Freshwater fish - Guppies

Guppies is the most popular aquarium species kept in the world. They are small, beautiful, peaceful , lively, curious and hardly. The Guppy is one of the best choice for beginners. They do not require large tanks or very specific water quality. They do best in community aquarium where the water movement is slow and enough plants around.

Feeding:
All aquarium food are accepted by guppies. I even seen them nibbling on green hair algae that were attached to the tank wall or the plants. Their favorite would be mosquito larva. Cultivating larva is a good and cheap way to making your own food for your fish. More discussion regarding how to cultivate a mosquito larvae.

Sexing:
Male are nicely colored and with a large tail fin. The females are generally around 20-30% larger than the males and are rounder. There are 2 pictures below with the female on top and the male at the bottom. Look closely rounded fin near the belly compared to the sharp and narrow fin of the male.










Breeding:
Guppies are livebearers meaning that they GAVE BIRTH. There are many ways you can do
it. The easiest way is to get a bunch of
guppies. Lets say 3males to 9 females ( Remember 1male to 3female is the key) and dump them into a 2 feet tank with lots of floating plants to let the babies have some hiding place. Wait for a couple of weeks and you will start to realise that the number of fishes inside the tank actually increases. Another way ( a more professional way) is to put only a pair of guppies into a 2 feet tank and of course with lots of floating plant. The main advantage of this method is that you are able to control the color of guppies you wanted to produce.


Life Span:
Usually 2 years. Even under extreme condition , they will still survive but with shorten life span.

Environment:
Guppy require fairly warm temperature 19.0 - 29.0°C (69 - 86 °F). They need to have some plants inside the tank to make them feel safe. They are community fish meaning that they are able to live peacefully with other species of fish provided they wont be eaten. But its preferred to keep a pure guppies fish tank as many other community fish might nipple on their fancy tail. Preferred water PH 7.0-8.5. Preferred water dGH 12.0 - 18.0 °N



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