Guppy is the most popular aquarium fish in the world. Which is not surprising - they are as simple as breeding and care. A small flock can easily be kept in a three-liter jar. At the same time, they are very beautiful and diverse, which allows each beginner (and not only!) Aquarist to choose exactly the breed that he wants to see daily. But in order to successfully breed fish, you need to know what a pregnant guppy looks like.
At what age do guppies give birth
To begin with, females become sexually mature and can give offspring by 3-5 months. But experts recommend keeping the females separate for up to 4 months - early birth can harm a fragile body. And they bring in the first birth relatively few fry - no more than 10-20, while a mature female may well give birth to 150-200 babies at once.
Very important: guppies are viviparous fish. That is, unlike the vast majority, females do not spawn, and males do not fertilize it with milk. Fries are born immediately alive, quite voracious and very nimble. But in order not to miss an important point, a novice aquarist should remember what a pregnant guppy female looks like - this is really very important.
How to establish a pregnancy
An expert from the first glance will not only understand that the female is pregnant, but also set a fairly accurate deadline. But the beginner only has to learn this. First of all, pay attention to the external signs of the fish. Usually slender and even thin, it suddenly begins to "grow fat" - the abdomen is noticeably rounded, because of which the body loses its streamlined shape, the fish becomes slower and clumsy.
At the same time, a dark spot appears near the anus, which increases with time. A few days before birth, with good lighting and a good arrangement of fry, you can even see their eyes.
Pregnancy usually lasts 22-26 days. But in some cases, this period increases to 35 and even 40 days - stress, an inappropriate temperature or illness affects it.
Now you know what a pregnant guppy looks like before giving birth, and you can take care of it. As soon as the spot becomes dark enough, you should be prepared for the fact that the fry appear any day.
Protecting fry from cannibal relatives
Unfortunately, cannibalism is quite common among fish. As soon as the female begins to give birth to fry, other individuals actively pursue her to immediately feast on newborns. Father can also take part in such a meal. And mother, having come to herself, will not refuse to treat. Especially if the diet lacks high-quality live food. To save the young, you need to take certain actions.
In general, the ideal solution is to fence off a small corner with a special grid in the aquarium (if it is large enough) - they are sold in stores. Having transplanted the female there, the aquarist will reliably protect the fry from cannibal relatives, and the future mother does not experience stress due to a change in temperature or composition of the water.
But you can also transplant a pregnant female into a separate container - 3-5 liters. In this case, it is best to fill it with water from the aquarium and place it next to it so that there is no temperature difference. The bottom is densely covered with algae - for example, hornwort. Newborn fry will fall down and immediately hide from a starving mother.
If the juvenile is not too important, there is nowhere to put the fish, then you can plant one of the corners of the aquarium densely enough with algae. The female will retire there to give birth to fry, and the latter will hide here until they grow up. Yes, it is good if 10% of the total number of newborns survives. But they will differ in health and liveliness. In this case, additional measures do not need to be taken.
The main thing is to remember what the pregnant guppy shows. When to land, you can guess pretty quickly.
How to care for a future mother
Care is relatively simple and differs little from what the female guppy is used to when living in a regular aquarium.
First of all, it is necessary to especially carefully clean the water from the remains of the feed. A pregnant woman may lose her appetite, due to which food will accumulate at the bottom, rot and spoil water.
It is also desirable to provide the female only with live food - this contributes to better development and health of fry.
If there is no live food, then it is worth switching to dry protein rich in protein. A good choice will be daphnia - cheap, affordable and nutritious.
Watch for the absence of temperature changes, which can negatively affect the state of both mother and offspring.
Knowing how to care for pregnant guppies allows you to increase the survival of fry, as well as maintain the health of the female producer. Therefore, when breeding, do not lose sight of this item.
The birth is about to begin!
Knowing what a pregnant guppy fish looks like, you need to remember the main signs that show that only a few hours are left before delivery.
The main one is that the female begins to tremble and moves very little. This is a sure sign of imminent birth. If you have not transplanted it, then after that you should not try to catch up - you will cause unnecessary stress.
Is the water temperature above normal? Then it is likely that the female will simply lie down and lie for some time - another reliable indicator.
Birth process
You already know what a pregnant guppy looks like. Now we have to learn about the behavior of the giving birth to a female. The birth is calm and even everyday. The female breathes heavily and sometimes tiny lumps fall out of her - smaller than a match head - lumps. Sinking to the bottom, they unfold and you can easily recognize fry in them.
Most often they are born in series - 5-7 fry for one run. Between births, small gaps remain - from 5 to 15 minutes. If the female feels uncomfortable, then they can drag on for several hours. There are cases when a female gives birth to a second portion of fry one day after the first. This is already a very alarming signal - maybe the reason is in the wrong temperature, or maybe in poor-quality feed.
Ideally, already 3-4 hours after the female began to give birth, the dark spot brightens and disappears. At this time, you need to carefully monitor her, for a long time not to leave one.
Immediately after this, the female should be put back into the aquarium. In the future, she does not need special care. But if you leave her with the fry, as beginner aquarists do, wanting her to eat better, and at the same time "stay with the children", this can end very sadly. Guppies are clearly not endowed with love for offspring, as well as the primitive instinct for the preservation of offspring. So, a day after the onset of childbirth, the fry may simply not remain - except perhaps the smartest ones. The female may well eat them all.
Conclusion
So, you have learned what a pregnant guppy looks like, studied the main signs that allow you to determine an early birth, and also figured out the intricacies of caring for a female. Surely, this will allow you to successfully breed your favorite fish, actively increasing your aquarium economy.