Guppy male "cobra blue" - Poecilia reticulata

Another incredibly great color variation of the Poecilia reticulata native to South America is the Cobra Blue Guppy. In aquaristics Guppies are absolute evergreens, which once represented the first beginner fish for almost every aquarist. But even today their popularity does not stop, on the contrary - always new breeding forms and colors delight Guppy fans worldwide, so also the fancy Cobra blue with its fantastic pattern. Since the Guppy is also considered a "million fish", you acquire here a pure male group to actively prevent uncontrolled reproduction. But even if you should decide to breed, you will of course find the matching females in our store.

A pure male group loses nothing of its charm, quite the opposite, because the animals are not under permanent stress and can therefore even live a little more relaxed and longer. The Cobra Blue has a bright blue color, mainly from the abdomen to the tail fin. Its body is decorated with the typical "Cobra" pattern, which shimmers and iridesces depending on the incidence of light.

Optically the males differ clearly from the substantially larger and more bulky females. Above all their substantially more intensive colors let the sex difference stand out already strikingly. In addition, they also have an anal fin that has been converted into a mating organ, while that of the females is sail-shaped. Usually guppies are in permanent courtship and mate frequently. The female can store the sperm and fertilize herself several times, even without the male's intervention. Therefore, the guppy is also called million fish. Almost every 3 weeks the female Guppy releases up to 40 live, fully developed young fish, which is why they are also counted among the live-bearing toothcarps. Because the parents chase their own young the population is decimated in a natural way, but with many fine feathery plants or a so-called Guppy box the amount of young can be corrected upwards.

An aquarium with an edge length of 60 cm or more is perfectly suitable for the Cobra blue Guppies. Since they are on the move the whole day, they need accordingly swimming space to let off steam. The planting may therefore be located at the edges of the tank and at the background, but may also be densely weedy in places, so that the animals can retreat here to recover. Regarding the further tank design it does not have special requirements, but uses it in places also as a visual protection. The aquarium water may be soft to hard and should be changed regularly.

Because Guppies and Endler Guppies are very closely related, they should not be kept together as they can hybridize. However, great tank mates are other livebearers such as platies or mollies, likewise tetras or loricariids or Corydoras. The Blue Cobra Guppy is a great splash of color in a beautiful South Armerica tank! These great comrades can also be mixed with well reproducing dwarf shrimp species like for example the Red Fire Shrimp but it can happen that they occasionally attack their offspring. Also suitable Amano shrimp or Sulawesi algae shrimps are also suitable. However, since the Guppy is a bottom sleeper, it is better not to socialize it with dwarf crayfish or crayfish, since these could possibly pinch the sensitive fins of the sleeping Guppy, which can lead to poorly healing injuries.

As omnivores, the Blue Cobra Guppy can be accustomed to any commercial food in the aquarium, including flake food, granules or other dry foods for omnivorous ornamental fish. In addition, they also like to nibble on coverings and therefore keep the algae population somewhat in check. Scalded vegetables such as cucumber, peppers or pumpkin can be offered to them from time to time, they also like to tug on these. With live and frozen food such as Artemia, Daphnia or cyclops can spice up their menu a bit in between.

Our food recommendation NatureHolic Guppyfeed is a fine soft granulate with 0.5 mm grain thickness, which is suitable as a staple food for all aquarium fish and especially for guppies. The soft consistency of the food beads is reminiscent of that of natural insect larvae. It protects the sensitive fish mouth from micro injuries caused by hard or sharp-edged food. In addition to animal food, guppies also need a vegetable component in their diet. As special additives we add garlic extract and the leaf powder of the miracle tree Moringa olifera to NatureHolic Guppyfeed. These herbal additives are said to have positive effects on the immune system and the colorfulness of the colorful fish.

Our plant recommendation: Use for planting NatureHolic InVitros. These are free of snails, planaria and other unwanted co-inhabitants. Also free of algae spores, bacteria and fungi.

Expert Tip: We recommend for fish keeping the NatureHolic 3 Phase Liquid. The care set offers the best all-round protection for your animals. It ensures optimal conditions for successful breeding and keeping.