All about guppy fish - How long can they live without having filter in the aquarium

New male guppy fishes to replace the yellow cichlits


A baby guppy fish is given free when I bought the fishes from Padungan street in Kuching Aquatic shop just now.

I really hope this time the fishes can last longer. Everytime I buy new fish it only live for about few weeks. I wonder why? - People say guppy can live up to 2 or 3 years: When they die they do not float they sink down to the bottom of their home (the aquarium) I really hope mine can live longer... at least more than just weeks.

ALL ABOUT GUPPY

The guppy (Poecilia reticulata), also known as the millionfish,[1] is one of the most popular freshwater aquarium fish species in the world. It is a small member of the Poeciliidae family (females 4–6 centimetres (1.6–2.4 in) long, males 2.5–3.5 centimetres (1.0–1.4 in) long) and like all other members of the family, is live-bearing

Reproduction

A pregnant guppy at about 26 days
A guppy fry in an aquarium at 1 week old
Guppy standards

Guppies are highly prolific livebearers.[5] The gestation period of a guppy is 21–30 days, with an average of 28 days, varying according to water temperature. After the female guppy is inseminated, a dark area near the anus, known as the gravid spot, will enlarge and darken. Just before birth, the eyes of fry may be seen through the translucent skin in this area. Guppies prefer water temperatures of about 27 °C (81 °F) for reproduction. The female guppy has drops of between 2–100 fry, typically ranging between 5 and 30. From the moment of birth, each fry is fully capable of swimming, eating, and avoiding danger. After giving birth, the female is ready for conception again within only a few hours. Guppies have the ability to store sperm, so the females can give birth many times, after only once breeding with a male. If not kept separate, the older, mature guppies will eat the fry so the use of a breeder box, net breeder, or a separate 20–40 litres (4–9 imp gal; 5–11 USgal) tank is recommended. Live plants may be used as hiding places for the fry.

Young fry take roughly three or four months to reach maturity. In the aquarium, they are usually fed finely ground flake foods, baby brine shrimp or, unless they are put in a separate tank, uneaten food from the adults. In addition, they nibble on algae.

Guppies have been selectively bred to produce a variety of colors and patterns. In the wild, male guppies are dull black or brown in colour with some coloured spots while females are fully dull grey. The wild guppies that showed the most colours in each generation were bred to produce the "fancy guppies" we see in pet stores today.

The guppy has been successfully hybridised with various species of molly (Poecilia latipinna/velifera), eg. male guppy and female molly. However, the hybrids are always males and appear to be infertile.[6] The guppy has also been hybridised with the Endler's livebearer (Poecilia wingei) to produce fertile offspring.
[edit] Genetics

Guppies have 23 paired chromosomes including 1 pair of sex chromosomes.

Selective breeding has produced many different strains, such as the snakeskin and grass varieties. A strain is defined as guppies that show the same characteristics.

In the aquarium

The guppy prefers a hard water aquarium and can withstand levels of salinity up to 150% that of normal sea water, which has led to them being occasionally included in marine tropical community tanks, as well as in freshwater tropical tanks. Guppies are generally peaceful, though nipping behaviour is sometimes exhibited between male guppies or towards other top swimmers like platys and swordtails and occasionally other fish with prominent fins such as angelfish. Its most famous characteristic is its propensity for breeding, and it can breed in both fresh water and marine aquariums.

Guppies bred by aquarists produced variations in appearance ranging from colour consistency to various tail forms.

Well-fed adults do not often eat their own young, although sometimes safe zones are required for the fry. Specially designed livebearer birthing tanks, which can be suspended inside the aquarium, are available from aquatic retailers. These also serve to shield the pregnant female from further attention from the males, which is important, because the males will sometimes attack the females while they are giving birth. It also provides a separate area for the newborn young as protection from being eaten by their mother. However, if a female is put in the breeder box too early, it may cause her to have a miscarriage. Well-planted tanks that offer a lot of barriers to adult guppies will shelter the young quite well. Java moss, duckweed (Lemna minor), and Water Wisteria are all excellent choices. A continuous supply of live food, such as Daphnia, will keep adult fish full and may spare the fry when they are born.

source taken from: http://en.wikipedia.org/

How long will a guppy live without a filter?

Almost all freshwater fish, with the exception of bettas, like aerated water that is clean and constantly moving. I kept eight guppies alive in a salsa jar for two years when I was about nine, but I changed the water twice a week, every week, and I didn't overfeed my fish. I also aerated the water twice a day with an eyedropper.

If you must keep fish without a filtration and aeration system for any long period of time, scoop up water with a cup twice a day and drop it back into the container from a height to dissolve oxygen in the water. Change at least half the water two or three times a week. I always changed all the water and rinsed the gravel, and the only plant I kept was floating. Most fish will die from the stress of a total water change, and the hardy guppy is one of few species that can tolerate it.

You will also need a long, flexible plastic tube. Keep the fish container high up, and once every few days, siphon out waste. Place the tip of the tubing into the water, get down as low as you can without moving the tip of the tube out of the water, and suck on the other end. As soon as the water starts to draw, drop the end into a bucket. Use the suction created by the siphoning to remove fish droppings, uneaten food etc. Then top up the water.

Without a filter, without aerating the water at all, I would say you've got about three days before the guppy dies, and it would be so distressed anyway that that's an appauling welfare issue. The only fish that I have in non-aerated tanks are fry, and I do those three to five times a day to keep them going. The only reason I keep them like this is becuase they'd be eaten in the main tank with the adults and I can't set up fifteen fish tanks in my little house.

source taken from: http://wiki.answers.com/

Can guppies live without oxygen?

Nothing can live without oxygen. Guppies get their oxygen from the water by using their gills. An air bubbler does absolutely no good to the water. Connect the air pump to a filter and then the filter will benefit the tank by biologically removing ammonia from the water. The rules of fishkeeping are. :- 1 inch of fish needs at least 1 gallon of water but more is better. :- Every tank needs a permanently running cycled filter. :- Every tank needs at least 50% of its water replaced every week.Follow the rules and you stand a chance of keeping fish successfully. Miss out on any of them, and I can guarantee that your fish will have constant health problems.

source taken from: http://wiki.answers.com/

Can guppies live without a filter?

A filter biologically removes Ammonia from the water. All fish (including guppies) produce ammonia and ammonia is a deadly poison that will kill almost anything including fish and man. All fish need a filter working 24/7 if they are to stay alive. The rules of fishkeeping are. :- 1 inch of fish needs at least 1 gallon of water but more is better. :- Every tank needs a permanently running cycled filter. :- Every tank needs at least 50% of its water replaced every week. Stick to those rules and you stand a chance of keeping fish successfully. Miss out on any of them, and I can guarantee that your fish will have constant health problems.

source taken from: http://wiki.answers.com/

Thanks so much and credits to all sources for the information about guppy fish