How often can Swordtails give birth?
Once the female is impregnated, she can give birth to as many as five or more broods of young at intervals of four to six weeks. The number of each brood may vary from 12 to 15 babies from a young Mollie to as many as 150 young from a large swordtail.
How do I know when my swordtail will give birth?
As her time nears, the bottom of her swollen belly will begin to appear slightly square and she’ll look light she might burst. A large dark spot will develop on each side of her body near the anus. That “gravid spot” is where you can see the uterus pressing against her abdominal wall.
How long do fish last Pregnant?
As examples, the female swordtail and guppy will both give birth to anywhere from 20 to 100 live young after a gestation period of four to six weeks, and mollies will produce a brood of 20 to 60 live young after a gestation of six to 10 weeks.
Do Swordtails eat their babies?
Like all the other livebearers, swordtails do not have maternal instincts and will, therefore, consume their young ones soon after birth. Another reason why the mother swordtails eat their young ones is hunger. If you provide them with the right food, they may not touch the babies.
Can female swordtails turn into males?
Swordtails commonly breed in community tanks. The urge to reproduce is so strong in this species that the females are hermaphroditic. In populations consisting entirely of females one will frequently transform into a male to insure the propagation of the species.
Can you have 2 male swordtails together?
It is possible to keep multiple males and females together in the same tank provided you have a large aquarium, heavily planted and decorated to provide sufficient hiding places. Make sure your tank is at least 50 gallons and you provide two or three females for each male in the tank.
Why are my Swordtails chasing each other?
Aggressive Behavior Between Swordtails A bully swordtails fish regards themselves as the gods in the tank. They want to be revered to. They will chase other innocent and shy looking counterparts to the wrong directions. Just like the lions in the jungle, these bullies tend to demarcate their territories.
How many male swordtails are there?
The optimum ratio of Swordtails is three or four females for every male. However, Swordtails are not similar to other aquarium fish in terms of their size, breeding rate, and specific tank requirements. Hence, if you read on, I will guide you through the process of rearing a swordtail.
Can Swordtails breed with guppies?
No. Guppies cannot breed with Swordtails. This is because guppies and swordtails belong to a different genus of fish. The guppy fish belong to the Poecilia genus while swordtails belong to the Xiphophorus genus.
Are Swordtails aggressive?
Swordtails are generally very peaceful and make excellent community fish. Males can however turn aggressive towards each other once they reach sexual maturity, so it is advisable to house only one male with several females in an aquarium.
What do baby swordtails eat?
Swordtail fry like liquid fry and newly hatched brine shrimp. Provide them with as much live meat and protein as possible. Some other live foods include daphnia, mosquito larvae and bloodworms. You should be careful when choosing the live feed because they can transfer diseases to your swordtails.
What is the lifespan of a swordtail?
around three to five years
How often do you feed swordtail fish?
Swordtail fish species take an average of sixteen to twenty-four hours to fully digest and ingest the food eaten. Therefore, it is prudent to feed them once per day. Better still, you can offer them light foods twice per day.
Do swordtail fish need a heater?
They are also known as either green swordtail fish or red swordtail fish. If you are considering to keep swordtail fish in your aquarium, you need to know some basic needs of the swordfish. Swordtail Fish Best Water Temperature. Swordtails can be kept in water temperature ranging between 65 to 82 °F (18 – 28 °C).
Is swordtail a Molly?
Swordtail Fish are Livebearers The swordtail belongs to the group of livebearer fishes – scientifically classified as Poecillidae – to which the mosquito fish, the guppies, the mollies and the platies belong. A female swordtail can produce offspring as often as every four weeks.
Can swordtail fish live alone?
As social fish, red swordtails need to be kept with others of their own species. Those who are housed alone will become shy and withdrawn. Males of the species can become territorial and act aggressively toward one another.
How many Swordtails can you have in a 5 gallon tank?
Can I put 2 swordtail mollies in a 5 gallon with a good filter ? You can put a Betta, or snails, or Shrimp in a 5 with a filter. Swords need a 30g. Most other fish need a 10g and up.
How can you tell if a swordtail fish is male or female?
Males are easy to distinguish from the females, since they’re the ones with the distinctive “sword” protruding from the lower part of their tails. They also possess a gonopodium, a long, thin modified anal fin used for mating. Females lack the long sword tail, and the anal fin on females is stubby and triangular.