View Full Version : Guppy Mates
MrJim
05-09-2009, 03:39 PM
I have two males~they get along very well, one is never too far from the other. They ignore the two snails I put in, and everyone seems pretty happy.
I'd like to add a female sometime in the next couple weeks. Is the 2 male/ 1 female ratio a bad idea? Will the males fight over her? I used to have breeding green swords back in the day (early 80s) but don't remember the male/female mix anymore, may have just been a pair.
I'm not into serious breeding, more a free food source for the goldfish and raise one or two out of a batch.
Northernguy
05-09-2009, 03:57 PM
I don't recomend a female for your tank.Sorry!
Yes the ratio is 2males for every female but if you only have the one female she will be harrassed until she dies.More males would work easier than one female!
Besides you will be over run with fry in no time.
MrJim
05-09-2009, 04:07 PM
I don't recomend a female for your tank.Sorry!
Yes the ratio is 2males for every female but if you only have the one female she will be harrassed until she dies.More males would work easier than one female!
Besides you will be over run with fry in no time.
What about 2 females? Fry are not a problem-they're food..
Northernguy
05-09-2009, 04:10 PM
If fry are not a problem and they will be removed it should be ok.
Your tank will be grossly overstocked in no time if you don't.
MrJim
05-09-2009, 04:13 PM
If fry are not a problem and they will be removed it should be ok.
Your tank will be grossly overstocked in no time if you don't.
If there are two pair with they mate up permanently or do they just mate with whoever is closest?
They don't care who they mate with.
MrJim
05-09-2009, 04:18 PM
They don't care who they mate with.
I figured but until ya ask..
Northernguy
05-09-2009, 04:20 PM
Agreed! They don't care! They could be platies and they wouldn't care! lol
MrJim
05-09-2009, 04:22 PM
Agreed! They don't care! They could be platies and they wouldn't care! lol
No kiddin'~the livebearers crossbreed?
Guppies will rarely breed with mollys. NG was just using that as an example of how guppies don't care what they breed with.
MrJim
05-09-2009, 04:30 PM
Guppies will rarely breed with mollys. NG was just using that as an example of how guppies don't care what they breed with.
:hmm3grin2orange: OK, I'll warn the snails...
:hmm3grin2orange: OK, I'll warn the snails...
Lol.:hmm3grin2orange:
Northernguy
05-09-2009, 05:06 PM
Now that would be interesting!:hmm3grin2orange:
The males tend to swim underneath the femals and nip at their anal area.They are trying to get a free meal,They eat the fry as they popout.
A little canabalistic but fish don't care.
MrJim
05-09-2009, 05:15 PM
Now that would be interesting!:hmm3grin2orange:
The males tend to swim underneath the femals and nip at their anal area.They are trying to get a free meal,They eat the fry as they popout.
A little canabalistic but fish don't care.
Do they just know when the females are going to drop, or is the nipping an ongoing thing?
MrJim
05-23-2009, 02:15 PM
Do they just know when the females are going to drop, or is the nipping an ongoing thing?
[Only Registered Users Can See Links.]
The "Guppy Guys" (as my wife calls them) are doing very well, still wondering about this question...
I'm considering on picking up a couple females for them this weekend..
iZinedane
05-23-2009, 02:16 PM
[Only Registered Users Can See Links.]
The "Guppy Guys" (as my wife calls them) are doing very well, still wondering about this question...
I'm considering on picking up a couple females for them this weekend..
why not just pickup two other males? :hmm3grin2orange:
MrJim
05-23-2009, 02:23 PM
why not just pickup two other males? :hmm3grin2orange:
Yeah I've considered a bachelor tank, but there is something about livebearers that I think would be educational for my homeschooled boys. Also the fry would make for interesting food for my comets.
Still I wonder, if the male/female ratio is equal, does everyone get along ok? These two guys are real chums, hate to bring women in to mess up their party.
