the tank, then the female can be near it. Also, the listed signs may indicate premature birth. During the birth itself, the female's tail trembles, for a few seconds she freezes. Lively and nimble fry emerge from the anus, they immediately actively swim, starting an independent life.

See how guppy fry are born.

A female guppy can become pregnant again, even hours after giving birth. She can store the sperm of the male for one year, and from one fertilization up to 8 pregnancies can occur, if conditions are favorable in the aquarium. In one life (3-5 years), a female fish is capable of giving life to 2000 fry and more. The day before childbirth, swelling may appear at the anus, if not, this is an obvious pathology.

After 2 weeks, babies will grow up, grow up to 1.5-2 cm in length. At this age, you can sort fish by sex. Young females of this age can be recognized by the first sign of sexual dimorphism - they have a dark speck at the bottom of the abdomen, at the base of the anal fin. You can transplant males and females into different aquariums, pouring there the usual, "old" water from the previous aquarium. In silver and light guppy breeds, sex differences are more difficult to determine - females will have a barely noticeable white spot on the abdomen, and not a black one. It will be easier to find out the sex of fish at the age of 1.5 months, however, late sorting times can provoke an early pregnancy.

The danger for pregnant female guppies is the disease plistophorosis. The fry can be infected from the mother. The fish looks lethargic and faded, the tail fin goes down, the female swims at an angle of 45-60 °. A sick fish can jump, trying to return to its original, normal position of the body, refuses food. Plistophorosis is not cured, so a pregnant fish cannot survive. It is destroyed, and all the decorations and equipment must be strictly disinfected.

Fries that have received insufficient light and protein may suffer from scoliosis. The causes of scoliosis are not well understood, sometimes this disease manifests itself in tuberculosis. It is believed that the main causes of curvature of the spine are stress, trauma, pathology of egg development, improper feeding of pregnant fish, oxygen starvation.

Guppy Endler Content Reproduction Photo Compatibility Video Description.

Guppy Endler

The Endler Guppy is a great option for beginner hobbyists. They are friendly and unpretentious in their care. Little guppies don't need a spacious house. The volume of the aquarium can be up to 50 liters. Sand or small pebbles are usually used as soil. They feel comfortable in a tank with plants floating on the surface. Keep in mind that Endler's guppies are excellent jumpers, so you need to close your home pond on top.

The optimum water temperature is 24-30 ° C, hardness - 15-25, acidity - 6.7-7.6. The warmer environment, the faster the fish grow and, accordingly, the faster they age. Average duration life - 1.5-2 years. Do not injure pets with a sharp change in temperature and poor quality water. Frequent water changes of 10% of the total are required.

If the aquarium is intended exclusively for Endler's guppies, then light filtration and aeration can be installed.

Fish get along well with small dwarf corridors, tetras, danios, irises, neons, cardinals. Joint stay with large predators is unacceptable. By the way, traditional guppies are also not suitable as neighbors - crossing different types leads to the appearance of hybrids. If it is planned to settle only representatives of the Endler guppy, then there should be more females than males.

Endler's guppies are omnivores, eating all types of frozen, artificial and live food. In nature, they feed on detritus and small insects and algae. The aquarium needs additional feeding with food with a high content of plant substances. The simplest foods are flakes with spirulina or other greens.

Compatibility with other fish

For this species of fish, the presence of several males in the container does not threaten with constant disassembly between them. Male endlers, keen on courting females, do not conflict with each other. The peacefulness of mini-guppies extends to representatives of other species.

So, they get along well next to dwarf corridoros, tetras, small species of haracins, danios, cardinals and rainbows.

Unsuitable for Neighborhood Endlers:

larger aggressive species than Poecilia wingei (for example, barbs), which can harm the health of mini-guppies;

standard sized guppies (Poecilia recticulata) capable of interbreeding with miniature fish resulting in an unwanted hybrid variety.

SEX DIFFERENCES

Like ordinary guppies, females and males differ in size and color. Males are smaller, they have a beautiful caudal fin, and a bright body. Females are larger, with a large belly and poorly colored.

