A common and inexpensive fish for an aquarium is the flag swordsman. In 1864, she was "domesticated" for the first time and, being unpretentious, she immediately won the love of breeders. The nickname is fixed due to the appearance - the males have a process on the lower fin that looks like a sword. This fish is in almost every aquarium: it is beautiful, with a large selection of colors, unpretentious, and most importantly - it propagates easily.
If we consider the attitude of the swordsmen with other species, then they are not violent. If you have a variety of fish in the aquarium, you should not worry, because they will not be able to coexist perfectly. Sometimes it happens that the fish comes across with an explosive attitude, and the swordsman begins to bully. This is manifested to a greater extent in competition with another individual of this species.
An ideal underwater world for swordsmen would be a voluminous aquarium that contains many plants, and the bottom is laid with pebbles, there are underwater statues. The presence of the plant component will contribute to the formation of a shelter for the swordsman fry. Adults perfectly adapt to the surrounding underwater environment. In the wild, free fish are found in salt water, but domestic animals can easily survive in fresh fluid.
Wild swordsmen
From South America to Guatemala, considered to be the homeland of the Swordfish, in the rivers and lakes you can find representatives of the species in their natural environment. These wild fish are less bright than their domesticated subspecies, but the color is also varied.
They feel comfortable in different types of waters. Most often, shallow places with high vegetation are chosen, which are abundant in the homeland of swordfish, thereby providing themselves with food (algae, insects).
Specifications
According to the description, flag swordsmen can reach a length of 10 to 12 cm. Therefore, you need to prepare that they will be quite large. In fact, in order to achieve growth for fish, it is necessary to create a comfortable environment. It’s not difficult - the larger the aquarium, the bigger the fish will grow. The term of residence in an artificial container can be up to 6 years, taking into account proper care.
If you consider the option of coloring, then do not even make a specific emphasis. The coloring is diverse: black, white, spotted, with stripes, two-tone individuals. If we consider the subspecies of the flag swordsman ruby, then these are representatives of a rich red color.
There are practically no people who have never seen this fish. It is actually in every aquarium, which makes it one of the most common types of home "inhabitants".
Content Issues
The most popular type of fish for beginners. Small, easily propagated, viviparous. The only drawback is the character.
Nutrition
You can start feeding fish with cereal feed, granular, live or frozen. Everything that suits other species will be perceived by them with a bang.
If we consider not only the swordsmen, but also the rest of the inhabitants of the aquarium, it is necessary to alternate nutrition. It is important that the diet contains a plant component based on carbohydrates.
In the natural environment, the main dish can be considered grass and algae, which are very numerous around. For domestic fish, an aquarium with a large number of plants will be superfluous, and in order to make up for the missing elements, it is better to buy food on a natural basis.
Most often, cereals are a constant food, and this diet is diluted with live food. The swordsman eats at ease, the menu can be varied.
Features of the content of flag swordsmen
Keeping the swordsmen at home is not difficult. For starters, you can buy an aquarium with a volume of 40 liters and start one fish of this species. But it is mobile, so in the future the capacity will need to be increased.
For breeding fish to be successful, a pair of females is required per 1 male. But the ratio “male and female” is not permissible, otherwise the latter will be driven to death by the male. It is undesirable to have several males, there will be constant clarification of relationships and, consequently, damage to fish.
The temperature is not important for the Swordsmen, they feel comfortable both at 18 0 C and at 29-30 0 C. The temperature is considered to be the most ideal at 22-24 0 C. The hardness of the water is not the main thing, it is important not to let them into a moist, non-settled liquid.
The proper functioning of the climate inside the aquarium can be achieved by installing a filtration system that will purify the water. Stably part of the fluid should be replaced with a fresher one. It is worth remembering that the fish not only moves quickly, but also jumps great. Therefore, it is necessary to cover the aquarium so that the swordsman does not leave his body of water.
Making capacity is a personal choice of each owner. The main thing that is necessary is to plant an aquarium with a large number of plants. So for female swordsmen it is easier to hide in the thicket from an aggressive male.
Swordfish and other fish in the aquarium
If flagged Swordfish are considered old by age, then they can begin to attack others. But this specificity can not be attributed to all species. There are those who behave calmly with age, and there are those who show great aggression and start to rage. This usually manifests itself in those aquariums where there is little space for fish and almost no plants. In order not to provoke this, do not place two males at once in one aquarium - fights will begin.
There are species of fish that are suited to the wild temper of the swordsmen, and they get along well with them. Guppies, mollies, and Pecilia are friendly species of live-bearing fish for the swordsmen. Of the spawners, it is worth noting such as gourami, neons, irises, scalars. It is completely not recommended to place goldfish and swordsmen in one aquarium.
How to distinguish males from females
Finding out where the female is and where the male is is not difficult. The latter with a long process at the end of the fin, because for this they got their nickname. Like all fish that breed offspring by live birth, they are distinguished by the anal fin. In females it is wide, and in males it is elongated and narrow.
It happens that a female decides to be male. He grows himself a sword-shoot and begins to care for the females. The problem is that the fish becomes barren and will not bring offspring. Science does not provide an exact explanation for such a phenomenon, but it exists.
Breeding
The formed fry appears in those fish species that are of the live-bearing type. And the swordsman is no exception.
Fertilization takes place inside the female, caviar matures in her trade to the full formation of the body of future fish. This procedure is short-lived, within a month a large brood of swordsmen will be born. Therefore, their breeding is considered elementary. After all, if the male is young, he will constantly fertilize the female. The main thing is to put her away from him in time, and success will be guaranteed.
When compared with other viviparous, the breeding of flag swordsmen is very easy. Sometimes a male representative is not even needed. In its body, the female individual contains milk, keeping it from the moment when the male was nearby. When necessary, the female herself will fertilize her eggs. The appearance of fry without a male is considered normal.
You can keep the population in a simple way by simply increasing the temperature of the water to 26-28 degrees.
It is visually noticeable that the size of the abdomen in the female increases, a black spot appears near the anal fin. This is a hint that the fry will begin to be born. There is an option not to plant a female with offspring, but in this case it will not grow very much. Malek is very actively eaten by other types of fish, and even the males themselves will not refuse to eat them. But if productive reproduction is planned, then it is worth producing a female.
It is also recommended to take care of the required amount of algae in the aquarium. Childbirth occurs in their thickets, and a newborn fish, in the presence of danger, hides in their thick plexuses.
Like any small organism, the male is hungry and active. Therefore, it is worth feeding the fish boiled chicken yolk, chopped cereal. It is advisable to buy the latter with fiber content, then the fish will grow up with bright colors and will be completely healthy.