Pregnant Swardfish?

[AshleyT]

Is my swardfish pregnant? http/m.flickr.com/#/photos/75460450@N03/6939254425/

 

[Cazgar]

If she's been with a male recently, then yes, she will be pregnant

 

[AshleyT]

Yeah theirs been a male with her for quite abit, if so how long would it take, and what is the chance of them surviving?

 

[zuulan]

The plumpness in the photo looks more like a well fed fish rather then a pregnant one. There's no gravid spot.

But as per Cazgar, she will be pregnant if she's been near a male Swordtail, as livebearers are constantly pregnant.

Watch her from above, that's the easiest way to see how far gone she is, size & shape wise.

Whether they survive or not is up to you. Can you quickly separate them straight after birth and where can you keep them as fry?

 

[AshleyT]

Well what about my guppie not a r8 good pic but...
http/m.flickr.com/#/photos/75460450@N03/6793184196/

How would I look after them I have no experience on breeding?

 

[Cazgar]

You don't really need experience with livebearers, they breed quite successfully without much help.
If you really want to save some fry, then you can net them out when you see them & put them in another tank.
Feed a good quality crushed flake, or special fry food

 

[Fishy friend2]

I will go a bit more into detail with your question about the fry surviving
We need to know a few things before I can help you with how many will likely survive

whats the stocking, and how large are the fish
is the tank heavily planted
do you have something to prevent the fry from getting stuck in the filter
do you have lots of floating plants
how often do you feed your fish and how much

 

[AshleyT]

Do the fry need a heater and filter?

 

[zuulan]

Well what about my guppie not a r8 good pic but...
http/m.flickr.com/#/photos/75460450@N03/6793184196/

How would I look after them I have no experience on breeding?

Yes, pregnant. A big black Gravid spot showing there.

Ideally they are best kept in a separate tank, if not, a floating breeding trap is another option. Just keep them separate from the adult fish that will eat them and feed them some fry food that will be available from your LFS. Or crush up some of your existing flake food for them.

If you set up a separate tank keep a close eye on the pollution levels.

Your biggest problem is netting them soon after birth as they won't survive long with the hungry adults about. As long as your do that, the rest is pretty easy. Best way to ensure they stay hidden from the adults after being born is to provide plenty of plants for them to hide in before you get a chance to net them. Bare in mind that most are born in the early hours of the morning, in darkness. So check on them as early as you can each morning, once you think the mum is about to drop them.

 

[AshleyT]

By looking at the pics how long do you think it wil be before they give birth

 

[Fishy friend2]

the swordtail has a while, maybe 3-3 1/2 weeks
the guppy will drop sooner maybe 1-2 weeks

 

[zuulan]

Do the fry need a heater and filter?

Yes, it's even more important then the adults to have the tank heated & filtered properly, but if they are in a breeding trap then it's not really a worry. If a separate tank, then the filter should be a low powered one and not capable of sucking the fry up into them.

 

[AshleyT]

Well I haven't got a spare heater or filter, so if ideas to get a breeding net type of thing will that be enough?

 

[Cazgar]

It'll be ok for a week or two, once the fry get bigger they'll need more space

 

[AshleyT]

Ok thank you