where do guppys come from

[sammigold]

I read about some guppies coming from Florida.. now thats interesting...
What is also interesting is that there is not alot of info about actual biotopes... I have a feeling that is because the guppies we get today are mainly fancy ones that have been bred especially in farms etc so they dont really have a true biotope (other than a pool!LOL)
The guppys that we would find in the wild look nothing like the fancy tails etc that we can obtain now... maybe that is why you dont find much...(shrugging shoulders)

[Bumblebee]

we can still dream though . I might ask on the planetcatfish forum. a lot of loricards come from the trinidad/brasil area and there are a lot of prople interested in creating biotype tanks on that site. will just say its about catfish . here goes nothing!

[Bumblebee]

here is the first lot of results from another forum (planet-catfish)

some interesting responses and a lot of info to go on regarding fish species.
www.planetcatfish.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=16170

a site listing a 'livebearer biotype planted tank" naturalaquariums.com/plantedtank/0604.html

a list of fish they may or may not live with, by common name:

tilapia cichlid
head and tail light tetra
banded knife fish
featherfin tetra
Hypostomus Robinii
Hypostomus Plecostomus
Calypso tetra
Spotted Hoplo
Mollie (liberty molly)
One-line pencilfish
silver tetra (false black tetra)
sword tailed charachin
four-eye


* note, these fish may not be suitable guppy companions, they just live in the same habitat, some may even be natural guppy predators.

[kangakoi]

Ha..Ha...

Why not try for the Japanese look or the Singaporian look that where i think most Guppies originated from. if I would tell you thre sort of places where guppies came from mother country you would not want to hear. At kid we pick up wild guppies from all sort of strange places as far as "We know" guppies came from WaaaWaaWaa. I have always think to try for the Lost Atlantic setup

[Bumblebee]

they have been spread worldwide for mosqueto controll so can 'now' be found just about anywhere. we are trying to create origional biotype tanks though. rather than ones from where the fish may just be popular these days.

[kangakoi]

I wouldn't never thought that guppy was an introduce species to south-east Asia. As kid, we collect guppy fry to feed our siamese fighting fish. We called htis fish "seven coloured fish" because the male boby have colour like a rainbow. Then we moved to Australia the Mosquito fish overhere look very very similar but the male does not have coloured body and the original thought was they may have given up the colour for survival in Oz condition.

This make me think, can you create a new specie of cold water tolorated guppi if you to cross the fanci male gupppi with the local mosquito female fish? this will save a lot of heating requirement and the offsprings would be unbeliveabe hardy. Have anyone on this board ever tried?

PS. if this post is un-ethical in any way please delete.

[Bumblebee]

there is the Gambusia a livebearer that looks like a colourless guppy that can tolerate cooler water but is also a 'pest' fish and illegal to own or sell in many states. Also illegal to own offspring or try to create hybrids in states where they are considered pests. Mainly because it is causeing great damage to native fish in waterways that it has infested. It is even causing trouble where I live where water gets down to 2-3c in winter. Unfortunatley if you own them, live or dead. Inland fisheries can sieze all your tanks and destroy all your fish, not a happy thought.

the origional place Guppys were discovered were the islands of trinidad and tobogo, in the caribbean, although they were also later discovered on parts of the mainland. along with sub-species like endlers.