At what age will swordtails start breeding?

Question

I have young swordtail, only about 2 inches(and htey get to 4) and a friend of mine on a fish forum is interested on getting some of the fry so im wondering when they sould start breeding so i can set up a fry tank

IDK how many weeks or m onths old they are, could some1 tell me what they think a 2 inch swordtails(female) age is

do they show any other signs besides large bellys? How many should be in the first batch?

I know which are males and which are females, im wondering WHEN they will give birth, not which will give birth

Answer 1

I have read in a Barron's book to keeping livebearers that in swordtails, only the males develop a significant "sword" on their tail while females are less obvious. I hope this helps you in regards to determining which ones will give birth.

Answer 2

Swordtails can start breeding as early as 3-4 months old, which is why most breeders choose to seperate them after the sex is determined...

Big bellies are a sign yes, but the closer moment to birth the female will seperate herself from the other fish and may get semi-aggressive toward the male near her..

She will hide in a corner, behind a plant, etc and just hover there for a decent amount of time..

The best breeding temperature is around 78 Degrees Farenheit and make sure you parameters such as Nitrates, Nitrites, Ammonia, PH, & Kh are all is safe, or close to safe ranges to minimize stress and induce spawning...

Swords can give between 10-100 fry per session, and may give berth every 4-6 weeks up to 6 months without a male present.. They store sperm in a pouch and re-fertilize after every birth..

I have successfully bred several hundred fry in a wide range of colors as well.. just make sure to feed them 2x a day when they get closer to birth as they may eat some of the fry before you notice them swimming and rescue them..

The Fry will be about the size of a tip of a ballpoint pen and mostly clear, so you may think it's food, bubble, etc..


Hope this info helps and good luck......

Answer 3

Hmm, I have some that are three and 1/2 months old that are pregnant. They are approximately 1 3/4 inches long. You will be able to see the gravid spot long before the girls get big enough to give birth, so you'll have plenty of time to set up a fry tank...unless you have tuxedos or blacks!

In order to encourage breeding, try feeding tubifex worms, fresh veggies, frozen brine shrimp once a week.

Set up the fry tank right away, anyway - you never know when you'll need a spare tank!

Good luck!

Answer 4

i cant remember the actual time, but i do remember they breeded quite soon and quite often... i had about ten to twenty of them in my fishtank as a youth, and there was always one or more pregnant...

i should guess yours will be starting anytime now. but dont worry. a pregnant swordtail is quite easily recognized since they develop a very notable belly before giving birth.

if you just look out for that every other day or two, i am sure you wont
miss it.

Oh, and dont put too much confidence in size. that varies pretty much. some wont get longer than two inches without the tail.

Answer 5

you're heading in the right direction. Kribensis are a good ciclild to initiate breeding, yet nonetheless something that you'll promote. a million - they are uncomplicated to pair 2 - not promptly, yet you probable favor yet another tank to rear the fry once the dad and mom free interst. 3 - you should be able to promote them, a lot less stressful than convicts besides 4 - if you're breeding, basically save the breeding fish. different fish would nicely be killed with information from the dad and mom, or devour the fry. 5 - No secrets and techniques. solid water situations and solid nutrition. 6 - definite 7 - solid success Ian