BREEDING

Very simple, Endler's guppies breed in the general aquarium and are very active. To breed endlers you only need to have a couple of fish. They will do the rest themselves. Some lovers even keep some males so that fry may not appear. Males constantly chase the female, fertilizing her. The female can throw fry every 23-24 days, but unlike ordinary guppies, the number of fry is small, from 5 to 25 pieces. Parents rarely eat their babies, but still The best way to breed them is to transplant them into a separate aquarium.

Malek is born large enough and can immediately eat brine shrimp naupilias or dry food for fry. If you feed them two to three times a day, then they grow very quickly and after 3-5 weeks they are colored. Females are capable of reproduction already 2 months after birth.

FEEDING

Remember that Endler's guppy has a very small mouth, and food must be selected based on its size. It's hard for them to swallow even bloodworms, it is better to feed them frozen, since then it falls apart. A variety of flakes, a turbine pot, frozen brine shrimp, bloodworms are best suited.

Habitat in nature

Guppy Endler was first described in 1937 by Franklyn F. Bond, he discovered it in Lake Laguna de Patos (Venezuela), but then it did not gain popularity and until 1975 was considered extinct. Laguna de Patos is a lake that is separated from the ocean by a small strip of land, and it was originally salty. But time and rains made it freshwater. At the time of Dr. Endler's discovery, the water in the lake was warm and hard, and there was a very large amount of algae in it. Now there is a landfill next to the lake and it is unclear whether there is a population of guppies in it at the moment.

Guppy Endler's appearance

Among aquarists, the following varieties of this aquarium fish are most popular: blond, leopard tail, red, golden pointed-tailed, etc. Endler's guppies are slightly smaller than ordinary guppies. Males do not have large tails, but they have very colorful and memorable colors. This is what allowed them to become very popular. They are very good-natured, so they easily get along with the same small peace-loving fish. They can also be kept with all kinds of aquarium shrimp in nano-cubes. In contrast to the multi-colored males (blue, green, black and yellow shades prevail), the females have a slightly noticeable silver or golden color. This makes it easy to separate the fish by gender and set off pairs for further reproduction. Another difference is the presence of a modified anal fin (gonopodia) in males. The fin on the tail is transparent. Under the light of special aquarium lamps, you can see the unusual metallic sheen of these beautiful fish. The size of females can reach 3.5 cm, males - only 2.5.

The distinctive features of these fish include:

small size
forked tail fin
multi-colored male body color
the presence of a large number of spots and stripes
the presence of a speck that changes color

The history of the discovery of the species

They are named after the English priest and scientist Robert John Lechmer Guppy, who gave a lecture to members of the Royal Society in 1886. The Endler guppy species itself was originally discovered by Franklin F. Bond in 1937, but for quite a long time no one paid due attention to its study. And only 38 years later it was nevertheless described by John Endler, after whom it was named.

As mentioned earlier, the first habitat is the coast of De Patos. When they first encountered guppies in this lake, they noted that the water in it was rather hard and warm, with thick algae.

What's interesting is that it is Endler's guppy who is the first fish sent into space.

guppy endler video

GUPPI CONTENTS CARE SPREADING PHOTO VIDEO DESCRIPTION COMPATIBILITY.

PREDATOR CYCHLIDS OF THE AQUARIUM.

AQUARIUM FISH CONTENTS PHOTOS VIDEO CARE

Do guppy fry grow fast?

Guppies are popular aquarium fish that belong to the Peciliaceae family. It is easy to take care of them, they are unpretentious in content, differ in their peaceful behavior. You can breed these fish at home, the female is able to bring new offspring every month. Guppies are viviparous fish, fry are born ready for a full life. But how long does it take for fry to mature?

If a female guppy has given birth to fry in a common aquarium, they can quickly die. This is due to the fact that adult fish can eat their offspring if there are few shelters in the tank in the form of plants or caves. The fry will not have time to grow. With a favorable outcome, they will become sexually mature in at least 2 months. In order for them to grow healthy and beautiful, it is recommended to spawn in a previously prepared container, where the offspring will grow in the future.

