a 15 gallon tank!?

Question

i have a lot of guppies in the pond maybe thousands of them i just can't count.Their parents are big but obviously they're half the sized only ,which makes me wonder...Now i want to transfer some 7 months old female guppies into my 15 gallon tank and i was wondering if they are still growing because in the pond they're malnourished! and i i wan them to grow like they're parents i shouldn't include a male guppy, Right? and i i want them to grow to their full growth how many female should i place in my tank??? it has plants and i could put an aerator whenever needed...=)


thanks!

Answer 1

I doubt that your guppies are malnourished in an outdoor pond,there should be plenty for them to eat.
The most likely reason for the diminishing size of fish in the pond is genetics. It goes something like this,when guppies start breeding their growth rate slows, so the guppies that breed first will be smaller when they mature,an these early maturing,smaller bodied fish will produce future generations with this same trait,while the larger,later maturing females become more likely to be bred by the majority of the earlier maturing,smaller bodied males,thus perpetuating the undesirable traits(early maturing,smaller body).
Your idea of segregating the unbred females is right, but at age seven months,I doubt if you will find many that haven't already been inseminated.
Go ahead and segregate the largest females that you can collect,and then remove the ones that begin to show gravid spots,so you could start with a large quantity of females and return the gravid ones to the pond,or use them as feeders for some sort of predatory fish,if you are not morally opposed to such things.(You should understand that raising genetically superior fish involves some "culling").
Also be aware the your 15 gallon tank needs to be cycled.
I hope this is clear enough for you to understand,I'm not the best writer. If you need clarification feel free to e-mail me through this forum.
And yes,an aerator in the tank would be a good thing.

Answer 2

Yes fish really always grow. So they will get bigger as conditions get better. I would advise trying to get rid of some. If you have thousands then you are way over crowded. But for the 15 gallon tank you can get away with at most 15 guppies. I would avoid putting in any males. The last thing you need is for them to breed again.

Answer 3

I wouldn't suggest all females. Guppies are live bearers and in all female conditions the head female will under go a natural sex change. I just had it happen with an all female mollie tank, one changed into a male and now I have too many darn babies!

Go for all males. There will be so many that even if there is any aggresion, it will be displaced among many others.

Answer 4

Your fish will grow in relation to your tank size... A 15 gallon tank they'll probably grow to the size of your other fish, just be sure to keep them all same sex and ensure that the water temperature is equal to that of your ponds. :)

Answer 5

hell no do not listen to them 7 or 8

Answer 6

12 max

Male will just = more fish