Endlers sexing/breeding

[BigBurgassio]

Hi,

How soon should you know their sex and at what age can they start breeding ?

Having a bit of a population explosion, Ive separated everything that's noticeably male or female but have loads of fry that ill need to get out once i know.

Thanks

Stuart

 

[Colin_T]

They can start breeding as soon as they show sexual differences (gonopodium for males and fan shaped anal fin for females). This is usually around 2-3 months old.

 

[Back in the fold]

Hi,

How soon should you know their sex and at what age can they start breeding ?

Having a bit of a population explosion, Ive separated everything that's noticeably male or female but have loads of fry that ill need to get out once i know.

Thanks

Stuart

Welp , it appears to be time for a few more aquariums . Endler’s are really just old time guppies before the line breeders went crazy aren’t they ? The first guppies I saw in 1965 looked like what people call Endler’s live bearer today . This has been hashed over on this forum many times and I still don’t get it so don’t try to explain it to me because I , apparently , have a mental block about it . I just like Guppies and , I guess , Endler’s too .

 

[BigBurgassio]

Welp , it appears to be time for a few more aquariums .

It may well be another tank but i think i need to get it under control or ill end up moving the problem into more tanks lol, have thought of bringing in a predator that can reduce the fry, considered a betta but not sure if that would work ?

 

[Back in the fold]

It may well be another tank but i think i need to get it under control or ill end up moving the problem into more tanks lol, have thought of bringing in a predator that can reduce the fry, considered a betta but not sure if that would work ?

If you want a fish that will hunt down and eat fry then a Betta will work for you but that will introduce an element that may not be natural . The Betta will grow fond of eating guppies and will chase the adults when there are no fry and the fear might slow down or stop further guppy breeding . Think about maybe getting a 55 gallon and raising them to sell / trade to a pet shop .

 

[emeraldking]

Hi,

How soon should you know their sex and at what age can they start breeding ?

Having a bit of a population explosion, Ive separated everything that's noticeably male or female but have loads of fry that ill need to get out once i know.

Thanks

Stuart

That can be done at an early age. But I do have to admit that it needs a good eye...
Take a look at this illustration I've made. This enables one to sex fry way earlier before the males show their male traits.

Welp , it appears to be time for a few more aquariums . Endler’s are really just old time guppies before the line breeders went crazy aren’t they ? The first guppies I saw in 1965 looked like what people call Endler’s live bearer today . This has been hashed over on this forum many times and I still don’t get it so don’t try to explain it to me because I , apparently , have a mental block about it . I just like Guppies and , I guess , Endler’s too .

Well, pure endlers are actually real wild guppies but differ in DNA from wildguppies like Poecilia reticulata, Poecilia kempkesi, Poecilia obscura and Micropoecilia species. So, pure endlers are wild guppies but not every wild guppy is an endler.
But nowadays, many people and the commercial trade tend to name other wild guppies also endlers to make it more interesting. This has also led to fraudulent sales by many. It created frustration, verbal fights and confusion...

 

[Back in the fold]

@emeraldking So then , Endler’s are guppies but the genus Poecilia is their own tribe ? Also , I had no idea at all that guppies could be sexed before the gonopodium was developed . That could be a very good thing to know if you are working on a new variety and you don’t want surprises . Is that what you do ?

 

[emeraldking]

@emeraldking So then , Endler’s are guppies but the genus Poecilia is their own tribe ? Also , I had no idea at all that guppies could be sexed before the gonopodium was developed . That could be a very good thing to know if you are working on a new variety and you don’t want surprises . Is that what you do ?

Well, "Poecilia" is the genus where they belong to. "Micropoecilia" is a subgenus of "Poecilia". All belong to the Poeciliidae family. Being a member of the Poeciliidae family doesn't mean that all members are Poecilia. There are many genera that belong to the Poeciliidae family.
Yes, one can sex guppies (so, also endlers) very fast (for sure after a week after birth). And yes, I use this method to sex them early. And it comes in handy when you start setting up a new line as well. With guppies I really don't have to wait until a male starts to develop a gonopodium to see which sex we are dealing with. In this case, I can take measures beforehand.

 

[emeraldking]

I forgot to mention that also killifish belong to the Poeciliidae family. So, the Poeciliidae family consists of livebearers and egglayers.