Guppies in a Planted

[jbarr]

I have 5 female guppies and 2 male (Split-tail, Endler-looking, you know the type?).
They are currently in a planted 20gal Long with 3 Corys, 1 Dwarf BN Pleco and 1 Bumblebee Catfish-- Microglanis iherengi if I'm not mistaken (~3" max)-- to keep the population down. You can see him in my gallery. I think I'll name him Asassin, or... The Candy Man, hahah...

I have had them for a few weeks. I've had casualties, which I believe are the work of PetSmart, but who knows. I've lost 2 males and 2 females I believe? Anyways, the females I have now are much healthier looking, solid looking caudal.
They have yet to drop fry.

I'm hoping my tank will provide enough cover. I have a lot of Stargrass, newly trimmed (3") Wisteria, Java Moss + big Fern(s) tied to driftwood, etc.

A few Qs:
- How's it looking? This is my first attempt w/ breeding Guppies
- If I were to remove any of the parents, which would be most effective; removing the male(s) of female(s)?
- Are Corys good tank-mates for breeding guppies? Will they eat fry?? I feel like they may possibly stress the guppies out, causing fry holding. Is that a possibility?
- Any tips?

TIA, PStalk about guppies!

EDIT: Here is a pic of my tank; any fry survival rate forecasts?

[zenkatydid]

i keep guppies as bottom feeders with my breeding guppies and they are as peaceful as can be. they don't eat fry. i currently have about 8 adults and more than 20 fry, all free swimming. if anything, the guppies stress the cories.

maybe your bumblebee is eating them all? maybe they're just not ready to drop.

[SeanMurphy]

I've had mixed platies and guppies in my planted tank for over two years. At first, they dropped every month or so, but recently, they all stopped dropping for about 5 months, and have just started up again. You might want to check your water temperature, as guppies tend to breed more when the water temperature is up around 78-82. They're also more active at this temperature. I made the minute adjustment upwards in temp, and have had a couple drops since in just under a month.

Keep note that guppies will eat their own fry. If you want to breed without the hassle of breeding traps, make sure you have lots of fine plants that they can hide in. I have a thicket of moneywort and I'm looking to get a bunch of java moss. From the last drop of indeterminate size, I've got 7-10 survivors.

[jbarr]

Yea, that's why they're in a planted, I'm hoping to raise the survival rate to the maximum possible.
All females have visible gravids, and bulging stomachs.
2 look close to birth, and one of those is beginning to square off.
I noticed the squared off one trying to hide earlier today, so I switched the lights off.

I also began raising my temp. Although plants prefer cooler waters, I think they'll be fine just under 80 degrees for a week or so.

I'm unsure as to how capable the bumblebee is when it comes to population control, though I have no doubts. He's nocturnal, so I don't doubt he'll act as a fry-vacuum every night. I hope he can't keep up though, I want survivors. Maybe I should move him?
Do you think he'll be able to keep up with 2 males and 5 females?

Also, does anyone have experience breeding wild-type/endler males (lt. blue, double sword-tailed) with 'fancy' (non-wild) females?

[SeanMurphy]

I suspect that most of your fry will end up with the wild genome, as I suspect (naive assumptions warning) that the bulk of the fancy genome is recessive. You may get fry with one or two characteristics, maybe an enlarged tail, maybe some coloring. Who knows until they reach adulthood, really? I've got a couple "varigated snakeskin" (large, but plain, with a dark back and tail) guppy females in with a single male orange "fancy" guppy from Walmart. The fry that I have appear to all be little copies of the female at this point, but they're hardly big enough to tell at this point.

Where did you get the wild-type males? Its possible, if they're from a store, that they are the offspring of a similar type of grouping that you have. Plain and Fancy. That would mean that they, most likely, have a dominant plain gene and a recessive fancy gene (simplifying greatly, there's many genes that code for various fancy/plain traits). If that's the case, then breeding them with fancy females would result in aboult half and half fancy/plain mix in your fry, with the plains actually being fancy carriers (for lack of a better term).

Genetics is such fun.

[jbarr]

They are from Petsmart. I don't think they were even called wild-types, they just look it.
I think they are... I want to say, split-tail delta's, but I may be getting some of my Betta mixed in there.. They just have forked tails, they dont look like most fancies w/ full tails, you know?

Either way, I hope to have some good looking guppies.
How early are you able to sex guppies? Breed?

Just for reference, I'm wondering how many microorganisms will be available for the fry with the plant biomass I currently have. Any rough (ROUGH) estimates? I have Hikari First-Bites and flakes, along with the supplementary microorganisms.