If the fry grows quickly, then it is launched into the general aquarium after 1-2 weeks, and giving it a universal food for viviparous fish. But here you need to understand that until the age of 1 month, the daily regimen and nutritional needs of small fish differ from the vital activity of adults. Another issue is fertility. If a small female guppy, 2-3 weeks old, becomes pregnant, being already in a common aquarium, her young body may not bear offspring.

Guppy fry will develop properly if kept in good water and fed with quality food. During the first days of life, feeding should take place 3-5 times a day in small portions. How the guppy babies grow is influenced by the intensity of the lighting and the amount of daylight hours. The aquarium with newborn fry should be lit for a maximum of 10 hours, the lights must be turned off at night.

Look at feeding the guppy fry with a nematode microworm.

If the offspring of guppies appeared in the general aquarium, they will swim near the surface of the water. Having successfully survived the growing up period, they will master the middle and bottom layers of the reservoir. How many days will it take from the time they were born before they turn into adult fish? It depends on the diet and care of them.

Timing of maturation of fry

The optimum water temperature for keeping all guppies is 22-24 ° C, although the range may be wider, within 18-30 degrees. How long will it take for the cubs to turn into adult fish? At temperatures below 20-22 degrees, these fish grow large, but they often get sick and live no longer than 3 years. In water with this temperature, the female carries offspring longer. At a temperature of 18 ° C, the intrauterine development of eggs may stop, and the reproductive function is “frozen”.

At higher temperatures, fish live no more than one year and grow small. The gestation period of the female is shorter. Therefore, adjust the temperature of the water in the tank so that manufacturers feel comfortable. Allowable hardness of the aquatic environment for growth: 10-20o, acidity 7.0 pH. Guppies adapt well to salt and hard water conditions. The average body length of an adult female is 6 cm; males are slightly smaller.

Look at the one week old guppy fry.

There is one more nuance when growing these fish. When the first sex differences appear in young animals, it is better to transfer the males to another aquarium. It is necessary to track males constantly, since an unnoticed male can come into contact with all females. Arbitrary crossing will bring faded offspring, the color line will not be preserved. For successful breeding, the brightest and most beautiful fish are chosen, which are constantly kept in the same aquarium. That is, pure breed guppies are bred if you prepare several aquariums in advance for everyone.

In order for puberty to come on time, the fry must be fed with different foods. The first days of life can feed on brine shrimp nauplii, later they can be given small cyclops, crushed tablets with spirulina, finely chopped lettuce leaves. Young fish grow up to 3-5 months, and sexually mature males are painted in bright colors, and then stop growing. The high temperature of the water speeds up the puberty of males. At 28-30 degrees, two to three months will pass, and the male will stop growing, but will be small. At a water temperature of 22 ° C, males will mature for a long time, but after 3-5 months they will grow larger and healthier.

Cardinal fish Tanichtys albonubes

Detachment, family: carp.

Comfortable water temperature: 20-22 S.

Ph: 6,5-7,0.

Aggressiveness: not aggressive 0%.

Cardinal Fish Compatibility: with all the peaceful fish ( zebrafish pink, thorns, speckled catfish, neons, etc.)

Helpful hints: not a whimsical fish, suitable for beginners and young aquarists.

Description:

Homeland - China. The size of the fish is up to 4 cm. Males are brighter colored than females and are slimmer.

The cardinals are kept in a small flock. The fish is mobile, peaceful and unpretentious. Loves medium-sized live and dry food. A flock of cardinals looks spectacular in a spacious, planted and brightly lit aquarium.

Color: from the head to the tail of the fish there is a bright, flickering stripe, which disappears upon reaching maturity (4 months). Under good conditions, the cardinal spawns all his life.

Comfortable water parameters: dH 20 °, pH 6.5-7.0, t 20-22 ° C.

Breeding cardinals is not a tricky business. Fresh water is poured into the spawning aquarium, several small-leaved plants are placed, a sprayer is installed and a group (there should be more females) or one pair of fish is planted. Dilution water: dH up to 10 °, pH 6.5-7.0, t 24-26 ° C.

