TF2YD Stores > Wildwoods > Livebearers - Community> Common Guppy Poecilia reticulata

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Common Guppy Poecilia reticulata

Category: Livebearers - Community

Size: 2-3cm

Price: £2.95 each

Discount: No discounts available

Stock: 14 in stock

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Select Gender Female

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Assorted colours.

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Further details:

Further information can be found below:

Fish type:	tropical
Male or Female	Females Only
Water conditions:	These fish are currently kept in water Ph 7.8 and Hard
Breeding:	TBC
Volume Discount:	No discounts available
Size:	2-3cm

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Poecilia reticulata (Common Guppy)

Wild fish are very variable. The body is greenish-silver, with the male having a larger tail than the female and sporting colourful spots on the rear half of the body and the tail and dorsal fins. There are many artificial varieties, generally having brighter colours and longer fins than wild-type fish.

Sexual dimorphism is pronounced with this species. Males are smaller, have brighter colours, and have a modified tube-like anal fin. Females are much bigger, more robust in build, and have a normal (triangular) anal fin.

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Fish information (behaviour and breeding):

Wild guppies are extremely adaptable and hardy fish, and have been widely used as laboratory fish and for mosquito control. They have a high tolerance of salty water, and with care, can even be adapted to fully marine conditions. Artificial varieties of guppies ("fancy guppies") are somewhat less hardy. While they still make excellent aquarium fish, they need good water quality. In immature aquaria, fancy guppies fare poorly, often succumbing to things like fungus and finrot. As such, guppies are not a good choice for the beginner compared with more tolerant fish like zebra danios and peppered catfish. On the other hand, in a mature, hard water aquarium guppies add lots of colour and movement, and make excellent community fish.

Feeding guppies is not difficult as they will take most small foods. However, the best diet mixes meaty foods (like bloodworms) with algae-based foods (like Spirulina flake). This approach will optimise their colouration.

Male guppies can be aggressive towards one another and tend to pester the females. In the wild, because the males experience higher mortality than the females (being smaller and more brightly coloured) males tend to be greatly outnumbered by the females. In the aquarium, it is best to replicate this, and keep one male to every two or more females. When kept in "pairs" the males often pester the females to distraction. When stressed, gestating females can miscarry.

Do not mix guppies with nippy tankmates like tiger barbs; such fish cannot resist biting the fins of the slow moving male guppies, exposing them to finrot and fungus.

Breeding guppies is relatively easy. Once the females have been fertilised, gestation last about a month. Broods of over a hundred have been reported, but typically a few dozen fry are produced. Guppies sometimes eat their fry. To prevent this, fill the tank with floating plants, where the fry can hide from other fish. Rearing the fry is most successful when done in a separate aquarium. Guppy fry need around 4-6 small meals per day to grow properly. Start with liquid fry food or very finely powdered flake. Males are mature within about 2 months, females 3 months.

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Fish Details:

Further fish details are shown below:

Distribution	Originally South America: Brazil, Venezuela, the Guyanas, Trinidad and Barbados; now widely introduced elsewhere
Temperature	22-28 C
Size	Males around 2.5 cm, females up to 5 cm
Water Parameters	Hard alkaline water essential; adapts well to brackish water
Water PH	7.5-8.5