Another option would be to keep a female in the 20 (soon to be 29) and bring her up for the nuptuals once in a while...
iZinedane
05-23-2009, 02:41 PM
Yeah I've considered a bachelor tank, but there is something about livebearers that I think would be educational for my homeschooled boys. Also the fry would make for interesting food for my comets.
Still I wonder, if the male/female ratio is equal, does everyone get along ok? These two guys are real chums, hate to bring women in to mess up their party.
Another option would be to keep a female in the 20 (soon to be 29) and bring her up for the nuptuals once in a while...
i don't really know about the ratio
i only keep males in my 5g :hmm3grin2orange:
Little Embers
05-23-2009, 04:30 PM
The actual ratio for livebearers is 2-3 females for 1 male. This disperses the harassment by the male. A single female with 1 male will get harassed to death. They do not form pairs as already stated.
Do they just know when the females are going to drop, or is the nipping an ongoing thing?
It is an ongoing thing....they can sense/smell when the female is due. The male will also nudge/nip her vent area to make her more receptive.
MrJim
05-23-2009, 04:50 PM
The actual ratio for livebearers is 2-3 females for 1 male. This disperses the harassment by the male. A single female with 1 male will get harassed to death. They do not form pairs as already stated.
It is an ongoing thing....they can sense/smell when the female is due. The male will also nudge/nip her vent area to make her more receptive.
It seems like I remember when I had swords I only had one male and a couple females. I'll just stick with males in this tank and maybe later on I'll put a female in the 20 and bring her up for mating on occasion.
Wondering, how long would you keep a female in a male tank to ensure she is impregnated?
Fraoch
05-23-2009, 07:44 PM
Wondering, how long would you keep a female in a male tank to ensure she is impregnated?
30 seconds? LOL!:hmm3grin2orange:
Probably longer than that, but my 8 males in my 10-gallon always try to mate with each other. "Try" being the operative word. It just results in annoyance for the recipient of the attempt.
It's funny to see them doing their "shaking the tail" "milkshake"* dance as my fiance calls it.
* - you know, that annoying hip-hop song?
Little Embers
05-24-2009, 04:41 AM
I agree LOL! It really doesn't take long at all...the males gonopodium only needs to touch her vent and she can be inseminated.
Gayle
05-24-2009, 04:55 AM
Yep it should not take very long at all. You should have 2-3 females per male, imagine the harassment she would have to go through!!!! The reason they nip at her like that is just as stated before a hormone that the males can sense. Other fish can as well, so when she is in labor it is best to move her away from the other fish, keep in mind though that she will eat the babies as well. So make sure that they have places to hide if you would like to keep any of them, or raise them to be a certain size before you feed. So are you wanting to add the females to your the tank you have now??? I would think that unless you really need the fry as food its best to leave it as you have it IMO.
emilyekk
05-24-2009, 05:25 AM
I had always heard it was 2-3 females per 1 male, due to the CONSTANT chasing and wanting to breed...
MrJim
05-31-2009, 03:56 PM
I added 4 females yesterday~everyone seems to be getting along fine. The larger male selected his favorite from the harem, the smaller male seems almost shy and backward compared to the other one; maybe he's still a youngster.
I saw the chasing in the beginning~~it didn't take but a heartbeat for the larger male to zero in on his choice, which was the largest female. Looking forward to seeing nature workthumbs2:
Northernguy
05-31-2009, 05:00 PM
The males love to chase the females.I have about 5 female for every male.At least I used too.lol
I have so many fry in that tank now its rediculous.I hope to bring what appears to be several hundred to my lfs tomorrow afternoon.
Jaster
06-01-2009, 01:15 AM
I have 3 to 1 in my tank and let me tell you... you see more nature then you will want with these guys.
My Angels love them! Theres at least a good live snack for them once a week between all my livebearers.
MrJim
06-01-2009, 01:21 AM
The males love to chase the females.I have about 5 female for every male.At least I used too.lol
I have so many fry in that tank now its rediculous.I hope to bring what appears to be several hundred to my lfs tomorrow afternoon.
That's a lot~none of the lfs ever have that many around.
vBulletin v3.5.4, Copyright ©2000-2012, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.