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gambusia and guppies | 13 comments (13 topical, 0 editorial, 0 hidden)

Wow! Does she have them intimidated! ;) (none / 0) (#8)
by unclescott on Sat Dec 29, 2007 at 09:27:15 AM PST

[ Parent ]

By the way, though I know this sounds (none / 0) (#9)
by unclescott on Sun Dec 30, 2007 at 02:50:17 PM PST

grumpy, but how do you know that the female is out of fry? Have you candled her several times and seen no developing eggs or fry? Are you sure that she hasn't dropped any fry in the last three months and that dropped fry weren't consumed by herself and/or other tank mates? Was she so continually watched that you didn't see her ever getting "full figured" and then getting slightly slimmer? Was she always so well fed with meaty stuff that she wouldn't eat her own fry?

I've been hoisted upon my own petard after confidently making some sweeping generalization I couldn't support. We all nick ourselves sometime(s) in our lives. That is pretty uncomfortable (awfully embarrassing) and I hope to wing it (bs) less (these days). ;) Be careful in asserting that an adult female livebearer hasn't recently dropped any fry or that one can cross two species that don't seem to have been crossed in 100 years in the hobby, by the possibly millions of hobbyists who kept them. :)

Your odds of fixing a certain strain of molly are vastly greater than getting one of those molly crosses to work. And to be reliable experiments, one might guess that the breeders in a species cross need to be from documentably pure strains and certainly the females (if livebearers) need to be virgins, really from single species tanks.

[ Parent ]

Re: By the way, though I know this sounds (none / 0) (#10)
by josh117 on Sun Dec 30, 2007 at 07:05:35 PM PST

she never droped since the last time i caught her babies 3 months ago and turns out one male out of her litter got the grandma pregnant she has a gravid spot now. the other one which im trying to crossbreed hasnt gotten full and she would get really really big and drop lots and i never found another or had her get pregnant since.

[ Parent ]

Here's another couple points about the female (none / 0) (#11)
by unclescott on Sun Dec 30, 2007 at 09:26:32 PM PST

Gambusia. If you rescued 3 fry (and well done at that!) she probably dropped 10 times that. What if she dropped while you were at school or out and about? How many of the 30 would be saved then?

There is the temperature factor also. If your tank were to have dropped, perhaps to the 60s F/15.5-20.5 C, the female may not have dropped at all. It is sort of as if the fry went on "hold" until it gets warmer. Temperate zone livebearers don't drop in the winter. We can do that to tropicals, if we keep them too cool in the winter.

There is not as much food or shelter as in the warmer months. Why should they evolve to use up precious energy and food in order to drop fry, which will all be devoured? What is the survival advantage in that?

[ Parent ]

Re: Here's another couple points about the female (none / 0) (#12)
by josh117 on Sat Jan 12, 2008 at 08:52:17 AM PST

i caught about 100 fry but it was 3 months ago. today i am getting rid of the nusences and giving them to the petco that lets me catch my own fish because they know i can catch them faster and better than they can. Right now they have about 20 mosquito fish in their plant tank because they came in with minnows. I give them lots of fish because i trust the 2 aquatics people there.

[ Parent ]

That is hard to do but sometimes smart - giving (none / 0) (#13)
by unclescott on Mon Jan 14, 2008 at 05:30:01 AM PST

extra fish away. That is very cool, that you have established such a good rapport with the aquarists at the shop. That always makes the hobby more interesting and fun. It is amazing what one can learn in casual conversation with knowledgeable people too. That they let you net fish is quite a comment about their regard for your abilities and trust-worthiness! :)

[ Parent ]

gambusia and guppies | 13 comments (13 topical, 0 editorial, 0 hidden)

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