Cardinal fish male and female

The female lays several eggs every day. Parents usually do not eat caviar and fry. When floating fry appear, the producers are transferred to another aquarium, and in the first they begin to feed the fry. Food for starting - rotifer, cyclops nauplii, egg yolk or simply mashed dry food.

Feeding aquarium fish cardinals must be correct: balanced, varied. This fundamental rule is the key to the successful keeping of any fish, be it guppies or astronotuses. Article "How and how much to feed aquarium fish" talks about this in detail, it sets out the basic principles of the diet and feeding regime of fish.

In this article, we will note the most important thing - feeding the fish should not be monotonous, the diet should include both dry food and live food. In addition, you need to take into account the gastronomic preferences of a particular fish and, depending on this, include in its diet food either with the highest protein content or vice versa with plant ingredients.

Dry food is, of course, a popular and popular food for fish. For example, every hour of the day and everywhere you can find Tetra food on the aquarium counters - the leader Russian market, in fact, the range of feeds of this company is amazing. In the "gastronomic arsenal" Tetra includes as individual food for a certain type of fish: for goldfish, for cichlids, for loricaria, guppies, labyrinths, arowans, discus, etc. Also, the Tetra company has developed specialized feeds, for example, for enhancing color, fortified or for feeding fry. Detailed information about all Tetra feeds, you can find out on the official website of the company - here.

It should be noted that when buying any dry food, you should pay attention to the date of its production and shelf life, try not to buy food by weight, and also keep the food closed - this will help to avoid the development of pathogenic flora in it.

Photo selection of cardinal fish

These ornamental carps reach sexual maturity from about four months of age and are then ready to reproduce.

An interesting feature: at an elevated temperature of the aquatic environment (+ 30 °), sexual maturity begins at three months.

In principle, the type of container is not so important, the main thing is to take a number of measures to create optimal conditions for the reproduction of offspring: an appropriate temperature regime and the presence of green vegetation (for example) in which future fry will find their shelter.

However, some professional aquarists insist that such a provocation is needed only in a strictly defined case, when the birth of guppies is difficult and premature.

When the male begins to chase the female, to cuddle up to her from the side or from below, mating has begun. There is an important feature here: if the fish are in the general volume, then you need to make sure that there are not too many males.

They can drive the female to a state of complete exhaustion, there have even been cases of the death of females in such conditions.

Therefore, the ideal option is a pair of individuals.

How to distinguish a pregnant female guppy?

First of all, it must be borne in mind that these beautiful fish are, that is, they do not lay eggs or larvae, but they give birth, producing offspring that are already ready for life.

The duration of the female's pregnancy is 28 to 40 days. It has been found that this depends on the number of fry she is carrying.

This shape of the abdomen indicates that a pregnant female guppy will soon give birth.

Guppy birth

Immediately during childbirth, the female's veiled tail trembles, for a moment she freezes. Live fry come out one by one, they immediately show independence, starting to move actively.

So, during the first spawning, a young female can give birth to 15 to 25 babies; during the second and subsequent births, the number of fry increases from 50 to 100.

Postpartum behavior and fry conservation

There is nothing to be done: whoever did not hide, he died. Natural selection, you know ...

What should be done to preserve at least part of the offspring?

It has already been mentioned that it is required to keep vegetation in the general aquarium, which provides a natural shelter for the fry.

In addition, when breeding in a separate spawning grounds, it is important not to miss the moment when it is time to plant the female guppy.

Another variant: spawning takes place in the general aquarium. In this case, the aquarist must decide for himself whether or not to place the guppy fry in a separate growing tank.

If such a decision is made, then the juveniles are carefully and quickly collected with a plastic cup and transferred to a prepared water kindergarten. Of course, it is impossible to collect all the fry, but it is quite possible to save most of them.

How to care for guppy fry?

Experts believe that food should be plentiful and around the clock. At first, it is recommended to give live dust, brine shrimp, rotifers, microworm.

As a top dressing, you can also use a solution of boiled and grated egg yolk in a tablespoon of aquarium water.

A case of 180 small guppies was born at once. Counting the exact number of small individuals is further complicated by the fact that the parents eat the fry.