Little Mama gives birth

Little Mama hours before giving birth

Within two days of having my female guppies in my 29 gallon tank, the miracle of birth occurred in the dead of night and 18 healthy fry were born.  Earlier in that evening I had noticed that she had become "squared off".  (Her belly had changed from plump and round to the angular boxy shape exhibited above).  Upon seeing this development I moved her to into the breeding box.  This transition seemed to have upset and stressed the fish more than I was hoping for.  I stayed awake until around 2:30am trying to capture the birth on film.  I failed.  Before going to sleep I decided to return the pregnant female to the main tank and moved the only two males into the breeder to help ease the females stress if she decided to give birth in the middle of the night.

7 hours later I awoke to find 18 healthy guppy fry seemingly thriving at all altitudes of the tank.  At this time I also had 2 nickel sized angelfish who seemed to be interested in the fry but not necessarily pursuing them as prey.  I used a clean plastic cup to gently move as many fry from the surface as possible to the floating breeder, eventually transferring 10 in total.  The remaining 8 fry have remained at greater depths of the tank making a safe transfer too difficult to attempt.

  Fry in floating breeder box

My local fish store is closed for a few days and while waiting to acquire some BBS (baby brine shrimp) I have been feeding the fry powdered tetra flakes (2-3x daily) and they seem to enjoy it.  The most effective way i found to powder the flakes is with the back side of a spoon on a clean piece of white paper. A mortar and pestle would be the best choice.  As of day three all 18 fry are accounted for.  pH has been steady at 6.9-7 and temps have been set to 80F. I have also administered a partial water change however due to the small amount of fish in such a large tank i am considering changing water less frequently if the water quality remains above average conditions. 

Fry finding refuge among plants at bottom of tank

Mission Statement

Guppy tank day 1

Allow me to introduce myself.  My name is Brooke Douglas and I live on Martha's Vineyard, a small island off the coast of Massachusetts.  I have always been a pet enthusiast, growing up on a bucolic horse farm in West Tisbury and am currently living with three cats, a yellow headed amazon parrot, a wonderful female Yorkie, and more recently two freshwater fish tanks (10 gal and 29 gallon).  Upon purchasing the larger tank I decided to take up guppy breeding as a pass time and hobby.  My decision to breed guppies was based on the simplicity of  the breed and of course the sheer beauty that the species has long been known for.  I am creating this Blog for two reasons.  First I would like this blog project to document my first attempts at culling specific desirable traits in my guppy population through multiple generations.  I will achieve this through photographic and video documentation updated regularly.  This includes monitoring female pregnancies, growth of fry and treatment of possible diseases.  Secondly I would like this blog to actively provide information to others embarking on the same mission of guppy reproduction and general care.