Adult female swordtail fish can reach 6.3 inches in length, while males can grow up to 5.5 inches. Swordtail fish have an average lifespan of three to five years in captivity.
How big do female swordtails grow?
Look like platies, except for sword-like tail extending from the bottom of the caudal (tail) fin of males. Males grow to 14cm. Females grow to 16cm. Males can be distinguished by their long sword-like tail.
How big is a female swordfish?
Your typical female swordtail will revolve around 5.5 to 6 inches in length, while males will settle for about 4.5 to 5. In many cases, the female can grow up to 6.5 inches but will rarely go beyond that, while males can go up to 5.5.
How big do swordtails get?
The male green swordtail grows to a maximum overall length of 14 centimetres (5.5 in) and the female to 16 centimetres (6.3 in). The name ‘swordtail’ is derived from the elongated lower lobe of the male’s caudal fin (tailfin).
How many swordtails should be kept together?
Swordtail Fish Behavior and Temperament
They aren’t necessarily shoaling species, but they should be kept in a group of 5-6 to help them feel comfortable in the tank. Also, keep the ratio of females more in comparison to male ones.
How long does it take for a swordtail to reach full size?
Fry will take around six months to reach its full size, which are 1.5 inches for the females and 2 inches for the males. Improper aquarium tank conditions will not allow the attainment of that size. For your swordtails to grow faster, maintain the right water conditions.
Are swordtails fin nippers?
It should be noted that when they are fully grown they can be very active and may out-compete some smaller or less active species for food. Some adult Swordtails can be aggressive and develop the habit of fin nipping.
Can swordtails change gender?
Amateur breeders have at times reported sex change in some old female swordtails of their aquaria, and biologists have re- ported sex inversions in domesticated Xi- phophortts helleri. Essenberg (1926) reported two instan- ces of complete sex inversion.
Do female swordtails have swords?
Abstract. Swordtail fish exhibit a striking sexual dimorphism in the structure of the caudal fin; males have a colourful, elongated caudal appendage, termed a sword, that is absent in females.
Is swordtail a guppy?
The Yellow Top Swordtail Guppy (Poecilia reticulata) is a very uncommon guppy variety that has a distinctive sword extension at the top of the tail in males.
What is the lifespan of a swordtail?
The average swordtail fish lifespan is around three to five years. Fish kept in the best and most stable living conditions tend to live longer.
Do swordtails jump out of tank?
It is not uncommon for an inexperienced aquarium hobbyist to come home one day to find one or more of their fish have jumped out of the tank and dried up on the floor. This behavior is particularly common in small tropical species like swordtails and guppies but it is certainly not limited to these species.
Will swordtails breed with mollies?
1- Molly And Swordtail Can’t Interbreed
The first reason why it is impossible for them to interbreed is that they belong to different families. Even though they are both livebearer fish mollies are part of the Poecilia family and swordtails originate from the Xiphophorus family.
How often do swordtail fish have babies?
Swordtail Fish are Livebearers
This group gives birth to live fry. A female swordtail can produce offspring as often as every four weeks.
How long does it take for a swordtail to have babies?
Although the swordtail’s gestation period is 28 days, it may be difficult to determine when she became pregnant. Gestation can vary by a few days if the female is stressed or water conditions aren’t quite right.
How many fry do swordtails give birth to?
How many fry can you expect from a swordtail? Like other livebearers, a swordtail can deliver 5-80 babies at a time but the average number is 30-35. They get pregnant immediately after giving birth and they will give birth after one month.
What do you feed swordtail fish?
The best live foods to feed to swordtails are daphina, blackworms, bloodworms, brine shrimp and mosquito larvae (illegal to culture in some areas). Their taste in frozen foods are pretty similar and they can be fed frozen daphnia, blackworms, brine shrimp and bloodworms.
Are swordtails easy to breed?
Swordtails are livebearers, meaning they will give birth to live fry instead of eggs. Swordtails readily breed when kept in an aquarium of mixed sex, requiring little intervention. The young are very easy to rear and can be raised in the same aquarium as the adults.
Will swordtails breed with platys?
In these cases, the basic raw materials are provided by nature itself because swordtails and platies are very closely related to each other. They belong to the Xiphophorus genus, and because of their “biological proximity,” they can easily interbreed and produce viable hybrids in the process.
Do swordtail fish eat plants?
They definitely eat filamentous algae and dying plants, but I’ve never had the issue of them eating healthy plants of any kind. All that said, every fish is different and there isn’t much you can do once they’ve developed a taste. The plan going forward is either use only plants they don’t eat or the fish hit the road.
Can swordtails be aggressive?
So, are swordtail fish really aggressive? Swordtails are peaceful in general and will remain peaceful as long as their habitat is adequate. They are exclusively peaceful tropical fish species.