Best Livebearer fof feeder fish?

Djfriday09

I"m starting a 10,20, or 30 galllon tank to start a breeder fish tank for my S.A. cichlid tank.

I'm thinking guppies would be best, but it's hard to find females and the're kinda esxpensive for how eassier they are to breed.

Mollies on the other hand I believe woulld be easy to breed as well and maybe mix with a few male swordtails just because ti would be easier to find females at a pet store.



what other fish will be good for vreeding I"m think a 5f-1, or 4f-2m male ration in the tanks.
Are tere cheaper easier to breed?

I'm not sure ahat size but I"m expecting to get at least ten and think one ten gallon will work and when the females are about to pop I'll put them in their own ten gallon tank until they pop then put them back in with the adults.

mollies

depends what your feeding mollies work good, get a bit bigger then your typical Guppy. But Guppys breed like rabits. Dont get me wrong mollies drop fry to but once a month. and feeder guppys drop fry like 2 weeks or 3 weeks. Mollies grow faster to.

Rohland

to be honest. You shouldnt be feeding your fish any feeder fish. They provide no nutritional value to your fish. They are good as an occasional fish. But not as a staple diet. The best food you could feed them is brand name pre packaged pellets/flakes that are make for your specific fish. If you wanted to feed them feeder fish use it as a treat, one a month never more because really giving your fish, feeder fish is like us eating cardboard.. It fills us up, but it doesn't provide us any nutrients that our bodies need on a daily basis.

Djfriday09

this is why I'm breeding my own so I can feed the babies once a month or 2 to my cichlids but I feed them cichlid food for now. I've just like to stat my own tank for feeders rather than buy sick cheap ones from the store...

Djfriday09

ya, it is mollies or platys that can breed with swordtails? either way I'm thinking guppies unless there's a cheaper version of guppies? ha

mollies

Go to you lfs and get some male and female feeder guppys. not the fancy tail. Ther bout the cheapest you can get.

1077

I used to offer cichlids occasional feeder fish but have long ago stopped the practice in large part due to very real probability of introducing parasites or disease to otherwise healthy fish.
Upon researching possible harm to fish from feeding live feeders, I came across an article (study) That stated that live feeders often contain an enzyme ,Thiaminase, which destroys B1 vitamin needed by fish. Also learned that offering feeders can introduce Mycobacterium in otherwise healthy fish.
Closest I can come to original article is.. www..edis.ifas.ufl.edu/FA097 I would encourage those interested to have a read there.
I have since heard the same from several other studies performed by those with degrees in such things. In any event,, There aren't many fish that won't do well without live feeders in their diet. Too many prepared foods that are much more nutritious on the market today for me to risk the health of my fish.

adiumroot

Platys and swordtails can interbreed. Both are of genus Xiphophorus
Mollies and Guppies are both of genus Poecilia, however from what I know, interbreedings are kind of rare and the offspring are mostly infertile.

I've heard about the thiaminase but only from feeder Goldfish. (sorry 1077, the link you provided won't load) I haven't heard that it was present in feeder guppies/livebearers too. Breeding our own feeders is alright, especially if you take care of them well and not overcrowd them. Feeders should remain as treats only and not the main diet. It's nice to see the natural hunting behaviour once in a while.

If you're going to feed only once a month, then 2 females and 1 male would be enough, IMO. 1 female and 1 male would be possible, but a 1 is to 1 ratio leads to the male harassing and stressing out the female too much, which could lead to disease.

Edit: I googled a bit and found out that most freshwater fish do indeed contain thiaminase. However, consensus holds that feeding not more than once a week is not harmful, especially if the main diet is nutritious enough. So if it's a monthly treat, nothing to worry about except for disease, which is easily preventable given proper water quality management.

Oldman47

A good feeder fish is convict fry. You get a lot more fry than with any livebearer and they are just as easy to breed.

kald

There's a reason that livebearers are no longer sold anywhere near where I live; very low nutritional value. Most people here use young Goldfish, but I doubt it's a huge lot of difference.